Acqua Organic Day Spa

***This is a review for their Shellac manicures.***
First of all, I’d like to say that I appreciate the store being tidy, despite being tiny.
BUT if you are planning to purchase a Shellac Groupon from this spa, I suggest you for goodness’ sake DO NOT BUY IT for the following reasons:
1. My Shellac coat was so thin that I could see the white parts of my nails beneath the coat. It looked so bad to the point that I had to repaint it with my own nail polish afterwards because I just couldn’t stand it.
2. The corners started to chip and peel off only 5 days after the manicure job. What!!! In the end it became so bad I removed it myself.
3. Getting your cuticles cleaned off was supposed to hurt? I’ve since then developed a fear for cuticle trims. (Hey, but the cuticle oil smelled nice.)

Tried this place with a groupon. The first question the nail tech asked me was whether I wanted the reg mani & reg pedi despite the fact that my groupon was a shellac mani & reg pedi. Nails did not look fresh, and the tech (Mickey) tried to upsell me on every extra service under the sun. DON’T GO THERE!!!

I bought a groupon for a shellac manicure. The store is small but very clean and cosy. Make sure you book in advance because its busy and the place books up. I’ve forgotten the name of the esthetician that helped me, I believe it was Mickey? She did a good job, despite running behind on her appointment I didn’t feel rushed. She didn’t speak much and the only times she spoke was to try to get me to buy a facial and a massage. It felt very transactional. I
its been almost two weeks and my manicure is still intact and shiny. The only complaint I had was that there was a rather large gap between the applied paint and my cuitcle. As a result when my manicure was finished it didn’t look ‘fresh’ rather, looked like my nails had already begun to grow out.

I’m updating my review for the facials here — the prices are still very reasonable and it’s no exception for their 90 min spa facial. They have a deal for $ 33 that will the best $ 33 you’ve spent. It’s a very relaxing 90 minutes and it really does make a difference on your skin. They use Comfort Zone products which is a brand under Davines, so very natural and high quality products. I can’t recommend it enough.

My experience was overall pretty positive. I got shellac done on my nails and the girl did a great job (Julia). The place is really small, but looks really clean and modern. However, the fact that it is so small seemed to get them in to trouble– luckily i was in my spot already having my manicure done, but while I was there they had a lady walk in and she wanted her shellac taken off, so they started to do that, but then they had an appointment booked for a manicure as well so I watched that lady that made her appointment sit and wait for probably about 40 minutes (because they only have 2 manicure tables). I am not sure why someone who walked in got priority over the woman who actually made an appointment? I felt quite bad for her because while she was waiting the 40 minutes, she had to go top up her parking meter, not really fair to her.
Julia did a good job and was friendly. However told me that my hands were really dry (rude) and made awkward small talk about what my favourite food was. Overall was a good experience though!

The place is small, but inviting and very clean. They have 2 pedicure stations and 2 manicure stations, so it is guaranteed to be quiet for relaxation. The rapport with the staff was friendly and very fun.
I bought a groupon for a spa pedicure since it was in my neighborhood and decided to check it out. Without a groupon, the prices themselves were still very reasonable for their services. The spa pedicure itself lasted just over an hour, and my feet have never looked better. The variety of polish was expansive and she meticulously took her times with my feet, filing to perfection and was very gentle.
I had a great time, and I will be coming back to this place very soon.

3 things about Acqua Organic Day Spa:
1. Timing. The girl there seemed very sweet and hardworking. It was very nice of her to call me to let me know she was running 15 – 20 minutes late. I appreciated that. Unfortunately it ended up being 45 minutes late. I wasn’t in a rush, but really, when you make an appointment it should not be 45 minutes late.
2. Manicure. My shellac manicure as a whole was okay. Texture not completely even on a couple nails. Not painted to bed of nail or sides not painted completely. Overall at first glance seems okay, but I’ve definitely had better. Never had nails filed at the end before. Usually they make sure the polish is under the nail tip so this seemed to be opposite.
3. Hygiene. I don’t like the fact the tools seem to be shared. The nail file had definitely been used a lot on other people. I was nicked on at least 3 nails when she was cutting my cuticles. 2 of them bled. 1 of them didn’t bleed but it hurt after. All in all, this is why I would never go back.