On 1 May 2010, in New York, CND launched Shellac, billed as the first hybrid gel-polish and, the company says, five years in development. It needed a lamp, and it was a salon product first. Jan Arnold, CND's co-founder, was one of the people behind a company that changed what people expected from a manicure.

Four years later, Sally Hansen answered with the drugstore version. The brand's roots are older: Sally Hansen bought her family's failing cosmetics store in 1935, renamed it House of Hollywood, and later trademarked Hard As Nails in 1957. The company says it has been around since 1946. When Sally Hansen Miracle Gel arrived in 2014, it called itself the first ever part lacquer, part gel manicure system. The color coat carries an oligomer, the top coat a photoinitiator, and the pair cures in natural light, so there is no lamp. You apply two coats of color, give each five minutes to dry, and finish with one coat of top coat. The brand also says it is vegan. Allure reported that it has been the brand's best-selling line since launch.

The trick is to treat it as a system. Miracle Gel Nail Polish is the color, and the brand tells you not to wear its top coat over regular polish. The SuperCharged Glam Collection is the gift-shaped way to try a few shades at once. Insta-Dri, which the brand says dries in about 60 seconds, is the everyday sibling, and Insta-Dri Anti-Chip Top Coat is its finisher. Advanced Hard As Nails, the Vitamin E Nail & Cuticle Oil, Gel Rehab Nail Repair Serum and Color Therapy Nail Polish round out the line for the days your nails need care before color.

One painted thumb tells you more than any shade card. Leave it for three days and see what a stretch of dishes and keyboard does to it.

essie's Gel Couture Longwear Nail Polish is the salon-style one you can use at home, and Gel Couture Liquid Diamonds is the shimmer version for evenings. OPI Infinite Shine comes in two groups here, the blues and greens and the blacks, whites and grays, so it suits anyone building a small wardrobe of colors. Olive & June Long-Lasting Nail Polish is for people who like a tidy, modern bottle, and Nails.INC It's Topless is a sheer neutral that hides chips better than a dark shade.

Gelcare's Cloud Gel and Vanilla Gel are the soft, milky shades, and the names tell you what to expect: a cloud and a vanilla, for short, clean nails.

I wear a sheer milky polish with a clear top coat for the office, and the deep shade from the OPI set for the weekend.

What I would skip: a dark, glossy gel-effect polish the night before a flight. Any chip will show, and you will not have time to fix it.

A manicure that lasts comes down to the top coat. Color is the pretty part, and the clear coat is the armour, so this is where I would put my attention.

Gitti's Smoothing Base Coat and High Gloss Top Coat are a matched pair, and the top coat gives a glassy finish. Côte Beauty Quick Dry Top Coat is the one for the impatient, and Côte's Nail Strengthener Base Coat is for nails that peel. Gelcare's Base Coat and Top Coat are the neat matched set, and Nailberry's Bare Essentials 2 in 1 Base & Top Coat does both jobs in one bottle for a fast weekday manicure. Manucurist's Xtrem Flash Long-Lasting Gel Nail Polish Top Coat is the one to try if you want a gel finish on top.

Run the top coat over the free edge of the nail and cap it. That thin line at the tip is where most chips begin, so it is worth the extra second on every nail.

What I would skip: a thick top coat over polish that has not had time to dry. It wrinkles, and you start over.

Taking the polish off properly is the boring part, and it matters. The brand's 2014 release says Miracle Gel comes off with acetone-based or acetone-free remover, with no soaking or filing, which is one of the nicest things about it.

Gitti's Nail Polish Remover is the salon-brand bottle, and Cutex Ultra Powerful is the familiar drugstore bottle. Dashing Diva One Gel Magic Off is made for stubborn gel formulas, so keep it on hand if you wear a lot of gel-effect polish.

For tools, the Tweezerman Rockhard Cuticle Nipper is for tidying hangnails, used with care. KISS 2-Sided and File & Smooth nail files and Olive & June's Nail File Pack and Nail Buffer Pack are the everyday basics, and a fresh file is the smallest upgrade you can make.

A pairing I like: file in one direction, then buff lightly, then wipe the nail with remover before any base coat. A clean, dry surface is what a base coat grips.

What I would skip: peeling polish off with a thumbnail. It takes a layer of your nail with it.

Miracle Gel is at its best as a low-stakes, mid-week manicure. It is not a salon gel, and the brand's own top coat claim is about eight days, but it is easy, and it asks for no lamp.

So I would start with one color, the matching top coat and a good remover, and do it on a Sunday night with a podcast on. Keep the thumb test in mind, and keep a file in your bag for the first snag. Shellac took five years to develop. Yours takes ten minutes of drying time and a little patience. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Le Mini Macaron, the Pastel Lamp That Brought Gel Home and How To Buy A Table Lamp Online.