I had not even planned on coming to this nail salon because it's not my regular one, but it was short notice, Easter Sunday, and anyone who lives in Whitestone knows that 150th street is usually chaos on a regular day, so parking was really limited. I managed to finally park not too far from this place, and decided to give them a shot.
So I walk in, ask if they have time to do my nails since I don't have an appointment, and tell them that I need a new set of acrylic tips, something I haven't done in more than 6 years, but saw fit to do since I was leaving for a relaxing beach vacation the next day and didn't want to deal with chipping nails from being in the beach/pool water. They tell me this is doable, and to have a seat. I quickly scanned the price list they have on the wall, where they have the price of a new set of acrylic tips listed at $40. I thought this was high based on other places I'd been to, but they were willing to accommodate me, so I didn't speak up. Again, they accommodated me, and we agreed on what I wanted.
I was called to a chair with an older gentleman, who took a quick look at my nails, surmised that they were strong and healthy, and took it upon himself to begin lecturing me on how acrylic is not the way to go. "Acrylic is for black people, you don't want that." I was seriously disgusted at this point and should have taken this statement as my cue to leave, but, again, I had my beach vacation in mind, so I stayed put. I calmly told him I wanted acrylic tips, and he starts saying "$75, $75, too expensive, you don't want that." I'm all like, "The price says $40 on the wall." He kept insisting it wasn't correct, so I told him they should take it down.
I continued explaining that I wanted my nails to be a little longer and maintenance free. He continued by saying he could accommodate me using UV permanent manicure, which I've never done. I asked if it was the same as gel. He said it was. I told him I wanted them to be longer, and he said he could do it with this UV manicure. I asked him how much it would cost, and he said "Special today, $40." Since this was clearly cost-effective, and, according to him, would give me what I wanted, I just went along with it.
This is where things went totally downhill and where I should have just walked out. He starts to do the UV and I notice that he's only using this extending tool to make them longer on a few of my nails, while leaving the others out. I mentioned this to him, and he starts reassuring me that everything will be fine, that he doesn't need to use it for those, and my nails will look so much better natural. I'm continuing to get more antsy at this point, and wondering why he's not responding to my concerns. He continues with both hands, and then paints them with a color I hadn't agreed on, and tells me we're done.
I looked down at my nails, in horror, as they're all different sizes and totally uneven. I tell him they're uneven, and he starts filing. When he's done, they're still uneven. I complained, only to have him continuously saying, "Natural, natural." I didn't ask for natural nails, I asked for what I wanted, and didn't get what I wanted. And now I have to pay you for something I didn't want? The woman who took the money tried to tell me how beautiful they looked, and I was so disgusted. I so regret refusing to pay, but I couldn't bring myself to cause a scene in there. What was supposed to be a relaxing day to prepare for my vacation turned into a disaster.
I came home, and my mother looked at my nails, in disbelief, and wanted to call them to let them know it was unacceptable and that she was going to report them to the Better Business Bureau. When she called, she asked to speak to the gentleman, and he refused to get on the phone. She told the woman who answered that it was unacceptable, and she tried to tell me to go back to fix it, like I will ever step foot in there again. She told them she was reporting them and they tried to argue. They CALLED MY HOUSE 4 times in a row, screaming and arguing, asking why I didn't complain. I guess I didn't cause a scene, which was probably my fault, because I brought my concerns up to them calmly, like a human being. I guess I should've acted like an animal!
These people are not worth your time or money. I am in disbelief that they're still in business. Go to Heart Nail & Spa, also on 14th. They are truly the best. read more