While waiting for my friend at the gas station outside Dasmarinas Village, along EDSA, I chanced upon St. Nails Nail Spa. I dragged her to check out the nail salon so we can kick off our bonding. And this is what led us to decide to try their Gel Polish with Manicure (P600), which seemed perfect for what we had planned that day. Gel polish (they use ORLY GelFX) dries instantly (you can actually use your hands the moment you walk out of the salon); it instantly glams up your look (we got matching champagne-toned ones that are perfect for parties); and they last long (spanning two weeks’ worth of parties, work, and even trips)!

I thought a visit to St. Nails is perfect for this season: Get your gel nails done with the girls in time for your reunion! Make it like a pre-party party, haha! The salon’s interiors are just so pretty, cozy, and relaxing: think purple chaise lounge chairs, foot rests, throw pillows, warm lighting, and tasteful feminine decor.

The owner chose violet to be the predominant color for the salon because “violet is the color of royalty and we want to treat our clients as such–we want to make them feel special with our deluxe service, since most of our clients are expats, residents of Dasmarinas Village, and from classes A and B.”

However, I must say that for their target market, the pricing for their services are quite reasonable. What’s more, you get to contribute to a good cause, as a portion of their sales goes to their partner community, Gawad Kalinga. Also part of their corporate social responsibility is hiring GK residents, with the intention of giving them sustainable employment.

If there’s anything I can nitpick, it’s how the floor-to-ceiling glass on one side of the salon near the entrance looks out onto the gas station, and occasionally, by-standers or perhaps drivers getting the cars gassed up would sneak a peek inside the inviting interiors. Thankfully, the salon has blinds that you can just ask the staff to draw close if there are unwelcome onlookers.

Let me get to the point: Their service is top-notch. The salon staff will attend to your every need, from iced tea or water, to extra pillows, magazines, a nifty little table to poise your iPad on where you can work while you get your nails done, or even buying your own food for you from stores outside so you can have your lunch or merienda while your hands and feet get pampered. They even offer you a cup of tea, a soothing hot compress, and a relaxing massage of the area you’re having treated, just to complete your ultimate pampering experience.

As for the 90-minute gel polish with manicure service that I got, it’s really a plus when you don’t have time to hit a nail salon regularly, yet you have consecutive events that require you to have pretty nails. After a good soak and the routine nail shaping, buffing, and pampering, the gel nail polish was applied smoothly and was dried via UV light. I appreciated how they didn’t need to file my nail bed to ensure it lasted long (something I excruciatingly endured in another nail salon when I tried their acrylic gel nails a while back).

A caveat about gel nails, however: How easily they are applied is the opposite of how they’re removed. They last long and can withstand all things you do with your hands, so you can be certain they’re really hard to take off. Normally, and as recommended, you’d have to go back and have the salon remove it for you; at St. Nails, it costs P180 to have it removed. Or, well, as what my friend and I did since we didn’t have time to go back to St. Nails, we both just chipped at it ourselves.

My friend and I loved the nail pampering service we got at St. Nails, and should we find ourselves hanging out near that area again, or are in need of a place to throw a nail spa party for our friends (be it for a birthday or a bridal shower), this nail spa would definitely be at the top of our list of options.

St. Nails Nail Spa is located at the Ground Floor of NFB Building, Petron Gas Station, EDSA cor. Arnaiz Avenue, Brgy. Dasmarinas Village, Makati City. Book an appointment by calling 02-5860985 or 0917-8662457.

For my full article about St. Nails on Kristn.com and to see their full service menu, click here.