My Favourite Things: Polished to Perfection
My first experience of getting my nails done at a nail bar was 31 December 2006 – a day before my wedding day 3 years ago. My two sisters and I hurriedly booked an appointment – the last one of the day to be precise. And when we got there, we were chided for wanting to do a full French manicure and pedicure at the eleventh hour. Well we didn’t take that long really. Six technicians attended to 3 of us and our nails were done well before closing time at 9.30pm. Everything went by so quickly I really don’t recall much of it. The only thing I do remember about my French manicure or what was left of it were blotches probably left there when my nails were half dry and a pedicure that had smudged under the pressure of my strappy heels on my wedding day. Yup! It was a disaster.
The lesson learnt (take note, all brides-to-be): plan to do your nails way in advance or at least a week before your wedding, or is it?
Jamie Yip, business owner, of Polished and I had a good laugh when I was recounting this whole incident to her. Her immediate response, so candid and confident, “No need lah! Just come in the day before will do!”
Polished uses this new product which is a kind of soft gel that applies on like nail polish but dries in two minutes under special ultra violet rays. Yup! Two minutes and that’s all it takes. (Suggestion: You could do this during your lunch hour, it won’t take two minutes!)
Over the weekend, I had the luxury and privilege of trying on this soft gel product and I’m convinced that it works. I didn’t have to tip-toe neither did I have to be extra careful that my toes didn’t knock into each other. I was able to put on my covered shoes immediately after it was done. No blotches. No smudges. And it comes in 48 very pretty colours and I chose Red Roses.
What stood out for me about the experience at Polished was that when you first enter the shop. The technician takes great pains to explain the hygiene code that they abide by religiously. I say religiously because they’ve actually made them commandments – “Thou shall not share” and “Thou shall sterilise”.
Thou shall not share finger nor foot file. In fact, thou shall not share cuticle-pusher-and-under-nail-cleaner dual tool, nor cuticle nippers. All tools which come into contact with the skin are new sets and individually packaged and sealed for your safety and hygiene. Opened in front of you only when you want to use it.
When talking about sterilising. I’m talking superheated steam heat and pressure that kill microbes on medical instruments used for surgical, dental and veterinary procedures. I’m talking autoclaves used by dentists, doctors and surgeons and nightly, 30 sets of tools are placed inside the autoclave and once the process is applied to the instruments, no bacteria or contaminants remain. So if there’s one thing you can count on at Polished is that they really mean business when it comes to cleanliness and hygiene. Of course, services are complete with the niceties of foot scrub, massage, and even a special paraffin wrap to ensure that your skin is supple and you feel pampered. That’s why Polished is the Best in Beauty winner 2010.
They are second to none.
Try them for yourself. Tune in to Evening Drive with me Lynette. Monday to Friday 5 to 8pm and win vouchers worth over $100 from Polished when you take part in a simple call-in contest on My Favourite Things.