YISS Launch Notes: Why We Built a HEMA-Free Gel System

Nobody wakes up thinking the world needs another gel polish brand. We didn't either. YISS exists because after years of doing our own nails, reading ingredient lists, and following the regulatory news out of Europe, we kept landing on the same uncomfortable conclusion: most of the gel polish people can actually buy was not designed with their skin in mind. So in 2026 we launched our own system, HEMA-free and TPO-free from the first bottle. These are our launch notes on why.

The problem we kept seeing

Three things kept showing up, over and over.

First, sensitivity. Dermatologists report rising (meth)acrylate contact allergy, and gel polish sits squarely in that family of chemistry. Once someone becomes sensitised to an acrylate like HEMA, the reaction tends to stick around for life, and it can affect far more than manicures, including some dental and medical materials. We go through this properly in our gel polish allergy guide, but the short version is that sensitisation is worth taking seriously before it happens, not after.

Second, the home market. Gel polish moved from salon back rooms to kitchen tables, but most formulas never changed to match. Home users often undercure without knowing it, and undercured gel means unreacted monomers sitting against skin. Formulas built for maximum adhesion at any cost make that worse, because the ingredients that grip hardest are often the ones most likely to sensitise.

Third, regulation moving at very different speeds. The EU restricted HEMA and Di-HEMA-TMHDC to professional use through Commission Regulation (EU) 2020/1682, applying from 2021, after allergy reports kept climbing. It then banned TPO, a common photoinitiator, in nail products from 1 September 2025 following its CMR 1B classification. Australia has no equivalent consumer ban, and imported products vary widely. That gap between markets is exactly where we decided to build.

Formula first, marketing second

We made one decision early that shaped everything else: the formula was not negotiable. Every YISS shade is HEMA-free and TPO-free. Not a gentler side range next to a conventional main line, and not a reformulation we got around to later. All 60 shades, from day one, and everything is cruelty-free as well.

We want to be clear about what that does and does not mean. HEMA-free is not a magic shield, and we won't pretend otherwise. It removes a commonly implicated sensitising monomer from the equation, which we think matters a great deal, but careful application still matters too. If you want the chemistry in full, we wrote up what HEMA-free gel polish actually means.

The other half of an honest formula is honest performance. Before a shade ships, we test two things relentlessly. Opacity, because a solid shade should be opaque in two thin coats, not three or four with a prayer. And cure, because the cure time on the label has to be the real one under an ordinary LED lamp, applied in thin layers the way people actually work at home. A formula that only cures reliably under salon equipment has no business being sold to home users.

Why exactly 60 shades

Sixty is not a random number. We wanted a system, not a pile.

Every shade carries a number and a name, from 01 Blush onwards, and every shade belongs to a colour family, so the range reads like a map rather than a lucky dip. Soft neutrals like 11 Sand, quiet greens like 29 Sage, real depth like 45 Midnight. Enough breadth to cover work weeks, weddings, and everything between, without so many near-duplicates that choosing becomes a chore.

The goal is that anyone, whether they paint their nails weekly or twice a year, finds their colour in minutes. Browse the full 60-shade range if you enjoy scrolling, or use the colour finder to narrow things down by family and occasion. If neither gets you there, that tells us the system has a hole in it, and we genuinely want to know.

Honest pricing

Every bottle is 15 ml and costs A$11. That is the entire pricing model for single shades. No inflated recommended retail with a permanent discount stuck on top, no tiny bottles priced as if scarcity were a feature. A$11 buys a full-size professional formula that we would happily wear ourselves, because we do.

Sets exist for two specific situations, not as a way to hide the real price. The Monet's Garden set is six shades for A$69, a curated starting palette if you would rather have the first choices made for you. The Essential 60 Color set is the whole range for A$469, built for studios and committed home setups. If you run a salon and want wholesale terms, our pro program is the place to start.

What is next

More shades, chosen slowly and by request rather than by trend calendar. More lamps and tools that meet the same standard as the polish. And more salon partnerships, because professionals were asking for HEMA-free options long before most consumers knew to.

If you are curious but not convinced, that is a fair place to stand. We built the $0 Starter Trial Kit for exactly this moment: a bottle of 49 Iris and a floral sticker sheet, you pay only the shipping, one per order. Wear it for two weeks, then decide. And if you have a question we haven't answered, or an opinion on what shade 61 should be, write to us at info@yissgel.com. We read everything.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have symptoms, see a qualified healthcare professional.