DIRECTORY : Putting the ‘Man’in ‘Manicure’
It’s a trend that “soak ‘em in Palmolive” Madge would have been hard-pressed to predict: More and more men are pursuing the traditionally female profession of manicurist.
For one thing, they say, doing nails requires less training than doing hair. Manicurists must log 350 hours of training to earn a limited license, while hairstylists need 1,600 hours of school. Still, fewer than 1% of manicurists in the United States are men, reports Nails magazine, a Redondo Beach-based trade publication.
So, what do the men offer that women don’t? Some clients believe male manicurists have an edge, strength-wise, when it comes to giving hand and foot massages.
Here is a sampling of the area’s most popular manicurists:
Yuki Beauty Salon
8640 Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles
(310) 652-7474
Soft-spoken Goro has been doing nails at this Sunset Plaza salon for 18 years. He specializes in natural manicures and pedicures ($25 to $45), preferring to leave nails unpolished so they can breathe. No dragon-lady tips here.
But it is Goro’s 15-minute hand massages and 30-minute foot massages, using very warm aloe lotion, that photographer Helmut Newton and actress Anjelica Huston have come to love.
He also soaks his clients’ toes or fingers in warm, chlorine-free bottled water, and he keeps a few bottles of Borghese and Chanel on hand for those who insist on a paint job.
Emerald Salon
13011 Newport Ave., Suite 110
Tustin
(714) 838-8611.
Three of the four male manicurists at this Orange County salon are brothers. Donald, Neil and Gregory Anderson, along with Keith Gostling, specialize in acrylic and gel nails as well as natural pedicures. Prices range from $13 for a regular manicure to $55 for a set of acrylics.
The $25 pedicure lasts an hour and features a combination of massage therapy and reflexology. But first comes a 10-minute soak in warm water and the removal of dead skin using a sloughing lotion. Polish or a French-style lacquer job can be an optional final touch.
Teddy d’s
902 Silver Spur Road
Rolling Hills Estates
(310) 377-4297
After 13 years in the Palos Verdes area, Jeffrey McLellan has built a clientele that makes him difficult to book. Acrylic nails, priced at $45 a set, make up the bulk of his business.
His $22 pedicures begin with a soaking in herbal solution. Then he sloughs off dead skin with an apricot kernel scrub and uses almond oil for a massage--five minutes on each foot.
