I don’t rate myself as an environmentally conscious person, especially not when it comes to my beauty and skincare products but try littering around me and you won’t get away with it. After some great feedback from my cruelty-free makeup video, I coincidently walked into a non-toxic, cruelty-free, organic nail and beauty bar here in the RGV! Progress!
I had anticipated the grand opening of Luxe Nail & Beauty Bar ever since they started following me on Instagram. Their Instagram feed was so cute and it hadn’t even opened yet so I could only imagine how insta-worthy the beauty bar would be. Luxe ended up opening up very quietly on a Thursday, and since I was a devoted chismosa to all things Luxe at this point, I had gotten an email from them letting me know they were officially open!
When I finally had time to go (3 days after their opening) I was legit too excited that I was socially awkward entering the beauty bar. The nail techs asked if I had gel on my nails and I looked at them like I didn’t understand the English coming out of their mouth because in “regular” nail salons no one says “gel” they all say “shellac!” but I learned that Shellac is a brand and gel is the correct term to use ?♀️
I was so impressed with the whole set up of the beauty bar. Everything was well thought out and everything had a real purpose to give their clientele the best experience and safest application, no matter what. My two favorite things about this beauty bar were, one: the air filter aka a source capture system, that they have in their manicure bar and pedicure chairs because you don’t get that nail-salon-smell that, which btw is not good for you! The second thing I was completely obsessed with is their pedicure chairs! They are huge and so comfy! I could have sat there all day! So let’s get to the nitty gritty…
MANICURE
Once I understood the difference between gel and shellac, I opted in for gel removal and application. Don’t ask why I didn’t get a manicure, I think I just panicked, to be honest. So what they did was remove the gel, from my previous visit to a nail salon, with a nail tool that basically shaved off the gel layer. They then applied the three coats, like any other type of gel application. I loved that throughout the process they were able to talk to me about each product and its benefits. If you’re a newbie to the cruelty-free life like me, this is very helpful.
PEDICURE
My favorite thing was sitting on those damn pedicure chairs! I literally walked in just waiting for the moment this booty could touch it! The pedicure itself was also something that I couldn’t help but notice how much detail went into it. The nail tech literally crushed lavender (it’s what I chose but they have different options) in front of my face to add to my scrub. Every tool that she used for, both, my pedicure and manicure went through a whole cleaning process. The room in which they clean everything has a huge window so you can physically see each tool being cleaned.
OTHER SERVICES
I was under the impression that this was just makeup and manicures but once I got to sit down and talk to Mandy Atkinson, owner of Luxe Nail & Beauty Bar, she let me know that they also have customizable facials for all your skincare needs and they also have… ~drum roll~ sugaring! Sugaring is a way of removing hair by using a gel made from sugar, chamomile, lemon, rose essence and hot water. They will soon offer full body sugaring but at the moment they only offer facial sugaring.
OVERALL EXPERIENCE
Luxe is definitely is where you go when you want to get away from the world for a few hours. I brought my sister along for the experience and we loved the attention to detail of each service. It’s been about a week since I visited Luxe and my mani and pedi are still looking fresh af! My gold foil still looking luxurious as ever. The price for the manicure and pedicure is higher than my usual nail services but the quality of the product is also higher so it all pans out. I also can leave Luxe guilt-free, knowing that each service I received was specifically made to be safe and no animals were hurt in the making of any products.
WOULD I GO AGAIN?
After my first time, I definitely would go again! Besides the attention to detail (that I’ve mentioned a billion times) it was also very hygienic and in the end, it’s all environmentally safe and not bad for you like other nail salons. I didn’t try out their other services which means I HAVE to go back of course! If you want details on that experience, let me know.
I really enjoyed the experience because it truly was a different experience from any other nail and beauty salon.
Have places you want me to check out? Go ahead and email me. I’d love to see what else there is to try!
-Adios Borrachxs! ?
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