2014 YELP 365 CHALLENGE - 245/365
Awesome little salon in Manhattan Beach! I first discovered this place because of Ingrid Nilsen, a very popular and famous YouTube makeup/beauty guru. She got her rockstar nails done at Chameleon and posted a photo on Instagram. As soon as I saw it, my eyes were like O____O and I knew I HAD to go to Chameleon to get my nails done there!
I called a week prior to my appointment because I wanted to know if I could book an appointment that day. Unfortunately I was unable to, so I just ended up scheduling it a week later. Debbie told me she was the one who did Ingrid's rockstar nails, so she would do mine as well!
Chameleon is in a tiny shopping center. They fortunately have a parking lot, and I was lucky enough to find a parking spot right outside! The store front itself is very tiny, and only has a desk for manicures, and two full sized chairs for manis/pedis. Debbie, the woman I worked with, told me there were three rooms in the back where they offered other services such as massages, skin treatments, etc. I also used the bathroom and sink in the back.
My appointment was scheduled for 12pm, and I arrived probably 5-10 minutes early. Debbie was still working with another customer, so I probably waited about 10-15 minutes before she said I could go ahead and check out her glitter collection while she finished up with her customer.
I was SO overwhelmed by all of the different colors of glitter she had! I must have stared at the different combinations for several minutes before Debbie was able to come over and help me choose some colors. Eventually I went with a blue/green ombre :)
I didn't have any polish on my fingers to begin with, so Debbie just filed and shaped my nails, applied a base coat, and then I heated my hands while she prepared the glitter. The whole process was very long because she had to pour a layer of glitter on my nails, apply top coat, and heat...and we repeated it probably 3 times. In total I think she worked on my nails for perhaps 60-75 minutes.
We talked a little and got to know each other, and I really got her going when I mentioned my mom had dogs similar to her little dachshund who sat there with us in the salon! He is SO cute! We must have spent 15 minutes showing each other pictures of our dogs, LOL.
My gel rockstar manicure looks AMAZING and I absolutely love it! I normally don't splurge on going to nail salons because I own an insane amount of nail polish already, but I think meeting with Debbie is totally worth it.
I highly recommend following her on @chameleonnailsmb on Instagram for photos of her work! She also said that if I find any pictures of manicures I like, I could bring it to her and she would be able to replicate it! So awesome! I have already been looking for what I want her to do next :)
My rockstar nails ended up costing me $55. I paid through card so she used a Square on her iPhone. It was pretty easy because I was able to include my tip on the app as well.
Overall, I highly recommend Debbie at Chameleon! She is so sweet and friendly and did a FANTASTIC job on my nails! I absolutely love them! read more