Three London locations for esthetic services

Getting pampered is not only great for vanity’s sake, it’s also great for alleviating stress and rejuvenating the mind and body. Having a professional spa treatment, whether it’s a manicure, a pedicure or a leg waxing, can sometimes guarantee an enjoyable experience that you can do by yourself or with some friends.

Although there are many places to get these services in London, three will be outlined in this article that are reasonably close to Fanshawe College.

Shear Elegance Salon & Spa is the closest to Fanshawe College, located at 1040 Adelaide Street North; Jade Nails is located at 25 Oxford Street West; Polish Nail bar is downtown on 201 Dundas Street.

First of all, having a manicure and pedicure presents a professional and attractive appearance that makes others take notice and it’s good for your skin as well.

And although you can always do your own nails, does anyone really like applying polish with your non-dominant hand? The answer to this is an almost universal no.

At Shear Elegance, the establishment is extremely expansive, with the sounds of cascading water and relaxing music in the background. Here, you can get services far beyond just waxing, manicures and pedicures. Relaxing massages, hair care and spray tanning are offered as well. Prices range from $20 for a bikini wax, to $50 for an upper leg with bikini wax, to $80 for a full leg with bikini wax.

As for manicures, the prices range from $33 for a spa manicure to $60 for a gel nails full set. Gel nails and acrylic nails are similar, as they are both made from monomer liquid and polymer powder. Gel nails however, resemble a natural nail and are more flexible. The fun part about artificial nails, gel or acrylic, is that you can get airbrush designs or French tips with both types of nails.

Jade Nails is a smaller establishment located west of Richmond Row and caters to walk-ins. They offer manicures as low as $14 and pedicures for $25. Waxing ranges from a bikini wax for $20, to a $20 half-leg wax, finally, to a $28 full leg waxing. They also offer Solar Nails for those who frequent tanning beds.

Polish Nail bar is a full-service salon, esthetics, hair and massage establishment. They offer “Quick Manicures” starting at $20, ranging from a “Polish Manicure” at $30 to a “Shellac Manicure” for $50. The shellac colour lasts up to two weeks and includes removal.

At Polish they also offer leg waxing which costs $32 for half a leg up to $70 for a full leg. Polish also caters to the Fanshawe student, offering 15 per cent off their services, excluding massages.

The key to colours for nails this fall is “an unexpected clash between gritty street elements and elegant details for a dynamic combination of glamour and grunge,” said Lisa Densky of Polish Nail bar.

When checking out salons, look on Google and read the reviews. Sometimes “pinching pennies” is the way of the student, so if you need to head to a smaller place to save money, so be it.

But if you are interested in the full spa treatment, going to a larger business will more often than not guarantee peace and quiet.