Keeping it Clean One of the first things I noticed upon entering the salon was how neat and clean it was. The polish and gel-polish displays were tidy. Every station was set up ready for the next client. Pure Nails sterilizes all metal appliances in an autoclave and presents them to clients sealed in their own bag. The salon has five pedicure stations and four manicure tables. Owner Jodi Holz is an esthetician who also owns The Waxing Studio with several locations in Austin. Pure Nails is collocated with one of The Waxing Studios on busy South Lamar Blvd.


All Natural Salon Six nail techs work in the salon, which is open seven days a week. They mainly see clients with appointments but try to accommodate walk-ins when they can. The salon offers natural nail services (manicures and pedicures for women, men, and children), as well as Shellac and Gelish gel-polish services. I loved that the nail tech’s licenses were displayed in frames on a table right across from the pedicure area. Nail tech licenses require 600 hours of school and full cosmetology licenses require 1,500 hours in Texas.


Serious about Being a Pro My nail tech, Denise Olivas (front left), has been doing nails for 25 years, and she’s been at Pure Nails since the beginning of this year. In addition to seeing clients, she also does much of the product ordering and she was very knowledgeable about many different professional product lines and brands. They had all the latest colors and nail tech Tiffany Melton (back left) helped my friend Jen decide between several different purples. (I went with a fun green shade on my toes.)

My first stop in Austin was at Pure Nails for an invigorating pedicure. Nail tech Denise Olivas (right) gave me a Pure Pedicure with an added scrub. The salon uses all organic lotions and scrubs.

My first stop in Austin was at Pure Nails for an invigorating pedicure. Nail tech Denise Olivas (right) gave me a Pure Pedicure with an added scrub. The salon uses all organic lotions and scrubs.

Fun Facts
> The owner of Pure Nails also owns The Waxing Studio and the two share an entrance and reception area. You can come in for all of your nails, waxing, and skin care needs, but the two businesses have their own distinct space.
> The nail techs educate their clients on the importance of salon sanitation and proper procedures. They really talked up the pipe-free pedicure units and the autoclave the salon uses on implements.
> The salon encourages check-ins on Facebook and Foursquare with window decals and posts on their social media pages.

Menu Highlights

Pure Manicure: $25
Pure Pedicure: $35
Mani/Pedi: $50
Gel-Polish: $40
Little Pure Fingers: $15
Pure Sports Manicure: $20
Freehand Nail Art: $5 per toe

Product Highlights:

Polish: OPI and SpaRitual
Gel-Polish: Shellac and Gelish

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, Click here.