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I don't know how you guys enjoy it...
Going to the nail salon for anything that's not a pedicure (in my opinion) is the opposite of "relaxing" or "me-time."
Here's why:
1) You spend 15 minutes picking out a color and digging through fake nail palettes to find this groundbreaking color your nails have never had before, which doesn't exist because you've dug through this same basket of color samples for the past 6 months
2) Even after making an appointment and spending 5 years finding your color, it's still not time for you to sit with the nail tech--back to the waiting room for you.
***OR if they know they're going to be extra long finishing up the customer cutting into your appointment, they'll invite you to have a seat at their station and stick your hands in a bowl of soapy not-so-warm water, so that way, you are stuck.
3) After a half hour, it's finally time to get your nails worked on. Your hands are constricted and it's the one time ever you are getting text messages rapid fire, then get anxiety about what the texts could be about
4) You realize you're bleeding as your cuticles are getting cut apart
5) You have to get up and wash your hands when two minutes ago you just had them in soapy water
6) It turns out the color you picked out looked awful on your hands but don't want to spend another half hour looking through the color basket
7) You mess up your nails as soon as they enter the heat lamp and smudge it on the light (and low-key, it kind-of hurt really bad)
8) The nail tech silently judges you and fixes it with no expression
9) You endure all that hard work and realize the hand massage is happening, but really it was just a quick slab of lotion and your knuckles being tugged
10) and then you pay for all this...and tip them because you enjoyed it....
What part of this am I supposed to enjoy? If you know, please let me know. I, too, would like to thrive in a nail salon.
I'm not anti-nail salon, but i'm definitely for saving the annoyance and money to give yourself a kick-ass mani in the comfort of your own bed.
Prep:
--Take off leftover nail-polish, if any.
--File any funky-shaped nails
--Gently file the face of your fingernail so the nail polish holds stronger and longer --Shake the nail polish bottle
--Wipe any excess paint off the brush leaving only a thin layer
First Coat:
AKA MOST IMPORTANT
--When painting each nail, it is so important to always keep a very thin layer of paint on the brush and
-Only do 3 strokes.
-One on the left, one on the right, and one in the middle.
-This leaves the perfect amount to cover the nail and dry properly before next coat
Second Coat:
--Repeat the 3 stroke rule, still with a thin layer of paint
-Once finished, do not touch anything for two minutes!! The paint needs to dry before applying the finishing coat
-Apply thing layer of a trustworthy top coat and ta-da!
And if executed properly, your nails will honestly last you a solid week.
I know these steps are nothing new or maybe you paint your nails a way that works better for you--and that's totally fine.
I am just here to remind you we don't have pay for a service to be considered "pampering" or "treating" yourself.
All in all, you spent just about 10 minutes doing a therapeutic painting session and created a time slot in your busy schedule to focus solely on treating yourself to a small act of self care.
Look at you go, girl!
