She Sells Gel Overlays
The fact that all her clients have their own nails is the direct result of a marketing decision Walters made a few years ago.
by Judy Lessin
Judy Lessin
Features Editor
Recycle Salon Flip-Flops, Earn Coupons
By signing up at www.terracycle.com, salons can help keep disposable pedicure flip-flops out of local landfills and earn Old Navy coupons to share with customers.
by Judy Lessin
Bring a Polish, Take a Polish
The polish exchange at Hey, Nice Nails! in Long Beach, Calif., is just what is sounds like — clients are free to drop off a polish they no longer care for and pick up one that sparks their fancy.
by Judy Lessin
Tech Pens a Faery Tale
“I wrote my first short story when I was 9, and I never stopped writing,” says Patrice McNeal, owner of WildSide Nailz in Los Angeles and a tech of 35 years. “Last year I digitally published my first novel, Feyling Duplicity."
by Judy Lessin
My Other Life, Tania Rice, Geocacher
“Caching is a great way so see new places and blow off some steam while you are exploring. It can be done in the country or the city and you can meet great people along the way,” says Tania Rice, owner of Certified Esthetics in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.
by Judy Lessin
Texting Over a Landline?
TextUs.Biz is an app for PC, Mac, or iPad that allows the salon to use its existing landline telephone number to text messages back and forth with customers.
by Judy Lessin
Chakra Maintenance
Mountain Body’s Chakra Dead Sea Bath Salts are available in formulations that correspond to the seven major chakras located along the spine.
by Judy Lessin
Better Than Tupperware
Nowadays you can sell anything from cosmetics to cookware at small home gatherings — including Jamberry Nails.
by Judy Lessin
My Other Life, Erin Hart, Stand-up Comedian
By day you can catch Erin Hart doing nails at The Nail Lounge in Costa Mesa, Calif., but most weekends around 8 p.m., you’ll find her spouting off about her life in front of an appreciative audience at The Comedy Store in Hollywood.
by Judy Lessin
Personalized Polish
Why should the big polish manufacturers have all the fun? Now you — or anyone else for that matter — can give a bottle of nail polish the name of your choice.
by Judy Lessin
Bahamas, Baby!
The owner of Kai’s Kottage in Titusville, Fla., Kai Keach flies to Andros Island in the Bahamas once a month for a few days to deliver nail and skin care services on the navy base there.
by Judy Lessin
The Theme’s the Thing: Savvy Chic Nail Cottage
Indisputably feminine, Savvy Chic exemplifies the shabby chic style, using distressed antique furniture, paintwork, and repurposed curtains and textiles to achieve an elegant overall effect reminiscent of Victorian decor.
by Judy Lessin
Into Alternative Healing? Try Foot Zone Therapy
We know what you’re thinking. Foot Zone Therapy must just be another name for foot reflexology. Not so, says Kristen Bowen, a Foot Zone Therapy practitioner and instructor based in North Logan, Utah.
by Judy Lessin
She’s No Pushover
As much as she loves doing nails, Dana Gonzalez-Kurtz, owner of Artistry of the Nail at Salon Shibumi in Portland, Ore., draws the line at doing things that eat into the profits she’s entitled to.
by Judy Lessin
How Flexible Should You Be with Non-Traditional Students?
Not everybody has the resources to be the perfect student despite their best intentions. That means sometimes students have to miss class when their kids’ babysitter flakes or they neglect to turn in their homework because they have to work late at their full-time job. We asked nail school instructors to tell us: How flexible should you be when accommodating non-traditional students?
by Judy Lessin
The Theme’s the Thing: MWnails
At MWnails, a London-based nail bar with two locations, the clients are passengers, the techs are the cabin crew, and the salon’s interior is called the flight deck.
by Judy Lessin
My Other Life: Diane Fife, paranormal investigator
“I had my first experience with ‘the unexplained’ when I was 10,” says nail tech and paranormal investigator Diane Fife.
by Judy Lessin