Tag: salons

Doing your own nails…why it’s better…

~ Emmie Reve ~ Leave a comment

I’ve had a long relationship with doing my own nails. Ever since I was a teenager, searching for the trendiest colours, whether it be gun metal black, or a candy inspired pastel-y blue; it’s been something that as a nail art enthusiast, I’ve known all about. As a teenager, I didn’t really have the cash or the need to go to a salon to get my nails done…and as much as the thrill of getting pampered is these days now that I’m older with a ton more on my plate…one thing still stands; I want to do my own nails.  I prefer to shape, paint and design my own nails…and here’s why…

Reasons to do DIY manicures:

  1. It’s easy to do. There is a misconception that a manicurist can do it better than you. Well, maybe they are better at painting within the lines, but ultimately, all you need is: a base coat, two colour coats and a top coat. The real trick is keeping all the coats thin so they dry relatively fast…(a cool tip for setting the polish real quick? Rub each nail with coconut/olive oil for a minute after the final coat to help it set)
  2. The myth that a manicurist shapes better…this is not true. Invest in some basic nail files, coarse for shaping and fine for smoothing, and you’ll get the loveliest shapes with your nails. My go to shape? An almond shape…short on the sides and softly arced on the tips.
  3. The misconception that the quality of the polish is better: there is so much noise out there today about gel nails, seaweed nails, and all this stuff. But when it boils down to it, the salons are using the same paints that you can buy at any quality beauty supply shop.
  4. Health reasons: you can choose to buy and use formaldehyde free polishes, “three free”, and “seven free”…basically, you can get gentler products that contain less toxins in them if you really wanted to and you should for the sake of you and your nail health.
  5. Think of the health and ethical rights of manicurists/beauty workers. I recently read this scary article about how in New York City, manicures are so cheap, like less than $10 a pop, and the reason for that is not pretty: a lot of the salon workers are immigrants that don’t get paid well, and are exploited in terrible work conditions.  Not only that, but they are exposed to really toxic nail enamel solvents and chemicals and it affects the worker’s health (even their unborn babies if they are pregnant!)  I also feel like it places a big divide between more fortunate women and less fortunate ones…At the end of the day we are all people, so don’t support these back-alley nail salons.  At least go to a higher end salon that is known to treat their workers right and pay adequately for the luxury of being pampered.
Have fun with designing and creating colour combinations…I always do!

So there it is, my 5 main reasons why it’s better to DIY your manicures.  Yes, it takes more time and effort to do your own nails, but at the end of the day, they are your nails and if you want them to glow and shine…it is a creative job that should not be “outsourced”.  🙂

Reasons to not have a hair stylist…

~ Emmie Reve ~ Leave a comment

I was reading an article online recently about 14 reasons to splurge on a fancy salon, and well, here is my counter-argument to that piece…reasons not to go to a salon.  Most hair stylists would probably hate me if they knew me. I haven’t been to a salon in over a year and I don’t plan on going anytime soon.  I don’t depend on them to keep me with the trends, I do all my own hair styling, even cutting.  I stopped going when I noticed quality chemical treatment and colour products are available to the average person, and dared to ask to question if I could do without the salon industry. I started colouring myself with those home dye kits at the pharmacy and then eventually graduated to professional colours/rinses from the barber supply.  I took a bit of a risk to learn the ins and outs of basic haircare and chemical processing, and once I learned them, the risk element diminished, leaving even less reason to go to a pricey salon. I’ve heard people insist about how “magical” professional hands are to hair and how they are just a must.  Not true.  Sure, if you can afford $150 for a colour job then go for it…it is easier to sit in a chair and let someone else do it.  But for around $10 worth of professional products you can do the legwork yourself and save a whole lot of money.  Then use that for new clothes, stuff for your kids, and good food. Sorry hair stylists, but I’ve put a target on your business  in this entry.

looks like it cost something to breath the air in here!
looks like it costs something to breath the air in here!

A lot of people argue that stylists are needed, because and average person is inexperienced and can mistakes.  That is totally true.  I mean, I won’t lie and say I’ve never messed up my hair.  But the difference is that I can own up to it, and hair will grow back and I learn from it.  Hairdresser have made mistakes with my hair before, and I still had to smile and tip politely at the end.  Not fun. Depending solely on hairdressers for hair functioning is also problematic, because in my experience, they often do not understand or listen to the customer, and they don’t seem to really care about how you turn out.  Nobody can care more about how you turn out than yourself. There are the pricey hairdressers that might listen, but a lot of women can’t justify spending this much on just hair, especially in this time and age where money is so hard to come by.  And I don’t want to go to a hairdresser’s college just to get a decent affordable cut from a student stylist.  You’re giving your hair to someone who is going to learn from cutting it…and your own payback is a slight discount.  Not good enough.  We deserve more than that…

My last dependency on hairdressers ended when I started watching how-to videos online with simple instructions on hair cutting and layering.  I learned these and performed them on myself, made evaluations…all in all, it was something at I could do reasonable well.  Also, my hair is long, so long cuts are easier to maintain in my opinion, they are free flowing in general, so fancy cuts are not needed.  So…now I realize that my need for hairdressers is pretty much obsolete.  And it’s nice to be free.  I don’t have to save up my piggy bank to get something so essential as a proper ‘do.

Rapunzel did her own hair. That turned out well, didn't it?
Rapunzel did her own hair. That turned out well, didn’t it?

Nobody talks about avoiding hair salons, because I think there’s a lot of business at stake, and there is so much riding on keeping women hooked.  My current hair-do is something I created to maintain myself, and I’ve gotten many compliments on it.  It’s a medium long hair length with wispy layers, and a straight cut medium length bang, coloured with a punchy pinkish red colour rinse put in after pre-lighting by toning with 40 volume peroxide, no bleach.  And I do it on my own, after a few trials and errors, but the end result is what I wanted.  And that was worth the work.

Maybe when/if I become a bride, on my wedding day, I’ll treat myself to a pampering blowout from a good hairdresser, because I admit that they do do beautiful blow outs and shaping after a shampooing.  They obviously know how to make an updo.  But until then, they are a luxury that even if I could afford, I have decided is not worth it.