5 /5 Janette Wong: I’ve been here a few times and am pleased with their work. I can only speak for their hard gel manicure since I do them regularly as maintenance thing
It’s appointment only and in a tiny office building with ample parking since it’s healthcare and tutoring businesses mostly. The place is clean and spacious, very meticulous on the millennial pink theme. They also have a separate area/business in the same suite (room behind the manicure + pedicure stations) doing lash/brows and waxing. They’re not chatty with the clients but they are professional. They speak Russian with each other and even with my limited listening comprehension, I can tell you that they aren’t gossiping about/saying mean things about the clients (they don’t even cuss).
When you get a Russian/dry manicure, the focus is on good cuticles, good nail shaping, and with hard gel, building the correct apex. I’ve had different nail techs and they are all meticulous about their basics. I’ve asked them about nail art and seen what they do on others and while they can do some basic things, fancy nail art is really a completely separate specialty.
The thing you might not be used to is them manipulating your hand in different positions so they can get the product to cover your nail completely to the edges and to build up that apex. That apex is key to giving your nail extra strength as it grows. It’s not something that gets as much focus on in conventional gel manicures that simply uses gel as an all over layer of polish. Hard gel is thicker than gel polish but it’s in no way as thick as acrylic. They also offer soft gel but I have not tried that and can’t offer an opinion. They informed me it is a better option if you have thinner, flexible nails.
They’ve updated their estimated time to finish a hard gel manicure because it is most definitely more than 1 hour (ie. The estimation when I first started getting these done in summer 2024). I appreciate this because even though I’m just getting my old hard gel removed and a single color done, this is NOT the kind of work you can get knocked out during a lunch break. Their prices and estimate time it takes to do basic things are listed on the booking website but if you are on a strict schedule, you need to communicate that to them and see if they can do your nail art in the time allotted
Aside from the typical growth, this kind of manicure can safely stretch out to 6 weeks for me personally (and I’m not particularly careful with my hands) without the gel peeling off the nail at the edges, my nail breaking underneath it, or it cracking. My nails are normally pretty healthy and this generally just ensures that they won’t break as they grow. These are workhorse nails and is the reason I keep coming back.
I think that if you understand what this kind of manicure entails and that it’s a different from conventional manicures, you can benefit a lot from it. If you’re looking more for things like lots of color options/nail art, conversation, a pampering spa experience, there are plenty of salons at different price points, within a 5 mile radius, that aren’t appointment-only that you can go to. If you want a more quiet experience and a quality manicure that lasts, this is an excellent choice
