We Have Found the Best Gel Nail Polish Ever

Truth bomb: My mother-in-law keeps QVC in business. Single-handedly. She gets deliveries from the West Chester-based retail empire on a near daily-basis. She’s on a first-name basis with the UPS guy.

I don’t ever shop at QVC. I’ve been to the main campus (yes, it’s a campus), which is beyond huge and could probably secede from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and start its own independent state. Former QVC queen Lisa Robertson would be president. 

My mother-in-law recently battled breast cancer for the second time, and chemo destroyed her nails. They became brittle, yellow, soft, and scaly. And then last week, her hands looked completely different. Her nails were hard, long, shell-pink and healthy looking. QVC, she said. Of course. It was Perfect Formula Gel Coat, she said, and then she swore it would last for 10 days without chipping, so I tried it. My nails look like hell, and anything other than gel manicures chip within hours.

The powder pink color goes on very pale (which I love; read about my never-ending quest for the perfect nude polish here), and while it didn’t last for 10 days, it did stay pretty perfect for six, even as I scrubbed the bathroom floor and wrestled with tiny jewelry clasps, often the stealthiest mani-chippers.

Why it works: The formula contains keratin, which is the main protein that makes up your nails, and it instantly creates a thick protective coating on the nail. But it comes off with nail polish remover, so no soaking your paws in acetone and wrapping them in tin foil for a quick color change.

Don’t believe me? Watch this video. It’s mesmerizing.

The Details: Perfect Formula Gel Coat mini, $12. Buy it here. (Or go for the full set, $29.96, here.)