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The 3-week manicure that claims to be good for your nails

New Bio Sculpture Gel polish sounds similar to Shellac and other gel nail applications, but unlike these, which dehydrate the nail, Bio Sculpture claim to make the nail healthier

‘We put in’, Carly the manicurist told me, ‘rather than take out’ when I tried the new Bio Sculpture Gel polish, launched this week.

First, the existing polish is taken off, the nails are filed and shaped, and cuticle remover is applied which helps to soften the cuticles and dead skin.

The nails are then sanitized to remove dirt and grease and leave a clean nail plate to be worked on.

Instead of a dehydrator like most nail-curing long-lasting polishes, a vitamin drop is placed on each nail, which penetrates through each layer and provides the nail a boost of Vitamins B1, B2, B12, C and P, and white tea minerals. All of this helps to keep the nail strong, Carly explained.

BioSculptureGel

At this point, you get your first go under the UV light. It stung a little to begin with, but stopped within a few seconds, and after half a minute I was back out again. A base coat is spotted on the centre of the nail, which speeds up soak-off time and again helps to strengthen.

After another go under the light came the tricky bit. What colour should I chose? I get bored with nail colours quite easily, but with this gel manicure apparently lasting three weeks, I had to pick something I wouldn’t get sick of. I opted for ‘Black Aubergine’, a dark purple and then, I went where no me has gone before – I asked for a feature nail.

Several bags of nail designs were then placed in front of me; it was like an Aladdin’s cave of spots, stripes, glitter, chrome baubles and studs, not to mention the incredible artwork nails with everything from Roy Lichentstein ‘Ka-Pow!’ nails, to beach and galaxy scenes.

Bio Sculpture Christmas Nail Art

Too late for pumpkins and a little early for Christmas puds, I thought I’d go more for an ‘effect’ nail than a masterpiece, so chose one of their foil colours.

A piece is cut and then pressed onto the top of the nail. One application produces a crackled look, but I asked if I could have an extra one to give a more smooth cover. I asked if you choose the ring finger for a feature nail because it’s less likely to chip, but Carly reassured me that the Bio Sculpture Gel was chip proof.

There are three types of finishing coat, and whilst examining your nails during the manicure, your manicurist will be able to assess whether you need Soft, Medium or Hard. Carly used the one for soft nails on mine, because she said that she could tell the nail was quite flexible, and also working in an office like I do, she said it was best because she’s found it to be the most durable. An extra paint of cuticle oil and all was done.

Manicure

I was in and out within the hour and went home with the glossiest nails I have ever seen. Carly gave me an aftercare pack, which provided me with all I needed for the at-home soak-off, as well as the cuticle oil (to apply daily) and the glossy topcoat, which she said I should add whenever I thought my nails were looking a little dull.

Not having had a gel manicure like this before, I’m still getting used to the thickness of my nails. However, I was pleased to see with Carly’s own manicure, which was over three weeks old, she had no chips, the smallest amount of regrowth, and no obvious ridge between gel and natural nail, like I’ve seen with Shellac.

Prices start from £25, which I don’t think is too bad for a manicure of this standard. Call 0845 331 2347 to find your nearest salon.

 

THREE WEEKS LATER….

I’ve been so impressed with my Bio Sculpture Gel manicure. After three weeks (and that’s with daily cooking, cleaning, washing, and general busy-bodying), there was not a chip in sight. A few scratches appeared on the surface, but these were only noticeable if I was looking for them. I kept up with my cuticle oil and put another layer of gloss on them every few days, when I thought they were looking dull. They never really dulled down much, but I love that super glossy look! As for the regrowth, of course there was some, but the ridge between nail and gel with very subtle.

Manicure 3 weeks

I could probably have left it on for longer, but to keep to Carly’s advice, I decided to take the gel off after this time. I was using my home pack, which I don’t think would be the same for most, as you would probably want to have it taken off by the technician in the salon. It wasn’t impossible to do, but it took a lot longer than I thought (about an hour), probably due to my impatience and not leaving the gel remover liquid on long enough, so having to repeat the step multiple times for some nails.

To remove the gel nails, you first take off any additional polish you might have applied with a normal polish remover, then scratch off the gel coating on each nail with an emery board. I cut my nails too at this point, because they were well due a trim, and I thought this may speed the process up! Next, you have to soak a piece of cotton pad, cut to the nail size, in the gel remover liquid, press it on the nail, the wrap the nail in silver foil. Now if you’ve had Shellac before you will be used to this, but for me, I felt peculiar and clumsy. Put it this way, it’s not a great idea to do both hands at once… You then have to keep your nails under a warm heat. I used one of those microwavable aromatherapy cushions.

After this, and if you leave it long enough (about 20 minutes), the gel will have risen off the nail, and will easily peel off (the instructions suggested I used their ‘orange stick’ but I didn’t seem to have one in my pack). This happened first time around for some nails, but like I said, not all. Once the gel was off and I had soaked my nails in warm water, I had a good inspection and was pleasantly surprised. They looked really healthy and clean – not dyed or damaged by the gel at all.

After Manicure

All in all, the hour of tedious removing was worth the three weeks of beautiful nails. I’ll definitely be getting another Bio Sculpture manicure and, looking at the new postcode salon finder on their website, I’ve found out there are two salons very near my house. Yipee!

 

lydia headshot

Lydia Jones blogs at abitofwhatifancy.blogspot.co.uk

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