Sally Hansen Gel

When I want to treat myself too a relaxing day as a reward for a long week of work, a few essential activities come to mind: a facial, a bubble bath, a fancy meal for one and of course a manicure! That said, when you're an intern on a non-existent wage and/or a student, regular visits to the salon to get a professional manicure is simply not feasible. And to be honest, even if I had the budget, I'm not sure I'd have time to make such frequent visits! 

Working in a professional environment it's important to always been well groomed and looking your best, even if you are not in a client facing position. At any given time you may be introduced to someone new, maybe even a manager or executive and almost 99% of the time you'll be greeted with a handshake. You do not want your tailored outfit, perfectly set hair and glowing make up to be tarnished by chipped grotty nails! This sounds so obvious but I cannot tell you the amount of times I've witnessed this first hand. It's more distracting than you would you care to think. 

That is why Sally Hansen's new Salon Gel Polish system caught my eye. The idea that I could give myself a gel manicure in the comfort of my own home, whenever I happen to have 15-30 minutes to spare was music to my ears. Top that off with a promise of no drying time and up to two weeks wear and I'm sold!

Whilst treating yourself once in a while and making a sneaky splurge here and there is important, if I can find a more affordable way to unwind and pamper myself at home then I'm all in! The Starter Kit ($99.95 @ Priceline) has everything you need to get you on your way, LED light, base and top coat, a nice dark red polish to get you started, nail cleansing pads...all that good stuff. Don't worry, the basics can be easily replenished in store in a nifty little pack ($29.95 @ Priceline). 

The Verdict
Get on it. These babies have lasted on my nails for nearly three weeks! No chips. No nail breakage. You would not believe how long my nails have grown with the gel protecting it. Commitment issues? Don't want to stick with one colour for three weeks, no matter, just paint over the gels with any regular nail polish you fancy. Be as fickle as you like because nail polish remove won't affect these bad boys at all. In one sentence? I'm sold. 

Extra Extra...!

Tips
Read the instructions and follow it. Seriously. I know the excitement and adrenaline is telling you otherwise but trust me, you'll thank me later. 

The Colours
The Starter Kit came with Wine Not, I wanted the one with Shell We Dance, they didn't have stock. I settled. I've yet to try it but my mother has and it's pretty, bit shimmery but a lighter wine than I prefer. I'm a neutral or dark and vampy sorta girl, brights in-between aren't really my thing but that's okay. 

I have been obsessed with white nail polish for an unseasonal amount of time. Done right, it's so chic and doesn't at all resemble stationary white-out on your nails. So White Away was a given to be purchased with the Starter Kit. But it's sheer, milky even but nonetheless sheer. So sheer it just looks as though I have gel and no colour on my nails. That's not ideal and I'm disappointed. So it's not what it says it is on the box, but I'll make do. This can be a useful because it doesn't disturb the colours of any other regular nail polish I may paint over. 

Sally Hansen Gel Nail Enamel (Colour: White Away)

Working Girl: Professional Comfort

When you have to be at work five days a week, some eight hours a day, it's important that you not only look professional, but comfort is imperative. I'm not suggesting anyone show up in a corporate office in their track pants, but I think we can all happily agree if we can look the part, throw in some personal styling and still be comfortable, our work week would be much more bearable. 

I personally work in a fairly conservative corporate office environment, where Casual Fridays is not even an option within my department. Even so, I have managed to incorporate pieces here and there to amp up basic corporate attire. Obviously it is important that personal discretion is used, you should know what you will and won't get away with. 

 

Base
1. White collared shirt - ft. Cue Tucked Raglan Sleeve Shirt 
2. Black tailored high-waisted trousers - ft. Topshop 32" Stitch Cigarette Trousers 
3. Black cropped fluffy jumper - ft. Supre Kitty Cat Crop    
4. Black pointed heels - Nine West Eviee Wedges
Accessories
1. Structured black bag - Prada Saffiano Lux Tote
2. Thin black and gold belt - Portmans Metal Career Belt
3. Rose gold watch - Michael Kors Runway Watch
4. White nail polish - Sally Hansen White On

When trying to incorporate unconventional pieces into a professional outfit, I prefer to maintain a natural colour palette and a classic silhouette. The design of the shirt and trousers provides a neat and simple frame as your canvas. I particularly love the cut of this shirt from Cue because it provides structure and accents feminine definition.

The pièce de résistances, the center piece, is of course the cropped shaggy jumper. The insanely soft material will keep you warm on those early morning winter commutes to work. Ensure that you keep this piece at a fitted size and avoid sizing up too much. Whilst I'm all for cozying up with oversized fluffy jumpers, the slouchy look will take away from the professional silhouette.

Keeping the everything black and white, with peaking accents of varying shades of gold keeps the look edgy but keeps it from being tipping over to tacky.

If I'm being honest, this particular outfit has been revisited a couple of times but I say why not get the most out of a good thing!