From the Editors: a Nails Magazine Blog

Bubble Nail Art: A New Trend?

NAILS Magazine — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:13:39 GMT

I received several pictures of some unique nail art from nail tech Hoa Bui at Ann's Nail Salon in Philadelphia. The acrylic nails were built up, not out, in a style she referred to as “short, curve bubble nails” (not to be confused with “water bubble nails,” which are enhancements that feature encased nail embellishments suspended in water).

Bui says, “Bubble nails require building and sculpting of the acrylic until you get the look your client wants to achieve. You have to know exactly where the hump is supposed to be, then slowly build the nails. You start with a ball of acrylic in the middle of the nail, which is the highest part of the hump. The nail has to be thin at the cuticle, then it gradually gets thicker as it gets to the middle of the nail plate. Then from the middle of the nail plate it has to gradually get thinner at the tip of the nail, like a nice smooth hill. The curve has to be perfect.”

Have you seen this nail style before? What do you think of it? Is it popular in your area? Leave me a comment in Feedback.

—Sree

Nails Night Out Launched in NYC

NAILS Magazine — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:11:05 GMT

A gathering of bloggers, beauty editors, creative directors, lacquer lovers, and beauty/cosmetics junkies, Nails Night Out kicked off the first stop on its national beauty event tour October 24 in New York City at the Beauty Bar. For this night filled with polish splendor, event organizer Tamara Odum brought together top lacquer brands including Rescue Beauty Lounge, Nailtini, Priti NYC, Color Club Nail Polish/Forsythe Cosmetic Group, Barielle, Jesses Girl Cosmetics, OC Nail Art, White Lies | Color Truths Lacquer Pigments, and PeaceKeeper Cause-Metics. Guests enjoyed a night filled with new color launches, polish swaps, crayola-inspired martinis, beauty talk, desserts, and gift bags to die for.

Proceeds from the event were donated to benefit breast cancer research. Stay tuned as Nails Night Out heads to Atlanta in February for their next stop. For more information, e-mail nailsnightout@gmail.com, or join the conversation at twitter.com/nailsnightout and Facebook Fan Page: Nails Night Out.

— Judy

Get Nominated for Best of Citysearch

NAILS Magazine — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:35:41 GMT

Online reviews are a huge factor in getting new clients to visit your salon. Indeed, for the past several years, I’ve been using online reviews as a deciding factor in most of my purchases — from the next book I want to read to what to order at a restaurant I’ve never been to before. I also use online reviews professionally at NAILS when picking a salon to profile when I’m visiting a new city and for tons of other story topics.

So, I’m urging you to get your salon nominated on Citysearch.com’s “Best of Spa and Beauty” category. The nomination process just started and runs through Nov. 10.

To get your salon nominated, tell all of your clients, friends, and family to visit Citysearch.com, then type in your salon name in the “search” box and the salon city in the “near” box. Your salon should then come up with a “Nominate for Best of Citysearch” logo next to it. (The nominate buttons are given to businesses that Citysearch has found are a positive match between a poll that’s about to open and the products/services a business offers; if the “nominate” button isn’t showing up for your salon, e-mail Citysearch at cscs@citysearch.com.)The salons with the most nominations will run in the official polls, for which voting starts on Nov. 12. The winners will be announced Dec. 2.

Good luck and get out there!

—Sree

Nails, Music, & The City

NAILS Magazine — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:02:35 GMT

For those of you in the Manhattan area, you might want to snag tickets to an upcoming concert by nail tech-nail product manufacturer-jazz singer extraordinaire Deborah Lippmann. Lippmann has been a nail tech for more than 25 years, with such high-profile clients as Sarah Jessica Parker and Gwyneth Paltrow, and is the creator of the Lippman Collection of nail polishes.

She’ll be combining her two passions — nails and music — on Monday, November 2, at the Feinstein’s at Loews Regency in Manhattan for her cabaret-inspired show “Nailed”.

“Now for the first time, the accomplished jazz singer and sought-after manicurist unites her two careers, sharing the stories of her remarkable day job through ‘Nailed,’ an intimate performance,” says the legendary jazz club’s website. “Though Lippmann has never stopped singing, her lengthy — and successful — detour into the world of fashion, beauty, and celebrity has generated substantial fodder for her irreverent, autobiographical show. Discover the musician and the manicurist at Lippmann’s exclusive performance this November.” You can purchase tickets here.

—Sree

The New GiGi

NAILS Magazine — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 00:49:07 GMT

American International Industries (AII) has just rebranded its GiGi line of wax and skin care, and had a press lunch to celebrate its launch. The branding team at AII has been planning GiGi’s makeover for about a year, and their hard work has really paid off. Me and Viet Salon associate editor Kim Pham, were invited to the lunch-time unveiling.

The new packaging has a modern, clean look compared to the older brand imaging, and the products still offer high-quality waxing and skin care formulas. There were a number of editors in attendance from different beauty industry magazines, as well as Gabriela Davi-Khorasanee, who is the editor-in-chief for the blog M.I.S.S.: Eyes to the Sky, Ears to The Street. The blog features articles on everything from fashion to beauty products, as well as new technological gadgets and other new trends in culture.

I even got a chance to try out a Crushed Grape paraffin dip at the hands of AII consumer relations and marketing specialist Sarah Spagnola. Spagnola is also a licensed esthetician and did a great hand massage before the paraffin dip.

Director of public relations and marketing, Anne Moratto (left) introduced GiGi’s new brand packaging with AII international educator Elham Jazab, and thanked the individual team members who helped work on the redesign.

President and CEO of AII Zvi Ryzman also got up and talked about how proud he was of the AII team and how rewarding it is to work in the beauty industry and help others.

AII international educator Elham Jazab did waxing demonstrations.

— Tim

BlogTalk Radio From Milady

NAILS Magazine — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:58:36 GMT

Have you heard about Milady’s Blog Talk Radio Show?

The next topic that airs on Monday, October 26^th is: “What Would You Rather Do: Work More or Make More?”

Here’s the description from the website:

“If you are a salon or spa professional in desperate need of making more money but you don’t have the time to do it yourself, then don’t miss this show! In 30 minutes you'll learn three simple strategies for growing revenue and getting your freedom back. Immediately you’ll be able to implement a system to help you generate more sales simply by engaging the efforts of your entire team. Sound easy, it really is! JOIN Julie Shepperly, Milady Coach, to get the answers you’ve been waiting for!”

Date: Monday, October 26th

Time: 12 pm (EST)

Topic: What Would You Rather Do: Work More or Make More?

Call in #: 914.338.1755

— Hannah

Win a NYC Trip via a CND Nail Style Contest

NAILS Magazine — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:02:17 GMT

I don’t know about you, but I love looking at all of the amazing nail styles that come out of Fashion Week runway shows around the globe. Last month’s NYC Fashion Week featured trendy moon manicures, matte finishes, an array of nude polishes, and even paraffin as a fashion accessory. (Seriously, at the Victor de Souza show, the wax was kept on the models’ hands to lend them a futuristic glaze. The nails were long and pointy and polished with CND’s Blackjack.)

We’ll have complete coverage of NYC Fashion Week and all of the spring trends in NAILS’ February 2009 issue, but, in the meantime, nail manufacturer CND already has next season’s Fashion Week on the brain — and they want to give one lucky nail tech the chance to go backstage with the CND team to see how all the magic happens!

The company’s giving away an all-expense-paid trip to the winner of its Nail Style Competition. To enter, you have to thrill the CND judges with the most creative, inspired, fashionable nail that you can conjure up. Your design must use at least one Colour and one Effect from the new CND line.

The competition just launched and runs through November 15. Fom November 16 to 23, a team of experts at CND (headed by Jan Arnold) will choose the top 20 best nail designs. For two weeks these top 20 designs will then be up for public voting. On December 8, the grand prize winner of the Fashion Week trip and five runners up (who will win a new Salon Colour Display valued at $690) will be announced.

To enter and for full contest rules, visit www.cndnailstylecompetition.com.

Good luck!

—Sree

Two Industry Leaders: One Educational Event

NAILS Magazine — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:25:42 GMT

If you are having trouble staying afloat in today’s economy, learn from two pros who have “been there, conquered that.” With a combined 50+ years of real-world experience, La Shaun Brown-Glenn and Millie Haynam are joining forces to teach Breakthrough Success Training — What’s Holding You Back? This two-day event takes place Sunday, November 8 and Monday, November 9 in Chicago. Some of the topics covered include retail, add-ons, pre-booking, package pricing, building relationships, marketing, social networking, public relations, and goal planning.

“If you are serious about growing your business — whether you are a salon owner or a booth renter — follow the strategies that have helped so many others,” says Haynam. The cost is $100. Pay online at www.nailsnaturally.com. Choose “buy a gift certificate” and type “breakthrough” in the message.

For more information, contact Haynam at (440) 241-5760.

Dell Laptops Available in OPI Polish Colors

NAILS Magazine — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:35:00 GMT

Dear Santa,

All I want for Christmas is a shiny new laptop (mine is three years old — that’s, like, 100 in computer years!) ...customized to match my favorite polish shade. Oh, and can you make it look like the polish texture too — you know, like shiny and shimmery and like my manicurist literally painted it on?

What? No problem, you say? You can get me a Dell in my choice of OPI Lacquer Shades? Wow, I must have been really, really good.

Readers: It’s true. OPI and Dell have partnered to create a new, polished laptop collection. The OPI color options for Dell Mini, Inspiron, and Studio laptops will be available in the Dell Design Studio at Dell.com first in the U.S., then later in other countries. Select OPI colors also will be available at retailers nationwide.

It starts with a holiday collection of six colors: Dear Santa (the glittery holiday red shown at the top of this post and my personal favorite so far), Kyoto Pearl (shimmery white satin), Princesses Rule! (bright sparkly pink), Up Front & Personal (golden glitter), Holiday Glow (charcoal grey glowing with a touch of silver), and, of course, I’m Not Really a Waitress (chianti red). (You can see pictures of all of these laptops below.) Dell will bring 20 more classic OPI colors to market and incorporate new offerings based on trends, seasonality, and popularity throughout the year. Merry Christmas!

Kyoto Pearl

Princesses Rule!

Up Front & Personal

Holiday Glow

I’m Not Really a Waitress

—Sree

Enter to Win a Free Seat to a Salon Business Seminar

NAILS Magazine — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:09:41 GMT

Strategies, a salon-spa training firm, is giving away free seats to its “Incubator”, a four-day seminar that covers topics like: projecting sales and expenses for growth, renewing faith in the potential of your business, how to better lead and motivate your team, discovering habits of highly successful teams, creating a culture where staff won’t want to leave, and becoming profitable by design, not by chance.

The company says, “The economic environment of 2009 has been a challenge for all businesses. As we approach the beginning of a new year, Strategies is taking an unprecedented step to ensure that salons and spas enter 2010 armed with the systems and skills needed to make it their best year ever.”

The deadline to enter is end-of-day today. The seminar will take place November 8 - 11, 2009, in Centerbrook, Conn. The winner(s) will be notified by Friday.

For all of the details and to enter to win, click here.

—Sree