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Items marked with an * have either been gifted or purchased with a gifted gift voucher.
Morning ladies, so today I want to talk manicures & in particular gel polishes. We all probably know that gel polishes are the best in terms of providing longevity, high shine & also protecting our nails, if like me you're prone to breakages. But how many of us have the time &/or disposable income to get them done on a regular basis at our local beauty salon? Factor in endless DIY on the house for me & of course lockdowns & there's probably a lot of us that have broken our gel nail addiction.
I love having freshly painted nails but having heard of the horrors of home gel kits & reactions it's not a path I've wanted to go down. That was until I was approached by Manucurist, a French brand I've had on my radar & been wanting to try for a while.
So why the eagerness to try this brand? Well that's simple. A green beauty brand whose gel polishes doesn't contain endocrine disruptors or allergenic molecules & is vegan friendly. But the main thing to grab my attention is the fact that the removal of the polish doesn't involve any filing of the nail & can simply be removed with acetone free nail polish remover like ordinary nail polish, so it's so much kinder on your nails. On top of this the brand claims the polish can last up to 10 days.
Of course we all know that sometimes the claims from a brand fail to live up to the hype. Hence my desire to give the brand a whirl & see if what they state really is true.
So let's get on with the application. Like all polishes applying the gel couldn't be simpler. First file & shape your nails & push back & trim cuticles. Then use a small amount of their nail polish remover to remove any grease etc.
Next apply a thin layer of base coat, making sure you cap the nail (apply polish to the edge of each nail).
Because my nails are short I skipped the capping stage on my first application & within a couple of days noticed chipping. So it's really important to make sure you cap each nail, as it really does make a huge difference & helps with the longevity of the polish.
Then place the hand under the Pro Lamp clicking on the 'base' button for a quick cure of 1 minute.
Then you can start applying your colour of choice (Manucurist have a huge range of colours here), following the same application technique as with the base coat.
The brush for applying the polish is quite wide so depending on your nail width, will only take 2-3 strokes. I did find the polish to be a little thicker than a normal nail polish to apply & my hands aren't the steadiest but even after applying twice I can already feel my technique improving & I've read on the site & in reviews that after around 3 applications you master the technique.
Place under the LED lamp after application of each coat for 1 minute to cure.
Apply a second thin coat & cure for a further minute under the LED Lamp.
Finish off with a thin layer of top coat, again making sure you cap the edge of your nails.
And finish by curing under the LED lamp for 2 minutes.
Then if you're like me & still need to master the professional application, simply use their Nail Polish Corrector Pen to remove any unwanted polish & tidy up the edges.
So application couldn't be easier & as I've already mentioned above it's important to make sure you cap each nail during each stage, no matter what your nail length.
So how about longevity? Well my first application doesn't count as I didn't cap the nails, but for my second application it lasted around 7-8 days chip free, then a few tiny chips occurred but I didn't need to remove the polish until the 12th day!
So talking of removal, is it as simple as the brand claims? Well yes it is!
You simply soak a cotton wool pad in some of their Nail Polish Remover & attach to each nail with their Nail Clips, leaving for around 2 minutes.
Then when you remove the pads most the of polish will have flaked off & any excess can simply be wiped away with the cotton wool pad. No filing, no acetone & no damage to your nails!
So would I recommend Manucurist? Yes! I will definitely continue to use the brand & will be adding some more colours to my collection. I love the fact that it's kind to my nails, I can apply & remove myself & I have to say I just love the smell of the nail polish remover! The only thing I need to do is improve my application technique & steady hand, but like the saying goes 'practice makes perfect'.
If you're interested in learning more or seeing their full range, then just click here & if you sign up here, you can get 10% off your first order.
Back to today & it's a simple basic look.
Coat - All Saints *
Jumper - Hush *
Belt - Boden *
Jeans - No 44 *
Trainers - Golden Goose
Shop My Style
Coat - Marks & Spencer
Jumper - Hush
Belt - Boden
Jeans - Hush
Trainers - Saint & Sofia
Enjoy your day ladies & I'll see you tomorrow.
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