There’s a lot of things you can do with £600. Pay your rent, cover some nursery fees, book return flights to New York, for example. Or, you could get a manicure.
The average price of an in-salon mani is around £40 but there are a growing number of women who are prepared to shell(ac) out a hell of a lot more.
‘The most I’ve ever spent is £150,’ says communications director Mel Pirker, who gets her nails done every few weeks and always opts for a Russian manicure. This is a dry technique that includes the use of an electric file to meticulously clean and shape the cuticle. Polish is applied close to the cuticle for a longer-lasting, flawless look. Beauty editor Lucy Partington, meanwhile, spends around £100 each month getting bespoke nail designs ranging from Mario Kart characters to silver chrome sets.
Julia Diogo @paintedbyjools
Nail salons are big business. This year, the global nail industry is predicted to generate $12.46bn in revenue and in the UK professional nail care has seen double the growth of the rest of beauty and wellness services. While some women spend their evenings creating mood boards for their future homes, others, including jewellery designer Ellie Knight, are more concerned about dreaming up mani-festation boards. ‘I’m always on Pinterest searching for the next design,’ she says. For wedding content creator Hannah Farrell, TikTok is her nailspiration. ‘I search nail trends 2024 and will decide what I want based on that, or I just get whatever Hailey Bieber has.’
Google searches for ‘nail designs’ shot up 165% last year but it’s not just traditional celebrities whose ‘doughnut glaze’ we’re hitting save on. We’re in the era of the nail- fluencer. Trained technicians are using social media as their shop front, amassing hundreds of thousands of followers who cling on to every (French) tip and glossy nail shared. And they are commanding prices that match their following.
The most in-demand manicurist is Harriet Westmoreland. Her intricate micro French manicure has launched a thousand imitations as well as a 362,000 following on Instagram. With high-profile, polished clients, including Naomi Campbell, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Lily Allen, an appointment with Westmoreland is harder to secure than a table at the Devonshire. And if you do book in, expect a bill of £600. Yes, really. Cue panicked nail chewing.
Julia Diogo @paintedbyjools
Before her wedding, Grazia beauty editor Rachael Martin booked in with Milly Mason, Westmoreland’s deputy, at 180 The Strand in London. ‘The whole experience was very luxe. I had champagne and it felt like I was part of a members’ club.’ But what are you actually getting for the price of half a month’s mortgage that you couldn’t get at your local salon? The key difference is the attention to detail. No cuticle is left untrimmed – something that brides, who are having close-up shots of their rings and bouquets, appreciate. ‘There was not a hangnail, no flooded cuticles, my nails were perfect in a way that someone else wouldn’t have time to do.’ Given that appointments are upwards of two hours, you’d hope so.
The products used are also a far cry from your local nail bar. Forget inscrutable lotions pumped out of unlabelled jars and a dot of almond oil; for triple the price you’ll enjoy hand and arm massages courtesy of Aqua di Parma moisturisers and Chanel balms.
Julia Diogo (@paintedbyjools) is another nail artist with impossibly long waitlists. Her dedicated clients (it’s private house call only) pay upwards of £250 for her signature short, soft square nail in a pillar box red. But it’s her expertise that they’re really pay- ing for. ‘My clients see how much of a skill it is and the time it takes to get the perfect manicure.’ The meticulous manicurist may take two hours but the results last. ‘They’re paying for their nails to last over two weeks. My manicure application technique allows me to almost tuck the polish into the cuticle, which allows minimal grow-out for at least four weeks.’
Julia Diogo @paintedbyjools
Make-up artist Adeola Gboyega is a long-time client of Diogo. ‘Since I’ve been seeing Julia, the overall health of my nails has improved significantly and they always look incredibly neat.’ But for Gboyega, investing in regular manicures is so much more than just having good-looking nails. ‘It has become an essential part of my wellness routine, I always feel so much more put together when my nails are well- maintained.’ Plus, given that her job is, well, hands on, ‘It’s not just a self-care habit, but also part of my professional routine.’
Much like no-make-up make-up, the key to a truly luxe mani is to look like you’ve had hardly anything done. These are not nails that scream, ‘I’ve spent the best part of three hours in the salon,’ they look glossy but low-maintenance. Facialist Katharine Mackenzie Paterson (@kmp_skin) calls the polished but pared-back results of her go-to nail artist Faye Louise Dennis, ‘The Row of manicures’, in reference to the logoless but exquisitely made fashion brand.
Because when it comes to a great nail day, less is more. Except, it seems, for the price.
Verity Clark was the acting health & beauty director at Grazia. Previously contributing beauty editor at the Sunday Times Style Verity has almost a decade of experience writing about the beauty industry. She has worked with some of the industry’s most respected titles including Red, Good Housekeeping and Elle, and her aim is to demystify, and democratise, the conversation around beauty. Verity works behind the beauty scenes too and has helped big brands and retailers, including Liberty and Feelunique (now Sephora) with their vision to make beauty accessible to all – a mainstay of her writing.