Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jessica Gil. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jessica, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

Putting yourself out there, in the public eye, is always a huge risk. You risk emotional losses, financial losses, and rejection is never easy. The possibilities of financial failure are very real, as well as the risk of people not liking your product or services. I took that risk starting Satnin Polish, my hemp oil infused nail polish line. But I have also taken that risk recently by finally singing in a band, The Rebel Hearts. Its been a dream of mine since I was a child to be a singer. I would sing “Part of that World” from “The Little Mermaid” everyday in my first grade class. I joined all the chorus classes I could all the way through high school. But as I grew older, I also grew more and more shy. I didn’t sing anymore for fear of rejection and ridicule, but my passion for singing kept burning. About 2 years ago, a friend of mine introduced me to her band for which she was the lead singer. She told me she was leaving the band due to her work schedule and wondered if I was interested in auditioning to be their singer. I was horrified. And excited. They asked me if I wanted to try to sing “Zombie”, by the Cranberries, and I was paralyzed. I stood up, took the microphone and let the beat of the drums guide me… and before I knew it, the guitarist said, “OK! You’re IN! It was like an out of body experience. We began to have weekly practice and I got better and better and more and more comfortable. We had our first show, and again, I was petrified. But the realization that I was finally doing what I had always wanted, was worth all the risk. I messed up, was off tune, came in at the wrong times, but it was the best experiences of my life. Unfortunately, due to COVID, its been a little difficult to get back on track. But we’re working on getting back out in the scene. So keep an eye out for us.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

So my name is Jessica. I have always leaned towards the arts one way or another. Drawing, painting, crafts, and now nail polish and apparel.

I created Satnin Polish out of curiosity… my nail polish collection was getting out of hand, due to having to get change for the valet every night after work. I would run to the Walgreens nearby and get the cheapest nail polish I could find to get cash back. I decided to try to make my own polish for fun (and to save money). I began mixing the colors that I had and it was magical! In the excitement of my discovery, I started looking into buying my own bottles and my own glitter mixes and my own pigments. I began to wear them to work, people started complimenting them.
I named this little project Satnin Polish, after my obsession with Elvis Presley. He used the word as a term of endearment for the woman he loved.

After a while, I wanted to venture into making apparel. This was at the beginning of the pandemic and so many people were stuck at home. We needed to de-stress and chill out, so I came up with my “Just Chill” loungewear. For now, it’s crop top sweaters and leggings, but it will evolve from there. I’m very proud of my apparel line and I’m very proud of where I’ve gotten with Satnin Polish and it will continue to thrive. I want to thank all of my customers and followers and fans, some of whom have turned into friends, for sticking around. I’ve been through some emotional roller coasters and they’ve stuck right there with me, so I wanted to also take this opportunity to say thank you to them.

I also want to reenforce that although Satnin Polish is a nail polish brand, its also a metaphor for self expression. Polish for Rebels. As I’ve said many times before, be yourself, don’t conform, fight for your rights, fight for those who cannot! Do good. Let’s migrate to a more conscious level of everything! Satnin Polish is a vessel for self-love, empowerment, selflessness, awareness, magic, and love.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

UUUUUFFFF!!!! As I mentioned before, I’ve been through some emotional roller coasters in the past couple of years. Some horrible breakups (when aren’t they horrible?), some losses in my family, the pandemic, which has affected everyone, and the loss of the love of my life, my little dog, Smokey. In my deepest moments of sadness, when I haven’t been able to sit and concentrate on anything and I havent’ wanted to even move, and I just want to sit in silence and darkness, I’ve been so tempted to shut down Satnin Polish. Multiple times. But I still manage to hang on by a thread. I remind myself that there’s a bigger purpose. Connection. It has connected me with others that have gone through similar experiences. They have helped me go through my hardships and I have helped them go through some of theirs. I’ve got messages from people who have told me that my polish or my clothing brings them happiness and comfort. Or that my posts resonated with them when they were going through something rough then it made them feel better.
It’s one of the main reasons I haven’t given up.
It also gives me a feeling of freedom. In all my sadness, from the loss of my beloved pet, to my heartaches, it’s given me the freedom to express myself to show my creativity, to release stress, to create things that I love and others love.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

This all started from scratch… I had no clue how to make nail polish, much less that it could be made at home. I researched ingredients, different websites, wholesalers of bottles and pigments and glitters. I started to panic when I saw what a great big world of options and possibilities this truly was. I found a whole indie nail polish society waiting to embrace me on my journey. I wondered why the hecking I would want to get involved in such an already evolved indie world. And yet, everyone was so welcoming, so warm. Everyone that I reached out to was so supportive and willing to give me advice.
I always strive to search for the least toxic ingredients for Satnin Polish, such as 10-free and cruelty-free bases. 10-free means its free of the top 10 toxic ingredients (Formaldehyde, Toluene, Dibutyl phthalate, Camphor, Formaldehyde resin, Xylene, Parabens, Fragrances, Phthalates, Animal ingredients). I’ve added hemp oil, which has antioxidants and is also great for your nails and cuticles.
To this day I manufacture my own product, at home, in my little corner.

Contact Info:

• Website: satninpolish.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/satnin.polish
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/satninpolish

Image Credits
Images by Nicole Martinez and Estefania Andrea