Nails, by someone who does only nails

Gel manicure, Russian manicure or a classic one

A regular manicure is the classic: nails shaped, cuticles tidied, ordinary polish on top. It is the one to book if you change colour often or simply want tidy hands.

A Russian gel manicure is a different way of working, not just a different bottle. The Russian method is a dry manicure — no soaking — in which the cuticle area is cleaned with a fine electric file and the gel is laid very close to the cuticle line. The aim is a cleaner edge than a standard gel manicure and a grow-out that stays neat for longer. Gel itself is cured hard under a lamp, so it is dry the moment you stand up.

Hard gel is a thicker gel built over your own nail for strength — the choice for nails that bend, split or never get past the fingertip. Acrylic is a powder and a liquid mixed into a paste that sets hard in the air; it is what a full set of extensions is usually built from, and here it is on the list for hands and for feet. A French full set is a full set finished with the classic white tip.

Pedicures, and doing both at once

The feet follow the same logic as the hands: a regular pedicure with ordinary polish, a gel pedicure for colour that outlasts polish, and a Russian gel pedicure with the same close-to-the-cuticle finish as the manicure. A spa pedicure is the longer, more indulgent version — in most salons that means extra time on exfoliation, softening and massage.

If you want hands and feet together, book them as one service rather than two. The regular, gel and spa versions each have their own combined line on the list, so one appointment covers both and the time is held for the whole thing.

Fills, repairs, removal — and the rest of the visit

Acrylic grows out with your own nail, so a set needs an acrylic fill every few weeks: the gap at the cuticle is filled in rather than the whole set being redone. Fills are listed for hands. If one nail breaks off a set, nail replacement is the line for that, and gel remover is its own service for taking gel off, whether you are switching to something else or giving your nails a rest.

The range of the salon is Nara's doing: hair, nails, brows and skin under one roof, each with someone who does only that. For nails, that person is Mariam. The review further down is a visit like that: a Russian gel manicure, a blow-dry and brows, done in one trip.