Manicures = Life

Getting my nails did is one of my favorite acts of self-love. When my nails are perfection, I feel like perfection. I love the whole process of it, from the moment my big toe touches the hot bubbly water in the pedicure basin, to the soft grating sound the emory board makes on my nails as they are being shaped to almond perfection—I’m living my best life.

This is ironic to me because when I was a little girl, I used to hate when my mom or older sister dragged me with them to their weekly appointments.

I would get annoyed and restless. The acrylic fumes made me sleepy. I used to rearrange the nail polish colors about 4 times within the 2 hour time span of our visit. I memorized the iconic Essie color names. FYI, this is where my eye for nail color was curated. I was probably the only 9-year old that could explain the differences between ‘Fit Me On The Jitney’ and ‘Chinchilly’. Mind you this was before smartphones turned these woes into a simple Google search, so that’s talent: don’t debate me.

Back to present times, not only has there been a personal shift in taste for myself, but there’s been a cultural shift as well regarding the nail salon. What was once an act reserved as an extra grooming step for big events like birthdays, weddings, or graduations, nail salon visits are now the social norm to most women. In 2017, the nail industry has grown into a sturdy 8.53 billion dollar industry. In 2009, there was a slight dip in nail salon revenue due to the economic recession, but it bounced back shortly once employment rates stabilized. Thank you Mr. Obama.

The nail salon has become a way for many not just myself , to put reality on pause, and in this age where our, ahem- “president” is out here playing with our right to affordable healthcare and referring to beautiful, lush Caribbean lands as “Shithole countries”, we could all use a coping mechanism.

When I’m sad because my binge watching marathons of Shameless, Insecure and Atlanta are over, and I have to wait for another season, I make myself happy with D.I.D. Nail Paint’s Duchess. Seeing that luxurious blue on my fingertips makes me think happy thoughts in the middle of a stressful moment.