Collection: Cat Eye Magnets

What is a cat eye magnet?

A small, strong magnet on a handle, held over wet cat eye gel to pull the magnetic pigment into a line, a ring or a pattern before the gel is cured. The gel does the shimmer; the magnet decides the shape. Every cat eye gel we sell, the Lavis CE drops, the Lavis C-series cat eye lines and our own SNS Crystal Twinkle and Diamond Twinkle, needs one, and none of them include it in the bottle.

This page groups every magnet and effect tool on the shelf: bar and stick magnets for the classic streak, multi-effect heads with several poles, ring and gyroscope magnets for circles and halos, double-headed sticks, shaped tools that stamp a heart, a bunny or a French curve into the shimmer, and the finger rests that keep the hand steady while the magnet works.

Which magnet makes which line?

Several listings come in a choice of handle color; the magnet inside is the same. If a listing name is unfamiliar, read it by its effect: anything called ring, circle or gyroscope makes a round pull, anything called bar, stick or cigar makes a straight one, and the "in-1" heads are several of those on a single handle.

Who needs which tool?

• Every salon that sells cat eye: one bar magnet is the minimum; the streak it pulls is the look most clients ask for.
• Techs who want a menu of effects: a 5-in-1 or 6-in-1 head replaces a drawer of single magnets.
• Halo and aura cat eye: a ring or gyroscope magnet makes the round effect the Lavis Galactic Halo and Double Vision drops are built for.
• Nail art sets: the heart, bunny and French tools stamp a shape into the shimmer that is otherwise painted by hand.
• Home users: a finger rest plus a double-headed stick covers the basics with a steady hand.

How do you use a cat eye magnet?

1. Cure the first coat of cat eye gel without the magnet. That coat is the color bed.
2. Apply the second coat slightly fuller, and before it cures hold the magnet a few millimeters above the wet gel. Lavis's product pages specify about 2 mm for three to five seconds.
3. Shape. Lengthwise over the center for a straight streak, angled for a diagonal, a ring held flat for a halo, a shaped tool pressed close for a heart or bunny. Do not touch the gel.
4. Flash cure at once. The pigment starts to relax the moment the magnet moves away, so the nail goes under the lamp within a second or two. One nail at a time, then a full cure for the hand.
5. Top coat. A glossy gel top locks the line in; a matte top gives a velvet cat eye.

Cat eye gels are under SNS Cat Eye Gel and the Lavis drops such as CE1 Cozy Cashmere, CE16 Double Vision and CE18 Galactic Halo; lamps are under Nail Tools & Accessories.

Strong magnet, weak line: the usual causes

A soft or blurry line is almost always timing or distance, not the magnet. The pigment drifts as soon as the field is gone, so a nail that waits three seconds for the lamp loses its edge; work one nail at a time and flash cure each. A magnet held too far away pulls a faint band, and a first coat that was not cured before the second went on gives the pigment nowhere to settle. A dark cured underlayer from SNS Gel Only makes any line read stronger. Multi-effect heads carry different poles for the main streak and for the finer patterns; learn which is which on a tip before a client.

Care and storage

• Keep magnets away from the bottles. A magnet resting next to a cat eye gel pulls the pigment to one side of the glass, and the next coat comes out uneven until it is shaken back.
• Wipe, do not soak. Cured gel on the magnet face lifts with a wooden stick; keep acetone off the rubber-coated bars.
• Store flat and apart. Two strong magnets stored together snap and chip; the multi-effect heads in particular should live in their own slot.
• Stocking: a bar, a ring and one multi-effect head cover a full cat eye menu; add the shaped tools when the art requests start.

Related collections

• SNS Cat Eye Gel Crystal Twinkle and Diamond Twinkle, 24 shades each.
• Lavis Cat Eye CE1 Cozy Cashmere The first Lavis cat eye drop; the series runs to CE18.
• Lavis C09 Morning Dewdrop A 24-shade jelly cat eye line.
• Nail Art Chrome, glitter, ombre and rhinestones.
• Nail Tools & Accessories Lamps, files, brushes.

Related reads

• How SNS approaches a safer UV gel manicure
• Gel or dip powder manicure: which is right for you?
• Dip powder vs gel vs acrylic: how to choose