Nail Polishes Haul

Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat and Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Twin Set in Birthday Suit

~AG~

Since my younger sister was going to the States, I decided to do a little online shopping. A little haul from drugstore.com. The first product on my shopping list was Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. It retailed only for US $7.09 (~S$10). This quick-dry top coat was introduced to me by the manicurist at Seasons Nail Bar. Seche Vite Top Coat is very chip-resistant and long-lasting, plus it dries up very quickly. My pedicured toenails did not chip off at all, even after 4 weeks. I managed to save S$10, because Season Nail Bar was selling it for S$20.

Another nail product that I purchased was the Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Twin Set in Birthday Suit. drugstore.com was having an offer, and it was retailing for US$ 12.79 (~S$18). I just found out that it would have been cheaper to buy it in Singapore; Guardian sells Sally Hansen Miracle Gel Twin Set for S$16.90. The twin set comes with a gel color and a gel top coat. I love gel nails for its long-lasting and durability, you do not have to wait for it to dry nor worry that it will chip. With that being said, going to the nail salon to do a gel nail can get pricy. Plus, too much gel nail application & removal can be harmful for your nails. Sally Hansen Miracle Gel claims to give 14 days of color and shine. This a great at-home option, plus you do not have to cure it with a UV lamp. 

I cannot wait to try out these nail polishes! Stay tuned for my review of them!

REVIEW: CND Shellac Gel Manicure @ Seasons Nail Bar

~AG~
 
The first week of December, I headed to Season Nail Bar at Shaw Center to do a classic gel manicure and classic pedicure. Since I have an existing packaging with them, I thought it will be good to use them before the year ends. In 2015, I only managed to get my nails done there 3-4 times. Previously, I have tried their GellyFit and Tiffany gel manicure, and was very satisfied with it. This time, I decided to try the CND Shellac. The manicurist told me that CND Shellac is less harsh for the nails as it requires no buffing when removing it. The CND Shellac gel nail will supposedly "slide off" when you soak it off. I do find that my nails become brittle after a gel manicure. My nails are usually strong, and do not break easily. But after the removal of gel nails, my natural nails became noticeable weaker. I had to paint on a hardening nail polish for protection. That is the only downside to getting a gel manicure.

On the upside, a gel manicure can lasts a minimum of 14 days without any chipping. It is great for people like me who cannot maintain their usual manicure for more than 2 days. The manicurist claimed that CND Shellac Gel Manicure lasts as long as GellyFit and Tiffany - 14 days of wear. Sounded good, all the benefits of a gel manicure, without the nail damage that comes with it.
Though, Seasons Nail Bar required me to pay an additional $5 for CND Shellac compared to our gel nail. This additional cost I did not appreciate!

The application of CND Shellac Gel Manicure is similar to that of other gel manicure. EXCEPT that, you have to put your nails for 2 minutes under the UV lamp for each time. I remember other gel nails not taking that long, probably 30 seconds or so. The manicurist told me that CND Shellac requires the use of their own CND Shellac Base Coat and Top Coat. Whereas other gel nail brands such as Gelish or GellyFit can use base and top coats from other gel nail companies.  

After 5 days of wear, no chipping of nail color was noticed. My nails were still as shiny! Though, I have to say that my nails had a slight chemical smell 2-3 days following the gel manicure. I did not notice such chemical smell when I had done the JellyFit and Tiffany Gel Nail.

A natural taupe color

Shiny nails after 5 days of wear

During the soak-off process, it took about 20 minutes to thoroughly remove the gel nail. The gel nail was removed easily after 10 minutes of soaking it in acetone-filled cotton. There was no buffing required to remove the gel nail. Yay! What the manicurist claimed was true! My nails also did not feel brittle after the removal of the gel nail. Double Yay! I will definitely do CND Shellac Gel Manicure again. Though the color options available for CND Shellac is limited at Seasons Nail Bar. The colors available at Seasons Nail Bar are mostly nudes, pinks and other natural shades.

Gel Manicure by Tiffany @ Seasons Nail Bar

 

 

 

 

~AG~

 

I am totally loving my gel manicure by Seasons Nail Bar. This is the second time I am doing gel nail in this nail place.

 

This time I decided to try the Tiffany brand, previously I had tried the GellyFit brand. I chose a cherry tomato shade. The bright red shade looks flattering on my medium tanned skin. The colour came out nicely, and my nails are super glossy. <3 <3

 

I found out about this manicure and pedicure place on Groupon Singapore website. Since manicure & pedicure packages are cheaper from Groupon, I decided to try this newly opened place back in August. I tried the Gellyfit Gel Manicure then and was satisfied with the gel nail results. My gel manicure lasted for more than a month without any chipping or peeling.

 

During my free soak-off session, I bought a package for 3 classic gel manicure and 7 classic pedicure, which costs me $357.14. It is more pricy than other nail places but I much prefer to go to a nail place that gives me a good experience and results.

 

I like that the nail place was quiet, and rather hidden. Do note that the shop is small, it only has 3 sofas for pedicure soaking, and a table for manicure sessions. Their manicurists are well-trained, and did my nails with high standards. I do not have to tell the manicurists to re-do or correct any issues. One more thing, this nail place is not so pushy on you buying manicure/pedicure packages. Yes, they do ask you whether you want to buy any package. But they are not aggressive on selling their packages, which I like.

 

I will let you all know whether the Tiffany gel manicure lasts as long as the Gellyfit.

 

Seasons Nail Bar is located at Shaw Center. Please click on link below for more information.

Seasons Nail Bar