Solid cream gel polish is the latest innovation in gel nails. With more of a pudding consistency, this thick gel will stay put on your nail instead of flooding your cuticles like thinner gels tend to do. This also makes it ideal for hand-painting nail art designs that won’t run.
Many sets don’t include a brush, so make sure you have nail art brushes on hand. And this is a form of UV gel so it will require a UV nail lamp.
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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Price: $39.99 Shop at Amazon | Shop now Read our review |
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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Price: $16.99 Shop at Amazon | Shop now Read our review |
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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Price: $16.99 Shop at Amazon | Shop now Read our review |
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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Price: $12.99 Shop at Amazon | Shop now Read our review |
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Amazon Customer Reviews
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1. EDITOR’S CHOICE: Saviland Cream Gel Paint (36-Color Set_
Pros:- Up to 72-shades in a set
- Glitter and glow-in-the-dark options
- 7.6 grams per color
- Great value for money
Cons:- Doesn't include top or base
- Brushes aren't high quality
- Loose pots harder to store
If your priorities involve having access to lots of colors, go with a Saviland Solid Gel Set. Saviland has a wide, wide range of set sizes going from a larger-than-average 12-piece set to a whopping 72-piece set.
I’m featuring their right-in-the-middle 36-color set which has a nice variety of primary colors, pastels, and muted shades, along with classic black and white. They’re nicely pigmented as well. Users report that you need two coats for good opacity compared to three coats needed with other brands.
All of their sets include a 15-piece nail brush kit that has pretty much all the art brushes you could need (besides an acrylic brush but these aren’t acrylic). There are standard brushes for applying the gel as well as striping brushes, angled brushes, and fan brushes for creating nail art.
While individual pots can be a hassle to store, these sets have really good value for the money. Each pot carries 7.6 grams of product, which is more than enough for four 10-finger manicures in my experience. That means the 36-color set contains 273.6 grams of cream polish. It might not look like a ton in the pot, but so much for the money.
They also have fun finishes to choose from like a 12-color glow-in-the-dark set.
Find more Saviland UV Gel Paint Sets (12 to 72-Pieces Sizes) information and reviews here.
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2. Modelones 9-Color Crème Palettes
Pros:- Easy to use formula
- Gorgeous color themes
- Fun finishes like color-changing
- All-included set available
Cons:- Sheer and needs three coats
- Doesn't come with top or base coat
- A little sticky when applying
- One gram per color
It may look like a compact of cream eyeshadow, but this is actually the new Modelones Crème Gel Polish Palette. Each clamshell-style palette comes with nine shades and a compact nail brush. A wide range of color themes is available from sweet pastels to bright rainbow shades to muted nudes and striking color-changing gel polish that shifts colors depending on temperature.
This is the first solid cream brand I tried out (as a media sample with no promise of a review) and it’s a smooth, buttery texture that can have a little bit of stickiness to it until you get the hang of how to apply.
At one gram per color, it’s not a ton of product but I’ve found I’ll be able to get around four full 10-finger manicures out of each square of color as I’ve needed about two to three coats for full opacity. The materials state that cream polish avoids the sheer streakiness that you get with regular gel but I found I got just as much streaking with this as any other gel polish.
The benefit was that it was so much easier to control. I have a slight tremor so I’m always cleaning up flooded cuticles but it was so much easier to keep the polish exactly where I wanted it.
Modelones also makes a full starter kit that includes a palette, mini UV lamp, nail tools, brushes, nail brush cleaner, nail file, and cuticle oil.
Find more Modelones 9-Color Crème Palettes information and reviews here.
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3. MEFA Solid Gel 48-Color Palette Kit
Pros:- Lots of trendy colors to choose from
- Known brand
- Brush cleaner is a life saver
- Glitter, cream, and color-changing
Cons:- Grams per shade is not given
- No top or base coat included
- May not want all these colors
MEFA’s Solid Gel Kit offers a whopping 48 colors in a wide range from pastels to black to glitters. There are even a few color-changing shades that will shift colors depending on the temperature of your nails.
The set includes two nail brushes and two bottles of brush cleaner, which puts this set over the top for me. Cleaning solid gel off brushes is a hassle but brush cleaner makes it go so much faster.
They don’t say just how much product is in each cute little hexagon section, but they do list that there is enough to do eight 10-finger manicures of each color. That’s 384 manicures from this palette. Even if the makers are overstating that number and it’s really only half that–that’s still a ton of manicure from one product.
Find more MEFA Solid Gel 48-Color Palette Kit information and reviews here.
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4. MIZHSE Solid Gel Glitter Polish Palette
Pros:- Good variety of glitter finishes
- Comes with nail brush
- Other palettes are available
Cons:- Less product
- Have to want bold glitter
- No top or base coat included
Obsessed with glitter nail polish? Me too. MIZHSE has some of the best glitter solid gel palettes around.
This set has everything from fine micro-glitters, large dramatic hexes, iridescents, holographic, metallics, and glittery colors like this striking red. If you love to go bold, there are 16 different stand-out glitters here that will be sure to turn heads.
The set is in a compact-style palette which is nice and easy to store. I like that they include a brush.
Keep in mind that there are about 1.5 grams of product per shade in this compact with a total product amount of 24 grams. That’s good four to five manicures per color.
Find more MIZHSE Solid Gel Glitter Polish Palette information and reviews here.
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5. Blue Palace Jelly Solid Cream Palettes
Pros:- Slick jelly finish
- Other color palettes available
- Can control look with coats
- Easy formula
Cons:- No brush or top coat
- Less product for the money
- Not everyone wants jelly
Jelly Nails keep coming back on trend again and again because they’re unique and like nothing else. A jelly formula refers to a translucent effect that leaves your nails looking like shiny Jell-O.
This Blue Palace Solid Jelly Set offers this jelly look in a solid cream. I say cream, but the gel itself isn’t creamy since it’s translucent. It feels more like you’re painting with a really thick hair gel. That said, it’s surprisingly easy to work with and spreads well with immaculate control.
Because the polish is see-through, you can control the final look by deciding to use fewer or more coats of this polish. Two is a good number here but you can alter this to your liking.
The palette has 16 different jelly shades with 1.2 grams in each pot. That’s not very much but you only need very thin layers with jelly so you should be good to go for at least two full manicures per color.
Blue Palace also has combination sets with both jelly and cream shades.
I don’t love that they advertise this as “tasteless.” Yes, it looks like Jell-O, but please don’t eat this.
Find more Blue Palace Jelly Solid Cream Palettes information and reviews here.
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6. Tomicca Cream Gel 6-Piece Set
Pros:- Total of 30 grams of product
- Available in purples or oranges
- Mix of creams and glitter shades
- Easy to apply
Cons:- Limited palette
- No cleaner or top/base coat
- Colors are fairly dark
Tomicca’s Six-Piece Cream Gel Set is a good pick if you are looking for a solid range of colors for everyday wear. This set doesn’t have a ton of shades like you would need for extensive nail art, but it has six complementary shades that can be worn alone or get a little fancier with them and do an ombre nail. It comes with four cream shades and two glitter shades, one glitter with large bold hexes for when you’re looking to turn heads.
Each jar contains five grams of product, which ought to be enough for over a dozen manicures per color.
Find more Tomicca Cream Gel 6-Piece Set information and reviews here.
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7. Mzrocrio 6-Color Cream Manicure Sets
Pros:- Colors varied in each theme
- 30 grams total product
- Buttery texture
Cons:- No brush included
- In two separate containers
- Lesser known brand
Each Mzrocrio Set comes with two round palettes with six different colors of polishes total. Each shade has five grams of cream which is significantly more per color than say the Modelones palette which offers only one gram per color.
You may get fewer colors than some wider range options but you’re getting lots of product here. It’s a really good deal for the money when you consider you’re getting 30 grams of product.
While you’re only getting six colors per set, the color combinations are choice. They don’t have a named theme (which would have been an improvement) but they have a recognizable vibe like pastels, fall colors, glamorous black and silver, and peachy tones. Most containers have two cream polishes and one complementary glittery shade. The glitter shades have a wide range. There are lots of great metallic polishes here, a few holographic, and some glitter polish with large, bold hexes that will really stand out.
Find more Mzrocrio 6-Color Cream Manicure Sets information and reviews here.
What Is Cream Nail Polish?
Cream polish is a new formulation of gel nail polish that is much thicker than normal gel.
Gel tends to be pretty thick in the first place but this is much much thicker. Think cream blushes or a lipstick palette. It's also been compared to pudding and that's very accurate.
I'll admit it looked wild to me the first time I held a cream palette, but I'm a little bit hooked on it.
Other than being thicker, it acts just like gel polish.
Why Go Creamy?
Do you flood your cuticles? I do. I know all the proper application steps, but due to chronic health issues, I have a bit of a tremor so applying polish cleanly isn't easy.
Cream polish will not run or spread so I can precisely control exactly where the polish is going and then when I move my hand it won't suddenly run over the side.
That's pretty invaluable to me.
Plus, if you're clumsy, there's no danger of knocking over and spilling your polish bottle.
Does Cream Color Nail Polish Need a Top and Base Coat?
It does, which is a little annoying and I'm hoping they come up with something for that soon.
Until then, you will need a regular gel polish base coat and a gel top coat to finish.
What Else is Cream Gel Called?
It really seems, like with blooming gel, that there are a hundred-and-one names for this one product. Among others you might see this polish called things like:
- Solid cream gel nail polish
- Solid pudding gel polish
- Creme gel Polish
- Solid gel Polish
- Mud nail polish
How Do You Apply Cream Polish?
It's applied like any other gel polish except that you have to use your own nail brush.
You want a small amount on your brush and then apply to the center of your nail, pressing gently upwards until you are close but not touching your cuticle. (By pressing up instead of starting at the top and going down, you're preventing a thicker bead of polish nearly your cuticle that can cause lifting.)
Then drag your brush down to coat the center stripe of your nail.
Dip back into the color (if needed) and going from the top of the strip, sweep down at an angle to cover the left side of your nail and then repeat for the right side.
You may need a couple more evening strokes across the nail to finish up but cream polish should level itself out.
Do You Need an LED Lamp?
Yup. Just like all gel polish, cream gel needs to be cured by a nail lamp for the time directed by your brand.
How Do You Remove Solid Cream Gel Nail Polish?
The same way you remove regular gel nail polish. A good soak in pure acetone will do the trick.
We explained the tips and tricks on making sure you remove your gel without damaging your natural nails in our feature on the Best Gel Nail Polish Removers.
Can You Mix Cream Gel?
Yes, you can. Just like normal paints, you can mix your colors together (on a separate surface or nail polish safe mat) to create your own custom colors.
What Kind of Nail Brush Do I Need?
Look for something with a square or slightly rounded head and a simple body. Brushes that are made for builder gel are a good bet here.
What's the Difference Between Cream Gel and Builder Gel or Polygel?
These are not at all the same.
Builder gel and polygel are mainly designed to be used in nail extensions though they can be used as a strengthening overlay on natural nails.
Builder gel has the hardness of acrylic without the difficult powder application. It is harder than regular gel or cream gel as it needs to be removed with a nail drill.
Polygel is a whole different animal. It's extremely sticky so it needs to be paired with a slip solution to make its slime-like consistency workable.
Cream polish is just thick creamy polish.