Yesterday Mr. Juicefairy and shot a wedding. That is eight hours of stressing, standing and running around. So to treat my poor feet I figured would go get a pedicure. First off, I have only had a few pedicures in my lifetime so I don’t have a regular place. I just went to the local Vietnamese pedicure factory where they turn out at least ten sets of glossy nails and mini massages in the span of 30 minutes. While I was getting my manicure (hey I was there already, and they had a special) I was sitting back and people watching. Shouldn’t have done that. I watched as a gentlemen manicurist finished doing someone’s nails and went back to the sink, where women are directed to wash their hands mid-mani. As he ran the water and washed his hands he proceeded to tip his head forward and hocked a loogie into the sink! The same sink I was directed to wash my hands in 30 seconds later!
So I am still disgusted while my manicurist finished up my nails and directed me off to that purple light you dry your nails under (what the hell is that btw…is it UV light? Is that bad for you?). When I got up, trying to maneuver the magazine I had in my lap, I accidentally hit my arm against one wet nail, ruining the polish. I apologized and asked her to fix it and she gave me these horrible disapproving eyes. Because as you know she could have done three pedicures in the time it took her to fix my one botched nail! It wasn’t that big of a deal … I thought. So when I finally went over to the purple light, got fidgety, and smacked the same nail into the counter, ruining it again … I kept my mouth shut.
Long story short my feet look just as good as my home-done pedicure and I can’t go back there because of loogie-man. So how do I know the signs of a good nail salon? Any suggestions?
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It is funny you posted this, because just last week a friend of mine went to get a pedicure at the local $8 pedicure factory as well; however, her $8 pedicure turned into a $60 dollar pedicure after she got a (disgusting!) toe infection from bad sanitation and is now eating antibiotics like candy.
Although it is more expensive, it will be well worth it in the long run!
Spas generally have MUCH higher sanitation standards, and are inspected more often, making it difficult for spas to skimp on sanitation! After working as a receptionist in a salon, I also know that salons and spas are concerned about building a clientele base, since that is where they make their money (and their clientele base also drives their salary from the employer). Of course if they are trying to build clientele, they aren’t going to give you a whopping dose of fungus
Thanks for the suggestion MosquitoMagnet (although I am now very much afraid of getting a nasty infection). I think I will try a spa next time. –JF
That is so nasty… I would pay more for a cleaner more upscale salon than one of those factories. Just by watching, you can see if they clean between clients, use different instruments on you that are yours ( some salons give you a kit that is there when you come back), and that have great customer service. They know that they can get busy if the price is cheap. I would call the BOH on them pronto and get them to straighten up! And yes, I would have gotten her to fix the botched nail.