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| Image courtesy of Salon-de-Lis Facebook Page |
Fast forward a few months, and while I was reading my Facebook feed, I saw that Salon-de-Lis was now offering Shellac by CND! I immediately jumped to make an appointment for a pedicure due to my upcoming Las Vegas trip and I knew that I didn't want to have my toe polish flake off or chip while out of state at a beauty convention. I was able to sign up straight from their Facebook Page (bonus!) which leads to the website Vagaro - a web based appointment calendar.
I received a phone call a few days later asking to reschedule my appointment. The woman who was going to perform my services was no longer available on that day, and in the end, it worked out better for me to move the appointment. The owner, Lisa, offered to even come in early to the salon so I could get in and out in time for my flight, which was a nice gesture. At this point, I had not spilled that I was a nail blogger, but she saw we had mutual Facebook friends and remembered my blog through other conversations I had with said mutual contacts.
I went into the salon a few days early to see (a) if Salon-de-Lis offered the entire Shellac process and (b) what colors she had available. I had printed off some color combinations from the CND website because I knew I wanted to layer my colors. The polish room had moved to another part of the salon since the last time I had been there, and the new room had a neat display of all their polishes. I asked to see the Shellac set up and was pleased to see the official CND lamp, Shellac polishes, base and top coats. I narrowed my choices down to 3 possibles, and was set to return the following Saturday. Turns out, I didn't even need my printouts because Lisa had the same printouts available in her salon, with the colors that she offers already pre-marked.
On Saturday (July 21), I was running a bit late (if you saw my Instagram, you'll see I packed in 16 minutes, nervewracking!), so I called to let them know I was about 15 minutes behind. I arrived and was offered a drink (I chose water), and was seated in a nice plush salon chair with a pull out drawer for the pedicures. I didn't need a pedicure, just my nail lacquer removed and the Shellac applied, and since Lisa now knew I was a nail blogger and understood Shellac, she asked if 2 shadows (new hires) could watch. I didn't mind at all, so the duo came in to observe. (It was actually a brother & sister that just graduated from cosmetology school and were still new to nails.)
Lisa is very adamant about using the entire Shellac system from start to beginning and not short changing the client by mixing and matching products or systems. I chose to put on one coat of Purple Purple and one coat of Moonlight & Roses which resulted in a nice lilac shade. Lisa took care to make sure no gel was on the cuticle area during the pedicure, my foot was relaxed during the UV lamp, and that she wrapped the tips (which is difficult on toes but not impossible!).
There were only 2 downsides. The first was that I was the first Shellac pedicure, and so her pedicure chair was not set up properly for Shellac. In order to make me comfortable, she would polish one foot, then hold the lamp on the foot rest while I placed my foot inside. While that cured, we'd small talk until the light went off, then she'd polish the other foot and hold the lamp during that foot's curing. It made the procedure last longer only because instead of being able to polish one foot while the other was in the lamp, she was making sure my foot was comfortable.
The other downside was that when it came time to remove the sticky layer, she used 91% isopropyl alcohol instead of 99%. While it removed the sticky layer and kept the shine, I knew it wasn't "right". Salon-de-Lis is still working on getting their CND Certified certification and being added to the CND website - all in good time. Edit: I talked to CND and they said that 91% IPA is 'okay' but the 99% IPA is the professional grade and makes the nail the glossiest post-service and is what is recommended for the Shellac procedure.
The best part of my Shellac pedicure? As soon as it was done, and I mean the second it was done, I put on my shoes. Yep, just slipped them on. No need to wait for anything - just put them on. I went to the reception area where another woman was waiting and asked what I had done (because my nails were bare) and I said "Oh, I had a Shellac pedicure." She was freaking out that I was wearing shoes. NO smudging, nothing.
I paid $30 for my pedicure which is now almost 2 weeks old and you can't tell one bit. It's still extremely shiny, no chipping, and the grow out is nearly non-existent. My toe nails grow much slower than my finger nails so I figure I'll get easily another 2 weeks out of this pedicure before having to go again, and I definitely will go again. I'm not sure how much a spa pedicure with Shellac would cost, but I'll be finding out.
I don't have current pictures of my pedicure because I'm not fond of feet to begin with but I did take this one picture (no filter) for Instagram, so please don't look if toes aren't your thing. This was taken on the day of the Shellac pedicure, after putting on and taking my shoes off.
Salon-de-Lis is located at 506 E. Kleberg in Kingsville, Texas. Their phone number is (361) 592-5472 or you can book an appointment via their Facebook Page
