Ilona Moon - Manicure philosophy

All the situations and people described in this book are real; however their names and places that are described have been changed.

– Hello.

– Hi, my friend gave me your number and I would like to make an appointment.

– Sure, tomorrow at three o’clock does it suit you?

– Perfect, thank you very much.

Then we talk about details such as address, telephone number. I hang up and return to my client to continue my work.

I used to be a manicurist or just to make it sound more prestigious – a beautician, a master of my craft. I did a manicure, pedicure, depilation of the whole body and eyebrow correction. I worked for six years, very intensively. I had incredibly many clients and loved my work madly.

Working tirelessly I did not watch TV, did not see any commercials, nor did I read newspapers. I learned everything from my clients: what, where and when something happened. Whether the prices rose or fell. What books are worth reading and what movies are worth watching. Where one should go and what there is to do. What cream is to be used against wrinkles or cellulite. What part of the body it should be applied to: face, belly, legs or buttocks and which one of the two hemispheres is to be treated first. Where to buy this pretty blouse. It goes without saying, a steaming vat of freshest gossip, what would we do without them? As well as the life stories, life turns and roads.

We talked about such things that you cannot even tell your closest and dearest ones, that one is ashamed of or scared, and I hid their secrets in a closet that was firmly closed to others. I accepted, understood and kept everything with me until their next visit. I was like a priest to confess to. Sometimes we cried together, sometimes we laughed until we had to hiccup. I nodded at exactly the right moment, said mhm, if they needed my advice then I gave it to them, if not I kept my silence.

So why does a woman go to a manicurist? Many would say – for a manicure of course. You are right, but only for some twenty percent. Well-groomed hands are without a doubt the calling card of a woman, and no doubt of a man, but have you seen the film with Reese Witherspoon “Legally Blond”, when the protagonist has had a really bad day and then she was in a desperate need of a nail salon. Yes, women go for a manicure, but that's not all. They want to speak out, or to listen. To talk, or not to talk. To run away from the entire world, to feel special. They go to rest from work, husbands, children, intrigues, duties, to be alone, to take time for themselves. They are looking for a person who will be impartial when they look at their lives. They come for gossip, news, secrets. They want to be heard, but not accused. They go where they can be themselves, free and without masks. Here they feel safe and courageous.

It is said that a manicurist should be a good psychologist, I am not the one and in no way do I pretend to be, but when a large number of people, clients and friends pass through you, you gradually learn to understand people and feel their needs. What I propose to you is a kind of my own perennial study, which will be presented to you on a silver platter. I learned a lot from clients, myself; I read a lot – books, articles, attended an insane number of seminars. I constantly searched for answers, asked questions. I have always craved for information, clearly stated and expressed. I wanted more and more until I realized that I am running the same distance all over again. In this book, I described my experience and the experience of other masters. The exact thing that I used to look for myself. You can accumulate it and use for your own good.

So, let’s just start.

In many articles where the advice for the professional beauticians is given as well as in different professional forums for manicurists it has been continuously expressed that your client is to respect you, that no familiarities are allowed, that you are to be formal at all times and etc. Then they wonder – where did all the clients go?

What is the client looking for in the manicurist master? Professionalism, quality – you’d say. You would be right, but first and foremost, what you should have is internal energy. Even if you are at least three times a superb master, if this does not match, the client will no longer come to you. She chooses you intuitively, on a subconscious level. If the client likes your smell – she will come to you. If she likes your laughter or your voice – she will come to you. She gets attracted to your inner spark. She’s looking for a person she is comfortable with, who she can trust, with whom she can open up, relax and rest. Person who she will see eye-to-eye. The client is not attracted by a manicure; she is attracted by this “chemistry”.

So we figured it out, but now a few words about professionalism. The client comes to the salon where you work, on the recommendations of her friends and acquaintances. For example, many masters think that if you put all your diplomas and certificates onto the walls in the office this will prove the skill and amazing abilities. This is not entirely true. A client does not pay attention to them; she can throw a look, but most probably will not get a grasp of them anyway. She will look at you, at your appearance, at your behaviour, listen to what you say and how you speak and evaluate all of the above making her own conclusions what kind of a master you are. My diplomas are buried far in a closet and not a single client had a desire to look at them.

Furthermore: anyone can become a person providing manicure, pedicure services and etc., but only the chosen ones become masters of their work. How to become a true master, who will be admired, respected and appreciated? Read on.

If you want to be a professional in your field – then this philosophy is meant exactly for you. Read everything related to your profession, go to seminars and not just attend it to get a piece of paper that is called a diploma, but listen closely. Yes, when you attend countless seminars, you begin to notice that information is repetitive, you just sit there and think – I know this, I know that, and then bam – just one sentence, a trifle, and your world turns upside down. For example, in the courses I attended, they talked about the cuticle on the nail, that it should be pushed back, but they never told us why and what for. It turns out that the cuticle grows to the nail plate and slows down its growth. Just one sentence, but everything immediately became clear.

Listen and ask questions. If you hesitate to ask them when there are other people all around you, you can always go to the moderator after the seminar and ask the questions that are important to you. There is no such thing as too much information. It may sound smug, but remember, who owns the information – owns the world. In our case – the world of nail service. Moreover, there is no limit to perfection.

Just for example. Once a beginner asked me for a lesson she wanted to see everything with her own eyes and during the procedure and explanation to her, I also communicated with my client. The student at this time was absorbed in her smartphone, and before each next step I had to pull her out of there in order to explain some technical issues. In the meantime, she missed one of the most interesting topics – communication between a master and a client. If you came to get some knowledge, you are to absorb each and every bit of it like a sponge, every tiny detail because you never know when all of a sudden it will come in handy.