Hello Lovelies
If you have been reading my blog for a while you will be fully aware that I am a real nail polish addict. I love painting my nails and buying new nail polish and there isn't a haul where I haven't bought at least one new nail polish despite already owning far too many, so you can imagine my excitement when I received the SensatioNail Deluxe Gel Nail Polish Starter Kit. Unfortunately I had just had a gel manicure at my local salon when the kit arrived so I couldn't use the kit on my own nails so my eldest daughter Cole kindly offered to be my guinea pig for this post and let me use the kit on her nails.
The box the kit comes in is nice and compact meaning it won't take up much room, this is something I was pleased about as it is easy to store. The box shows the full contents of the kit on the back so you know exactly what is in the kit, again I thought this was really helpful.
What's Included In The Kit?
The gel nail polish starter kit is £49.99 and contains everything you need for 10 complete gel manicures. The kit I received is the Scarlet Red kit meaning the colour of the polish inside is red, if red isn't your thing other colour kits are available, I love red nails so was happy with the red.
The kit includes -
- 1 x Scarlet Red gel nail polish 3.69ml
- Gel primer 3.54ml
- Base/topcoat 3.69ml
- Gel cleanser 14.6ml
- 12 x lint free wipes
- 22 x peel off nail shields
- Double-sided nail buffer
- Manicure stick
- LED nail lamp (USB & mains charger)
- How-to Booklet
The products included in the kit are sample size products but are good sample sizes and big enough for 10 applications which I think for the price of the kit is good. The kit also comes with an instruction booklet and also a card with instructions of how to apply the gel on one side and how to remove it on the other side, these are the instructions I use as I find it easier to use the card but it is purely down to personal preference.
The lamp that comes with the kit is compact and when I first saw it I thought it might be too small but it isn't and since I've used it a few times I love it, I struggle with heavy things but the lamp is super light and easy to use, it comes with a lead that can be plugged into a usb port and also comes with a plug. The lamp has a silver magnetic and removable plate that fits on the bottom of the lamp, the metal plate has 4 finger shaped grooves to show where to put your fingers, and 4 fingers fit perfectly with plenty of room. When polishing fingers I do the 4 fingers first and then the thumb, the silver plate is magnetic so it is easy to remove and if you want a gel pedicure the plate comes off and the lamp can be placed on the floor so the foot can be placed inside, the foot fits inside the lamp and there is plenty of room.
How To Use The Kit
Before using the kit ensure nails are free from nail polish by using nail polish remover and wash hands.
✿ Prepare The Nails
Push back cuticles using the slanted side of the wooden stick, then file nails with the grey side of the nail file. Now buff nail surface with the pink side of the nail file to remove shine and help the gel adhere.
If nails are particularly dusty from filing/buffing wash hands if not wipe each nail with some of the gel cleanser on a lint free pad and allow to dry.
✿ Prime The Nails
Use the primer and apply to the nails, use sparingly as a little goes a long way and allow nails to air dry, this product does not fully dry and feels tacky.
✿ Add Base Coat
Apply a thin coat of the gel base and top coat avoiding the cuticles and sides of the fingers, cap the edge of the nail by running the brush along the edge of the nail, this helps to prevent chipping. Once applied to all 4 fingers, put hand under the lamp, the lamp will come on as soon as you put your hand in. Leave your hand under the lamp for 15 seconds, after 15 seconds the light will flicker so you know when to remove your hand. Once the finger nails are done, do the same with the thumb. Do not touch your nails, the product will be tacky in order for the gel polish to adhere to it.
✿ Polishing The Nails
Using the polish in the same way as the gel base and top coat, apply a thin layer of polish to finger nails and cap off the edge of the nail by running the brush along the edge of the nail, once all 4 finger nails are painted place hand under the lamp for 30 seconds, the light will flicker after 15 seconds and turn off after 30 seconds. Once you have done the finger nails, do exactly the same with the thumb. I used 2 coats of the Scarlet Red polish for a nice opaque finish.
✿ Top Coat
Apply a thin layer of the base and top coat and place hand under the lamp for 15 seconds, then do the same with the thumb.
✿ Finishing Off
Using the gel cleanser and a lint free wipe, wipe over each nail to remove the sticky moisture layer.
All done, now do exactly the same on your other hand. For a gel pedicure you do exactly the same steps but on your toe nails and remove the silver base plate from the lamp so you can place the lamp on the floor and put your foot inside.
The Finished Look
My Thoughts
I found the SensatioNail Deluxe Gel Nail Polish Kit very easy to use, the instructions are clear and easy to follow and Coles nails looked lovely, she was really pleased with them. Cole was originally my guinea pig because I couldn't gel my own nails having just had gel applied at a salon but it worked out well because Cole is a professional makeup artist and uses her hands a lot everyday and is opening packaging and palettes all day long, so the gel polish really was put to the test much more than if I had tested it, so it worked out well using Cole for this post.
I took a photograph of Coles nails 2 weeks after applying the gel, her nails had grown a lot but that is normal for Cole, her nails grow very fast and she usually has to file them down at least twice a week, she had filed her nails down once whilst having the gel polish on but as it would break the seal where I capped off the edges she didn't want to keep filing them.
As you can see from the photograph above, Coles nails had grown a lot and she has a large amount of re growth space on her nails, you can also see where she has filed them and the seal has broken and the polish filed off on the edges of her nails and she broke her nail on her index finger at the corner but all in all I don't think they look bad considering this is 14 days after application and Cole had had to file her nails because of how fast they grow, had her nails not needed filing the edges of the nails would still be polished. You can still see that Coles nails stayed super glossy throughout it is just a shame she needed to file her nails, you can see how fast they grow from the re growth on her nails.
I am really impressed with the kit, it is a great little kit containing everything needed to create gel nails at home and I think it's a great price too. I had just had gel nails myself at a salon before using the kit on Cole and I paid £20.00, the kit contains enough product for 10 applications and is £49.99 meaning each application works out at £4.99 and would be saving me £15.01 each time I use it compared to going to a salon charging £20.00.
I like that everything fits into a compact box meaning it doesn't take up much room at all to store, the kit fits nicely in the cupboard where my other nail supplies live. The lamp is so cute and compact but fantastic, I was really sceptical about it on first glance but it is brilliant and I love how the metal base is magnetic and is easily removed to use for applying gel polish to the toe nails. I have used the kit to apply gel to the toes and my youngest daughter has too and it was super simple to use and neither of use had any trouble fitting our full foot under the lamp. I haven't included photographs of our feet in this post as feet aren't always the nicest thing to look at but the nails looked lovely and the process was just as easy to do for the toes as the fingers.
I honestly cannot praise this kit enough, I am really impressed with it, it is easy to use, the instructions are very simple to follow, the products apply well, the lamp is light and compact and nails look incredible when they are finished, I would highly recommend the kit to anyone and especially if you usually pay to have gel nails at a salon but it is a great kit for anyone, I absolutely love it. It will be great for using before holidays on both hands and feet, I can go away knowing my nails will look great for the duration of my holiday and the kit is so compact that if I wanted to I could take it away with me and change the shade of my polish whilst I'm there, it's fantastic. I am so impressed with the kit that since receiving it and using it on Coles nails and my toe nails, I have purchased 2 more full size SensatioNail gel nail polishes in the shades Precious Peony and Kitten Heel, if you would like to see some nail of the day posts using them or a review of the polishes please let me know either in the comments or via twitter or email.
I would also like to add that removing the gel polish was simple too, Cole used cotton pads cut up and soaked in acetone nail polish remover placed on her nails, she then wrapped some foil around her nails and left them for around 15-20 minutes, the polish came away easily and Cole then buffed her nails to remove any traces of the polish but is wasn't hard to do.
If you would like to try the SensatioNail Deluxe Gel Nail Polish Starter Kit, you can find it on the
Boots website priced at
£49.99
Have you tried SensatioNail? What are your thoughts on gel nails? And can you recommend any more SensatioNail polishes for me to try? Let me know in the comments below.
Products featured on Mammafulzo are PR samples unless otherwise stated, this post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclaimer for more details.
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