Dual Form Tips | DTK Nail Supply

What dual form tips do

A dual form is a reusable mould for building a nail extension from the top down. You load gel into the inside of the form, press it onto the prepped natural nail, cure it, and lift the form away. The shape, the C-curve and the free edge come from the mould, so the nail needs far less filing than a hand-sculpted extension. The forms on this page are made for poly gel and builder gel, and LAVIS lists them as reusable: clean them after the service and they go back in the drawer.

Every listing here is a dual form or a dual form set. They are LAVIS forms in single shapes, two sandwich mould designs, a five-shape LAVIS kit, the TAYE P064 double-head short form, and the numbered Poly Gel Nail Form sets 01 to 05. Use the filters beside the grid to narrow by price or availability.

Shapes you can buy here

A good order to learn them in is square first, then coffin, then rounded stiletto, then trapezoidal. Square teaches you how much gel the cuticle zone and the apex need; the other shapes ask for more control.

Choosing a form for the client

• Most clients, medium nails: square. It hugs the cuticle closely and is the easiest form to place.
• Short or small nails, client wants length: rounded stiletto or coffin to make the fingers look longer.
• Weak, flat nails with little curve: trapezoidal, which has the least C-curve of the set.
• Office clients who want something neat: square or a short coffin.
• New to dual forms: start with square and stay with it until the underside comes out clean every time.
• Cat eye or other light-catching art: rounded stiletto, whose pointed tip catches the light well.

Sizing: pick one size up

The 15-size LAVIS listings are numbered 0 to 14 on the forms themselves, so you can match each finger quickly and reorder a single size later. Dry-fit before you load any gel: hold the empty form against the nail and check that it covers the nail edge to edge. Then choose one size larger than the natural nail. A form that is too tight presses the gel thin at the side walls, while one size up leaves room for the gel to settle without squeezing out.

Clear, matte, sandwich moulds and kits

The LAVIS forms come in clear and matte versions, listed separately, so check the title before you order a reorder size. LAVIS describes its clear forms as highly transparent, so the lamp light passes through evenly and the gel cures all the way through.

Two listings are sandwich moulds, an oval armour design and a miniature dog breed design, each in 15 sizes; the product photos show the pattern each one leaves. The LAVIS dual form kit puts five shapes in one order: pointed almond, stiletto, square, oval and tapered square, each in 15 sizes. The TAYE P064 is a double-head short clear form for short extensions. The Poly Gel Nail Form sets 01 to 05 are separate numbered sets; check the listing photo for the shape in each.

Which gel to use in a dual form

Dual forms are built for a gel that holds its shape. LAVIS lists its forms as compatible with LAVIS, LDS, DND and Kiara Sky builder gels, with 4-in-1 gel, poly gel and hard gel. In practice:

• Poly gel is the classic match. It is worked with a slip solution, and LAVIS sells its own slip solution for poly gel.
• Builder gel in a bottle or jar works too, using the same thin-thick-thin structure described below.
• Hard gel is also on the LAVIS compatibility list.

Whatever you load, the structure inside the form is the same: thinnest at the cuticle, thickest at the apex in the middle of the nail, and thin again at the free edge.

Setting up a dual form station

A dual form service needs only a short list of tools, but each one has a job, and missing one is usually what causes lifting or a messy underside. Lay these out before the client sits down:

• Prep products: a cuticle pusher, a light buffer, alcohol wipes, a dehydrator and primer for weak or oily nails, and a base coat.
• The gel: poly gel with its slip solution, or a builder gel in a bottle or jar, in clear or a cover shade.
• The forms: a full numbered run of each shape you offer, so every finger gets its size without hunting.
• Placement helpers: form holder clips to keep each form still while it cures, and a small brush dipped in alcohol to wipe gel that squeezes out.
• The lamp: an LED lamp of 48W or more for the full cure, and a handheld lamp if you like to tack a form in place first.
• Finishing: tweezers to ease the form off, a file and buffer for shape, and a no-wipe top coat.

LAVIS also sells builder gel master kits that include a dual form with the base, top and bond, if you would rather open a new extension service with one order.

Building the nail inside the form

The inside of a dual form is a negative of the finished nail, so where you put the gel is where the strength ends up. Think of the nail in three zones. The cuticle zone, closest to the skin, takes the thinnest layer: just enough to bond and blend, never a thick edge. The apex, in the middle of the nail where it flexes, takes the thickest layer, because that is the load-bearing point of the nail. The free edge, at the tip, thins out again so the finished nail looks natural instead of bulky.

Load the form in that order, then let the gel settle for a moment before seating it. If the cuticle zone is too heavy, the line where the form ended shows on the finished nail, and the apex carries the load, so it is where the most gel belongs. Getting this structure right in the form saves most of the filing that a hand-sculpted extension would need.

Step-by-step dual form application

1. Prep the nail: wash, push back the cuticle, buff lightly and wipe with alcohol. Apply a base coat and cure it for 30 seconds. For weak or oily nails, add a dehydrator and primer first.
2. Prep the form: pick the size one up from the natural nail, dry-fit it, then load the gel inside: thin at the cuticle zone, thickest at the apex, thin at the tip. Place a small bead of gel on the free edge of the natural nail before the form goes on, so the gel does not run underneath.
3. Seat the form: set it at the cuticle first and press down gradually toward the tip, never in one hard push. Hold for a few seconds and wipe any gel that squeezes out at the sides with a brush dipped in alcohol, before curing.
4. Check and cure: turn the hand over and look at the underside before you cure, because this is what decides a clean underside. Cure for 60 to 90 seconds under an LED lamp of 48W or more, using a form clip to hold the form still.
5. Remove and finish: let the nail cool for 15 to 30 seconds, ease the form off with tweezers, then file the shape, buff, and finish with a top coat.

Pro tip: the most common dual form mistake is too much gel at the cuticle. It leaves a visible ridge where the form ended and makes the nail look fake. Keep that zone thinner than you think it needs to be.

Troubleshooting dual form sets

Cleaning and reusing your forms

After the form comes off, wipe the inside clean of gel dust and residue so the next set starts on a smooth surface. LAVIS lists its forms as reusable many times, and they flex back to shape after each use. Store each size together so a full run is ready for the next client.

Related collections

• LAVIS poly extension gel The gel most techs load into a dual form.
• Builder gel in a bottle Brush-on builder gels for lighter, shorter extensions.
• Builder gel in a jar Jar builder and hard gels, plus form holder clips.
• LED nail lamps Full-size lamps for the 60 to 90 second cure.
• Flash cure lamps Handheld lamps for tacking a form in place.
• Gel nail extension kits Starter kits for extension services.
• Soft gel tip system Another route to extensions, with pre-shaped tips.
• Long structured extensions Acrylic, hard gel and clear builders for long sets.

Related reads

• A complete guide to dual forms
• A guide to poly gel nails
• How to build an apex with builder gel
• Builder gel mistakes to avoid