Gloss

Not having to buy my own groceries whilst live-in nannying – instead I’m account-living; fruit and veg from their local grocer and yummy free range and organic meat and poultry from Lidgates – I rationalised that I could afford a long awaited visit to my fave nail parlour, Julie Nails, in Kensington.

So yesterday, after a brutal personal training session and lunch with a girlfriend, I made my way down Kensington Church Street, ready to be pampered. This really is the life.

And the ladies at Julie Nails are the best. Super friendly, their shop is always full and while their prices are very reasonable –not only for the area, but for London in general – unlike other parlours they make an effort each time to ensure their service goes above and beyond. Tea or coffee? Yes please. Magazines? Choose from a full range of the latest glossies. They even have a wide screen plasma TV for clients whose hands are out of commission as their nails are being polished and painted.

But complimentary beverages and magazines alone do not maketh the manicure… it’s all about attention to detail. A typical Mani Pedi (priced at £36) lasts well over an hour and you’re ensured a perfect finish.

After months of neglect the soles of my feet were begging to be buffed and razored, while my painfully thin and tearaway nails were itching for cuticle-attention. My technicians set to work, determination in their eyes, as I reclined further into my vibrating massage chair absorbed in the TV-viewing tragedy that is Celebrity Big Brother.

I know it’s a total extravagance, but every once in a while it’s nice to take an hour or so for yourself and do something for purely aesthetic reasons. It’s not only the end result – although I am in love with my O.P.I. Lincoln Park After Dark varnish – but for a busy, working woman I believe that hour is the closest she’ll come to meditation. How can a glossy finish ever be denied?

Julie Nails
48 Kensington Church Street
London W8 4DG
Tel: 020 7938 4883