I have paid for three manicures in my life, (and I got a free one years ago from a Starbucks client) The first one was with Kimberly two summers ago and it was a great experience. My mani lasted a full week, despite how hard I am on my hands. The second time was right before Sam and Erin’s wedding. I went back to the same place and asked for a mani/pedi. It was a terrible experience; they were hasty, made fun of other customers while I was sitting there, and seemed annoyed the whole time. One woman painted my toes while the other grabbed my hand and started slathering paint on my nails. This was my first pedicure and I found it to be extremely tickly and uncomfortable and it certainly didn’t help that someone was occupying my hands at the same time. I had really hoped the mani/pedi would be done one after the other instead of simultaneously. It sucked. It didn’t help that I foolishly put my shoes and socks on and completely ruined the pedicure. I had stuck my toes under the dryer for a full fifteen minutes but it didn’t matter…I wrecked it.

I decided yesterday that my character in I Feel Fine should have dark, creepy, nails. So, I decided that I was going to splurge on a manicure and went to a nail place two blocks from the one I had previously gone to (both are on Broadway). It was three dollars cheaper (12 instead of 15) and I should have known better. The following is the review I wrote on Google:
It took me over an hour to get a simple manicure. The job was split up between two employees. The male employee did the prep work (trimming, filing, etc), the female employee did the polish. The guy cut my cuticle too close, causing it to bleed slightly. He apologized but it was very awkward situation. I should have left. When the girl took over she has to redo most of his work, including evening out my nail shape which he had left lopsided. She was split between myself and another customer, so I received a very hasty polish job. I had hoped some recognition of my bleeding cuticle would have occurred but she remained oblivious and took my money without offering any incentive. I suppose it was ambitious of me to hope that she would recognize that paying someone for damage to my finger might not be the best customer service. This manicure lasted less then 24 hrs with most of the polish chipping off within the first few hours. I suppose you get what you pay for ($12) but I am never going to Nini’s again.

There is a small part of me that is terrified I’m going to develop some horrible skin disease. The other part just wants to put the whole experience behind me. (Besides it was a tiny amount of blood and a lot of alcohol was applied after it happened). Sure, I debated going back there today and saying, “Look, this is the worst manicure ever, it’s chipping and you owe me.” However, I would probably just be subjected to continued crappiness. I had always viewed a manicure as an incredibly frivolous expense, something that I always thought was silly and unnecessary. However, my own attempt at painting my nails has been disastrous (and believe me I’ve gone through phases). Paying someone for longevity seemed worth it: I’ll get my nails done and they might actually last a week. However, this was certainly not the case. I think I’m going to go to a beauty supply store and buy some good supplies: a nice topcoat, some hardcore polish, and a good clipper. I’m not willing to pay $30 bucks for a mani and I’m certainly not going to suffer a cheaply done job again…so, I suppose it’s up to me.