Frequently asked questions
What is LDS Rubber Base Gel?
A thicker, flexible base gel that is worn as the color: it self-levels into a smooth cushion over the natural nail, adds strength without the rigidity of a builder, and comes tinted so base and manicure are one product. The LDS Bouncy Blush Collection is 30 pink and neutral tints, RB-01 to RB-30, sold as 0.5 oz singles and the Set of 30 in the current Ver 2 and the original run. LDS quotes over 21 days of chip-resistant wear.
How do I apply rubber base?
Prep, buff lightly, and dehydrate; no separate base coat is needed. Press a thin first coat over the nail and cure 60 seconds under LED, then float a fuller bead from the cuticle area to the free edge, turn the hand over a few seconds so it levels into a cushion with a slight apex, and cure. Wear it bare under an LDS no-wipe top or apply gel color over it. Fill by filing the surface and rebuilding with the same RB number, or soak off in acetone.
Rubber base, builder gel, or a regular base coat?
A regular base coat is thin and rigid and only bonds color. Builder gel is stronger and thicker, for overlays with an apex and short extensions. Rubber base sits between: more flexible than a base coat, softer than builder, tinted so it is the finished look on its own, and the choice for a client who wants a stronger natural nail without an enhancement or whose gel polish chips at the free edge on a standard base.
Which tints should a salon stock?
Six to start: two sheer pinks, two milky neutrals, and two deeper nudes, which covers the bare rubber-base manicure for most skin tones; hold three against the cuticle and the one that disappears at the sidewall is the client's tint. The Set of 30 suits a salon that sells the service by name with a full swatch stick. Both runs share the same 30 numbers, so reorders are by RB number.
Is LDS Rubber Base sold at wholesale?
Yes. Every RB single and the Set of 30 at ND Nails Supply is wholesale-priced for everyone, with no business license, no minimum order, and no membership fee. The Set of 30 put a whole palette on the wall in one order. Orders $100+ ship free, and in-stock bottles ordered before 2pm PT on weekdays leave the same day.
LDS Rubber Base Gel: the Bouncy Blush collection in 30 tinted shades
Rubber base is a thicker, flexible base gel that is worn as the color: it levels into a smooth cushion over the natural nail, adds strength without the rigidity of a builder, and comes tinted in pinks and neutrals so the base coat and the manicure are one product. The LDS Bouncy Blush Collection is that product in 30 shades, RB-01 to RB-30, all pinks and neutrals, sold as 0.5 oz singles and as the Set of 30, in the original formula and the current Ver 2. ND Nails Supply carries all 62 listings at wholesale. LDS quotes over 21 days of wear, a chip-resistant finish, and a strength-and-flexibility foundation made for fortifying brittle nails.
What is on this page
| Listing | What it is | Use |
|---|---|---|
| LDS Rubber Base Gel (Ver 2), RB-01 to RB-30 | The current formula, 0.5 oz singles, 30 pink and neutral tints | The reorder unit and the shade the chart is built on |
| LDS Rubber Base Gel (Ver 2), Set of 30 | All 30 Ver 2 shades in one box | The full rubber base wall in one order |
| LDS Rubber Base Gel, RB numbers (original) | The first-run bottles still listed by number | Matching an existing chart |
| LDS RB Set of 30 (original) | The first-run set | As above |
Both runs are the same 30 numbers, so a salon that swatched the original chart reorders the same RB number in Ver 2; swatch the Ver 2 bottle once when it arrives before it goes on the wall, as with any new release.
How to apply LDS Rubber Base
- Prep. Push back, buff lightly, dehydrate. No separate base coat is needed; the rubber base is the base.
- Thin first coat. A thin, pressed coat of rubber base over the whole nail, cured 60 seconds under LED, to bond.
- Build coat. A fuller bead floated from the cuticle area to the free edge; turn the hand over for a few seconds so it self-levels into an even cushion and a slight apex, then cure 60 seconds. The tint builds with this coat.
- Finish. Wear it bare under an LDS no-wipe top, or apply LDS gel color over it and top. Cap the free edge.
- Remove or fill. File the surface at the fill and rebuild with the same RB number, or soak off with acetone for a full removal.
Which shades for which client
- Worn bare, the "rubber base manicure": the sheer pinks and milky neutrals in the range, two coats, top; the client leaves with a strengthened natural-looking nail and comes back in three weeks for a fill.
- Under gel color: any RB tint as the flexible base for a client whose gel polish chips at the free edge on a standard base; the cushion absorbs the flex.
- Under a French: a pink RB as the bed, white tip over it.
- For brittle or peeling nails: a neutral RB worn bare through a few fills, so the nail grows out protected.
- Matching skin tone: hold three tints against the cuticle; the one that disappears at the sidewall is the client's neutral.
Rubber base, builder gel, or regular base coat?
A regular base coat is thin and rigid; it bonds color to the nail and does nothing for strength. Builder gel in the bottle is stronger and thicker still, meant for overlays with an apex and short extensions, and worn with or without color. Rubber base sits between: thicker and more flexible than a base coat, softer and more forgiving than builder, tinted so it is the finished look on its own, and the right choice for a client who wants a stronger natural nail without an enhancement. Salons that run both keep builder for extensions and rubber base for the strengthening manicure.
Stocking the Bouncy Blush collection
Most salons start with six tints: two sheer pinks, two milky whites or neutrals, and two deeper nudes, which covers the bare rubber-base manicure for most skin tones; the Set of 30 is the order for a salon that sells the service by name and wants the client to choose from a full swatch stick. Rubber base is used in two coats per service, so a 0.5 oz bottle runs many manicures, and reorders are by RB number as a tint sells out. It needs no separate base and finishes under an LDS no-wipe top. LDS sells this collection on strength and flexibility; it is not labeled HEMA-free, so a client who is on the Color Craze chart for sensitivity reasons should be patch-tested before a rubber base service.
Why rubber base lifts, and the fix
- Lifting at the cuticle: the bead touched the skin, or the first thin coat was skipped. Leave a hairline margin and always press a thin bonding coat before the build coat.
- Peeling at the free edge: the edge was not capped. Run the brush along the tip on the build coat and again with the top.
- Bubbles or a wavy surface: the build coat was brushed rather than floated. Drop the bead and guide it; turn the hand over to level before curing.
- Tint looks patchy: the build coat was uneven, so the color is deeper where it pooled. Level for a few seconds longer, or do two thinner build coats instead of one thick one.
Lifting is usually a base problem, not a color problem
When a salon reports that its gel manicures lift at the free edge or peel at the cuticle by the second week, the first suspect is the base layer rather than the color on top. A standard base coat cures hard and thin; on a nail that flexes, the rigid film separates from the plate at the point of most movement, and the color goes with it. A rubber base cures with give. It flexes with the nail instead of against it, so the bond holds through three to four weeks of typing, washing, and cleaning, and the fill happens on schedule rather than as an emergency. That is the reason LDS positions Bouncy Blush as a replacement for the regular base rather than as a nail-art product: a salon with a lifting complaint switches its base and keeps everything else the same.
The switch changes two habits. First, the base is pressed on in a thin bonding coat before the fuller cushion coat, which a tech used to a one-coat base tends to skip. Second, because the rubber base carries a tint, the tech chooses the RB number to the client's skin tone the way she would choose a nude, since it shows through a sheer color and stands alone under a top coat.
Pairing rubber base with the Color Craze chart
Most salons that stock this collection run it under the LDS Color Craze gel chart. The pairing works in both directions: a client who picks a Color Craze cream gets a rubber base under it for wear, and a client who wants a bare, strengthened nail gets a rubber base tint on its own with a Color Craze top. Because the Color Craze sets are bought by the season and the rubber base tints are year-round nudes, the rubber base is the constant on the wall while the color sets rotate. A salon opening an LDS wall usually buys a Color Craze set and six rubber base tints in the same order, then adds the Set of 30 once the strengthening manicure has a name on the menu.
Rubber base on the fill schedule
- Week 0: prep, thin bonding coat, cushion coat with a slight apex, cure, top or color.
- Week 3 to 4, the fill: file the surface and the grown-out edge, do not soak; press a fresh thin coat over the old base where it has thinned near the cuticle, rebuild the cushion in the same RB number, cure, and finish. The old base stays on the nail, which is why the fill is quicker than a fresh set.
- Every third or fourth fill: soak the base off completely, assess the natural nail, and start again, so product does not build up thick at the free edge.
- Client at home: cuticle oil daily and gloves for cleaning; a client who picks at a lifted edge takes the natural nail surface with it, so a lifted nail is booked for a repair rather than left.
Keep the RB number on the client card. Because the original run and Ver 2 share numbers, a client who started on the original chart is refilled from the Ver 2 bottle of the same number, and the salon reorders by the number alone after swatching the new bottle once when it arrives.
Wholesale pricing at ND Nails Supply
Every RB single and the Set of 30 is wholesale-priced for everyone, with no business license, no minimum order, and no membership fee. The Set of 30 put a whole palette on the wall in one order, and the Buy in Bulk gel tiers apply to the tagged listing. Free shipping on orders $100+, and in-stock bottles ordered before 2pm PT on weekdays leave the same day.