Two tickets to Paradise Nails

Welcome back to another Spotlight Series with Sarah!
If you’ve been keeping up with this series, then you know I started this series to get to know the city more personally, while my readers can get to know me better in the process. Also, if you’ve been keeping up with my series then you should know that one of my best friends got married in April and I was maid of honor at her wedding.
For most of my life I’ve had the mindset of “why pay for someone to do something that I can do myself and save money?” This was specifically true for painting my nails. Until last year, I had never gotten a manicure or pedicure before (as I always do my nails myself). That was until my boyfriend had planned a self-care day for us to celebrate Valentine’s Day, which included pedicures. This was my first time getting one and that’s when I finally understood why people got them. It wasn’t just about the nails, it was about the whole experience. The massage chair, the hot water soak, the warm towels, the foot rub, the cuticles ointment. It was an extremely relaxing experience and my feet had never looked or felt better.

Sarah has her nails done at Paradise Nails in Wayne.

For Valentine’s Day this year, he planned another self-care day for us, which included both manicures and pedicures this time. This was my first manicure and I was a little unsure of how I was going to like it. In my mind, manicures were for the woman that get long, fancy, acrylic nails. That is not me. I think nails like that are beautiful and I enjoy watching those aesthetically pleasing videos of the process of them being done, but long nails on my own fingers drive me crazy.
Since I have short nails, I didn’t think manicures would be for me. But for a self-care day, it was a delight. The cuticles ointment, the moisturizer, the hand massage, the peace of mind. It really is about treating yourself.
So for my best friend’s wedding, I decided to treat myself and got a manicure and pedicure for the big day. I got gel polish, which lasts longer. But the problem with gel polish is that nail polish remover doesn’t work to remove it, so I can’t take it off myself. Since I needed to get the gel polish removed, instead of looking outside the City of Wayne, I decided to try somewhere within the city.
On Monday, May 13th (the day after Mother’s Day) I took my mom to Paradise Nails to get manicures (her first) as a late Mother’s Day gift. We both were greeted at the door and told to pick out our colors, since we both wanted regular polish.
The gel polish on my nails for the wedding was a Vanilla Chrome color, so I wanted to pick something bright since summer is coming. I chose “Blue River” which reminded me of robin’s egg blue. My mom is about all-things-pink-and-sparkly, so she chose “Cinder Shoes.”
I was directed to sit at Tony’s station, while my mom was directed to sit at Tom’s. Tony has been working at Paradise Nails for three and a half years, and Tom has been at Paradise Nails for two years. Tony removed my gel polish first with the nail drill, and then began my manicure process: soak, cuticle removal, trim, file, oil. Then came the base coat, color, and top coat. Tom finished my mom’s nails before Tony finished mine (since Tony had to remove the gel polish first) so I met my mom at the nail drying station. We sat there for a while as our polish dried and we listened to the relaxing music being played.
Eventually, Tom came over to check our nails and we were given the OK that our nails were dry and we were good to head over to checkout. I was pleasantly surprised with the total price for two manicures and my mom was thrilled with how her nails turned out.
Since I still needed the gel polish removed from my toe nails, I decided to go back to Paradise Nails a week later, on Friday, May 24th, to get a pedicure and really give y’all the full experience. After being greeted at the door, I picked out the regular polish color “Whipped Cream” and was directed to one of the pedicure chairs in the back. Tom took care of me this time.
I turned my massage chair on as my feet soaked in the warm water. Tom removed my gel polish with the nail drill and then began my pedicure process: cuticle removal, trim, foot file, sander, scrub, and massage. Then came the lotion and hot towel wrap, followed by the base coat, color, and top coat.
With toe separators and disposable slippers on my feet, I carefully walked to the nail drying station. I waited for a while, listening to the calming music playing as my toe nails dried. After some time, Tom checked on my nails and removed the separators and slippers from my feet, and gave me the OK to head to the checkout.
My nails grow very fast, so 11 days later by the time I got my toes done, my fingernails were already growing out and there was a decent size gap between my cuticles and the nail polish. With how quickly my nails grow and how quickly I would need to get my nails redone or filled in, I still plan to paint my own nails and save money. However, I was happy with the manicure and pedicure I received from Paradise Nails.
Paradise Nails is located at 35129 E Michigan Ave, and is open 10 a.m. – 7 p.m Monday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday. For more information about Paradise Nails or to book an appointment, call (734)641-7803.
Even if you think manicures or pedicures aren’t for you, just treat yourself at least once and give it a try. Check out Paradise Nails, and be on the lookout for the next Spotlight Series with Sarah!