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I had a co-worker that swore by BISOU, and after visiting the studio I’m a believer. During my appointment, I was surrounded by regulars who were booking their next month’s visit while they were seated at their current appointment. It’s no surprise that it’s almost impossible to get an appointment that’s not one month away. So if you want to check BISOU out, I would suggest booking right now.
I pass by this salon on my way home and had wondered for a while if they had nail art capabilities. I decided to give it a try and I was happily surprised by the salon cleanliness and skill. This is a great budget salon that is a bit of a hidden gem (they don’t have a yelp or any online listing) that is a great place to bump up your average mani. The space is nice, clean and new since the salon only opened about 6 months ago. If you want, try asking for a senior tech if you decide to make an appointment, you might end up getting an even higher quality mani than I did.
Vanity Projects is a great example of balance between a good interior and good work. If you are looking book your first nail art appointment, this would be a great place to start. We recommend using their online booking and scheduling your appointment at least one month in advance. I’m super happy with my new flame nails and love how my nail tech owned the trend.
Before our appointment at Akiko, Jess and I had a rather traumatizing experience at a different salon that will remain unnamed. It was overbooked, poorly run, and we ended up sitting there for what felt like 5 days, but was actually only like 3 hours. Our time at Akiko was a breath of fresh air. The studio was spotless, the staff friendly, and the results were wonderful.
We recently went to try the new fad, “ a ‘dry’ pedicure,” at Nail Couture in Midtown, Manhattan. Here are three takes on our experience, from Jess, Allison and Nabi.
Vanity Projects is a great example of balance between a good interior and good work. If you are looking book your first nail art appointment, this would be a great place to start. We recommend using their online booking and scheduling your appointment at least one month in advance. I’m super happy with my new flame nails and love how my nail tech owned the trend.
RounGe is the NYC location of a Japanese salon chain, so needless to say the experience reflects the salon’s roots (even their email newsletter is in Japanese). You can probably credit that to why the name makes so sense. The staff’s high skill and smooth, relaxing experience makes this studio one of our favorites.
A must read before your first nail art appointment! All the tips you’ll need to make the most of your session.
Located in the heart of Flushing, Enjoy Nail & Spa III is the most prominent nail studio in the downtown area. Though their advertising has a semi-tacky vibe, the interior of the studio is very different. The space is clean and modern, with well trained and relatively friendly staff. I was torn over whether to give the studio three or four stars, but I went with three because I don’t think the art justified the price. The total for this set was $135 with tip.
If you’ve been following our studio journeys a) thank you so much, we love you and b) you might have remembered how Nabi and Allison tried to go to Yukie Nail before, but when they arrived they were told they didn’t have a reservation. Now, after my recent visit to Yukie, the verdict is in.
When I found Barry’s Beauty Bar in Brooklyn, I was not only excited by their work, but I was excited to go to a proud black owned and operated salon to begin to dive into an important part of nail art culture that I had not yet experienced.
Are you having trouble deciding what kind of design to get? Try our quiz to find out what best suits your personality!
I had been following Coco Nails (or Coco Nails Art) on Instagram for awhile and I was impressed by their designs. My friend Jessica wanted to get her first set of nail art, and since she works in Midtown I decided this would be a great time to see if Coco lives up to their gram. As I walked into the studio off of 33rd street, I was happy to see the staff was moving Jessica to a different manicure desk, keeping her away from the draft of the door. Afterwards, we had dinner at Bareburger (which is apparently unnecessarily expensive) and Jessica was proudly holding up her water glass to show the world her beautiful nails. She said, and I quote, “I get why you spend the money, I am hooked!”
We noticed that many people who are new to nail art have a lot of the same questions, so here is a list of common questions about nail art and our answers! If you have any other questions please leave a comment, and don’t forget to subscribe to our email list to be the first to hear about the hottest nail art salons and styles!
Our beloved art form didn’t grace the fingers of many celebs at the Oscars this year, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take this time to appreciate a regular mani. The nice thing is that many of our favorite stars wore affordable polishes that you can pick up just about anywhere. Here are our fav manicure’s of Hollywood’s biggest night, starting with the best dressed (in my opinion), JLo.
Allison and the salon’s only nail artist, Alex, were chatting away, and it would have been a four star experience if it was not for a few crucial mistakes. It was a good price though; the bill came to $65 without tip.
For a final price of just under $100 with tax, I was satisfied with the result. At first I was a bit surprised at the price, since Marie Nails is a classic Manhattan studio, but if it had been any more it would not have been worth it considering the quality.
The Grammys were sometime in the recent time space continuum and I watched begrudgingly because, you know, celebrity culture is toxic, but it’s time to be my best zen self and appreciate the artistry of the two hottest nail looks of the night, those of Cardi B (Rrrrrrt) and Dua Lipa (who to my knowledge does not make strange sounds).
These are the top 10 nail trends and the best salons to get them. The complete list of the best nail trends you did not know about.
I’ve always wished for the day when Americans take a hint from the rest of the world and stop this stressful tipping culture. That day is not today, however…
MG Nail is a small, quaint studio located in the basement area of small set of stores on 39th Ave. The space is clean and the staff is nice, but not particularly friendly.
If you find yourself in Florence, Italy and in need of a manicure, this is the only place I would recommend. To be honest it might be only one of three nail salons, but it’s extremely special nonetheless.
Sunny is the reason we are obsessed with nail art. She is the nicest, most creative person who totally pulled our designs out of the heavens, no questions asked.
We love Judy so much, it’s sad that we can’t go to her as often as we used to. Just just had a baby, and is working on opening her own studio, and being a nurse, so her appointment time is limited.
M&M is a solid studio. It’s a little expensive. I went there because it was one of those times when I had to get the gel that was on my fingers off right now. They had an opening so I took it.
Sakura Nail & Spa is a quaint Japanese nail studio on the Lower East Side. Although it was high-end and clean, their steep prices and willingness to let me walk out with a less-than-perfect manicure significantly brought down the quality of my experience.
My trip to Peony Nail was impulsive - I was in the city and in desperate need of a manicure after an appointment-gone-wrong at another salon (which will remain unnamed, because I ran out of there so fast that I don’t remember).
The thing about Paintbox is that it is just so Paintbox. Located in “fetch” Soho, the salon has a boutique vibe and is almost always pretty busy.
It’s March 2020, and NYC is practically shut down. Citizens are attempting to social-distance, or minimize contact with others. This can be very detrimental for small businesses that rely on in-person services, much like our beloved nail salons. So should you go to nail salons during the outbreak in support of your favorite studio? Or should you try to curb the disease and stay at home?