Nails By Vanessa

Nightmare on Lombard Street:
I went here for my first-​ever bikini wax/​pedicure; out of a life full of mistakes, this one was a doozy.
The salon is shared with a hairstylist; to set up the waxing area, Vanessa simply pulled a shower curtain between the already small room. I have since learned this is *not* the norm for most waxing studios. Needless to say, the waxing was one of the most painful things I ever experienced; I have also learned this is not necessarily the norm as I’ve located a better location in center city. And of course, I still had «bikini bumps» afterwards, though the whole point of waxing was to avoid those.
On to the pedicure–
at the time, it was very pleasant. Two weeks later-​not so pleasant. I remove the polish to discover 1.) my nails were discolored by the polish 2.) There are little white spots on my big toes.
I just got back from the doctor’s where I was told I have a foot fungus and the treatment is a daily ointment to be applied for… six freakin’ months! From now on, I’m doing my own toenails… though I guess that won’t be until Christmas…

NOT IMPRESSED
I went for a mani/​pedi today specifically because I read good reviews about Vanessa’s work on Unilocal.I was expecting a great mani/​pedi, and got a mediocre one. It wasn’t horrible. Vanessa was perfectly friendly and if I had been paying $ 10 for the manicure and $ 20 for the pedicure (which I have paid for other semi-​decent mani/​pedis) then I would have been happy. But I paid $ 35 for the pedicure and $ 18 for the manicure plus tip = a little over $ 60.
Here is why I was not impressed:
— Limpest hand and leg massage ever. She literally ran her hands up and down my legs for 20 sends with some lotion. Same thing with the hands/​arms. No pressure, not even an attempt to rub the lotion in.
— Did not clean under my toenails. Not that I am a dirty person, but one of the things I relish most about the mani/​pedi is getting rid of the built up grime in the deep recesses of the nailbed. She didn’t even try.
— Lame cuticle trimming. She actually painted over some of my cuticles instead of trimming them.
On the plus side, she took obvious care to paint multiple coats on the nails with a top coat and some sort of oil thing that helps it to dry. That was nice.
After I walked out of the salon I managed to gouge the tip of one of my nails on my seatbelt. So I walked back and apologized and asked her to fix it. She painted my nail with clear nail polish, which did not fix the gouge. When I showed it to her again, she said, «yes, looks better. See you next time!» I’m not sure what to make of this, but there probably won’t be a next time.

I went to Vanessa for the first time today for a wax and it was great! She was very professional and organized and her place was very clean. She made me feel comfortable and the price was just right. The previous place that I used to go to (I won’t name it) was very different so I will definitely go back to Vanessa. Also in addition to her being a very sweet person it wasn’t as painful as all of my other past experiences. Thanks Vanessa!!!

So I have not gone to see Vanessa for about a year. I really did like getting pedicures here and her eyebrow waxes were good too, but I just could not stand the atmosphere and how she would always ask me to write reviews on Unilocal,CitySearch, etc. It was EVERY appointment.
Also, the hairdresser that she shares a space with really irked me for some reason. He was always making comments about his clients once they left or he hung up the phone, making me think that he was most likely making some rude comment about me as soon as the door closed behind me.
The last, and final, time I went there was a vagrant just hanging out in the salon, incessantly rambling, it was too weird. Haven’t been back since.

Had my manicure and pedicure done here. Pedicure was ok, i felt she filed my nails down way too short and i didnt say «wow» when she was done. I felt i could do a better job on my own toe nails. Manicure– I got fake nails/french…the filing of the nails was pretty painful and in addition to that i didnt feel she was very careful or focused on doing a great job. She seemed somewhat rushed and was «tired» in the middle of the job. She is a really sweet woman, but i do not think I will be going back (especially for that price).

I was in Philly for a wedding and Vanessa took great care of me while in desperate need of a last minute manicure & pedicure. Although the salon is small, Vanessa makes you feel very comfortable and is respectful of the fact that you don’t necessarily feel like talking the whole time you’re with her. She gave me the most recent issue of People magazine when I sat down and ensured that I was comfortable, happy, and satisfied. Vanessa promised me that her manicure would last a while and it did… I also promised Vanessa that since I didn’t bring enough cash to tip her, that I would (although belated by a few weeks now) write her a glowing (and well deserved) review on Unilocal.Good to the very end, Vanessa even hailed me a cab because she was worried I would mess up her work while doing so myself.
Can’t wait to come back & see Vanessa next time I’m in the city of brotherly love!

Like many other people on here. I decided to try getting my eyebrows done by Vanessa due to all of the reviews on Unilocal.I had gone to Memories at Salon Thalia for years and was looking for someone cheaper due to the recession.
I was expecting amazing eyebrows, but that’s not what I got.
The first time she acknowledged that they didn’t look great after my first wax, but that it’s a work in progress. She also blamed it on my eyebrows being difficult, which I never heard anyone tell me before.
Fine. I went to her 4 more times in anticipation of this masterpiece she was creating. I was still disappointed with end product: super sparse eyebrows.
WARNING: As a warning to all those doing research out here, Vanessa asks people to rate her as 5 stars on Unilocal,citysearch, and some oher website. I first shrugged off her first request, but she kept on asking me every single appointment and said, «make sure you have your picture on there so I can see your pretty face.» I think it’s so she can keep track of who writes reviews and who doesn’t.
RECOMMENDATION: I found an amazing eyebrows place called Anju Threads. Dimple is amazing!

I’ve been going to Vanessa over the last year+ and she’s great! My manicures typically last around 8 to 10 days depending, and my pedicure always lasts for about a month.
One other great thing about Vanessa is that she always has a great/​new selection from OPI. It’s worth the visit, just remember to bring cash!

This place is great. I have been going to vanessa now for a year for eyebrow waxing. She truly is the best. She has fixed other people’s mistakes on making my eyebrows too thin. If you need a nice eyebrow waxing, Vanessa’s the women to see.

I guess I’m the minority here. Being that she supposedly does a decent job with brows in addition to nails, that was the deciding factor that eventually reeled me in to give her services a try.
While the brow job was fine, I felt the nail extension experience was sub par and inconsistent. She was able to carry a conversation while doing my nails and I was almost content with the results until I took a closer look. I noticed that every finger on my left hand had this horizontal line in the middle of the nail bed. It wouldn’t have bothered me so much had it been more sheer but it displayed the outline of the nail enhancement tip that she put on underneath. When I pointed it out to her she brushed it off claiming that it would fade away once it has fully dried. I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt but I suspected she only said that probably because there was nothing that could be done about it at that point. Fast forward to two hours later and those lines were still there up until I had the tips removed altogether. My right hand was not flawless either but at least it had the ideal results I was looking for. Upon payment, I only had larger bills on me at the time (a $ 50 + $ 20 bill) and she didn’t even have the adequate change to provide me with! She suggested I step out and find a place in order to break my 50 but I declined because I was too caught up and peeved with my results. I thought that was a bit unprofessional on her part since she doesn’t even accept credit cards. Had the outcome turned out to be better, I wouldn’t have minded overpaying for my first experience with her. I hate to be in the minority here but I just can’t express how unsatisfied I was. I only regret not speaking up now with the amount I paid for her time.
On the plus side, her nail salon is beautiful and looks very well-​maintained. I am sure she more than capable at giving great manicures but I didn’t expect her services to be so spotty.

I can only grade Vanessa with a 3 star performance. I got a very basic manicure that was extremely rushed. After careful inspection, for 20.00, I could do without the air bubbles and some nails not even being painted around the edges.
I went to Vanessa based on reviews. Yes she is a nice person and likely good at what she does, but she did not give me the service I truly expected as a potential client. If she is doing that well and not willing to take her time on new customers, I would be quite hesitant to recommend her services to others.