WASHINGTON, DC (WUSA) -- It's frustrating. You pay $12 to $25 for a manicure, and it chips two days later. But women now have a new option, a manicure that claims to last at least two weeks.
We tried it out by getting two manicures; one traditional, one gel. We saw two very different results over two weeks.
9NEWS NOW intern Christine agreed to try out the latest technology in manicures at Rex Day Spa in Falls Church.
Known by a couple of names, gel, shellac or lacquer manicures promise to last at least two weeks with no chipping. The gel manicure process starts like any other manicure. The nails get filed and buffed and the cuticles are cleaned up. Then, Helen Nguyen of Rex Day Spa says, "We need the base coat, two coats of color and the top coat. "
What makes these manicures really different, between each coat your hands go under a UV light to cure the polish. That means there is no drying time. As soon as you take that last pass under the UV light, you can "go in your purse, get the keys out. You don't have to worry about messing up your nails," says Nguyen. It's one of the reasons she says her clients are clamoring for gel manicures, that cost $20 at Rex Day Spa, just $8 more than a traditional manicure.
There are some drawbacks. Traditional nail polish remover doesn't work on gels. You have to go back to a salon to have them professionally removed by soaking your fingers in acetone for about ten minutes. Another possible problem, there aren't as many colors yet as traditional nail polishes.
But how did they hold up in the 9NEWS NOW test?
On day five, Christine's shellac manicure was still perfect. The traditional manicure was starting to chip.
On day seven, Christine's nails were still perfect. The traditional manicure was so badly chipped, it was time to take off the polish. On day 12, the shellac manicure was still going strong, not a chip in sight. By day 15, a tiny chip was visible.
Christine concludes, "It was easy. It lasted a while. I can't really justify going back to a regular manicure because it's not really that much more expensive. And it lasts."
As for the price, 9NEWS NOW surveyed a number of Washington-area salons and found prices ranging from $20 to $55 for a gel or shellac manicure.
Written by Jessica Doyle
9NEWS NOW & wusa9.com
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