Far West Nails & Spa

I guess it’s not Unilocal official as of today, but Far West Nails & Spa is now LA BELLA NAILS AND SPA. the owner apprently changed about 6 weeks ago.
happened to walk in since it’s so close to where i live, and i’ve been looking for a good, close-​by nail salon to go to, just for those occasional pampering days.
and this was it. i got a deluxe pedi and spa cuz i really wanted a good massage/​pedicure to relax. the prices were reasonable/​comparable to other places.
SERVICE: is where i give them 5 stars. the ladies were so sweet and CLEAN.
she got new gloves, new towels, freshly took out the massage/​lotion materials from their stock bottle instead of reusing old ones that i’ve seen others do.
…AND, they didn’t hurt me. I appreciated the lady for not being on a phone, or chit-​chatting with other employees– but instead, she gave me full attention while she was taking care of me. I seriously almost fell asleep cuz it just felt good.
i’ve seen other nail salons within 5 mile radius re-​using dirty, tainted cloths and such, so i really liked how they kept the place clean and organized.
it’s not a luxurious, fancy place: but for a neighborhood nail salon, i’ll be a frequent customer from now on.
i also appreciate the front lady not pressuring me to get everything to rip me off… instead, she would recommend a couple options after actually listening to what I wanted /​didn’t wanted, and was totally ok with what I chose to go for that day.
the pedicure area is blocked off so it gives me privacy to just enjoy my pampering without looking at the manicure section and the people that were there.

I am so disappointed that after years being a customer of Far West Nails and paying $ 80 for a manicure and pedicure that I was denied using my gift certificate that got for my birthday because it expired after 6 months. 6 months seems like a very short expiration date for an $ 80 gift certificate. Very unhappy with Far West Nails!!!

Very high quality pedicures. I’ve been at least 5 – 6 times. The inside has typical, spa style chairs for pedis. The kind that massage your back with robot arms. The only thing I didn’t like was the Shellac (spelling?) manicure. It started to peel off and took part of my nails with it!

I don’t know why the reviews for this place are so low. I went on a whim and it was close by. I was a walk-​in and they took me in very quickly and my nails came out great. At the last second I asked if I could also get an eyebrow wax and I was taken right after my nails were done. The place is clean and the smell of nail polish cannot even be detected.

About two months ago, I went back to this nail salon after not going for close to a year. I had stopped going because the smell of nail salons have been getting to me. However, I decided to return because I remembered the odor of nail products wasn’t too bad here. I also remembered that they were able to provide me the most basic service at a reasonable price.
The salon still seems very clean and the odor of nail products is minimal. They were very busy and there were a few ladies waiting ahead of me. It only took about 15 minutes until they had a chair ready for me. The quality of the service was fine and for a pedicure it took only half an hour or so. I don’t require much work on my feet, just pumice and clipping and filing; therefore, I can’t speak to the more involved nail needs.
What I didn’t like was that while I was receiving my pedicure, I was pressured into upgrading the «spa experience.» They had a little book with nice pictures and descriptions of floral and fruity salts and creams, but I didn’t want any extras. I think they said they had Gucci lotion, or something like that. Nope, just the basics. Still, they insisted I look at the book. It would have been more professional if these books had been available while waiting for the pedicure. By providing this during the pedicure puts a person in a position of making a rushed decision which is manipulative. I realize that this location is trying to present itself as a spa/​vacation/​splurge nail salon, but that was not I was looking for. They pushed just enough to irritate me, but stopped just short of angering me; so, at least they knew when to stop.
Because the nail technicians do a good job, I have just been visiting their other location which is further west on Far West, Nails Time. There is usually one or two technicians here and while it isn’t as fancy or decked out with flat screen TVs, it provides just want I want: the basics. However, last time I went there I was told they were planning to upgrade.

I was given an estimate of 10 – 15 minutes for a quick shellac removal. 30 minutes later (a reasonable amount of time to finish-​), I had half-​done nails. The acetone had yet to be applied, nails weren’t filed, etc. I had to leave for a priority and return in order for the salon to finish my nails. 15 minutes later, my nails look great. BUT my afternoon is all goofed up. Had I known the process takes 45 minutes instead of 15, I would have come in at a better time. When I asked for a coupon towards future services (seems fair considering I spent over 1 hour including driving for a 15 minute treatment). The manager was disrespectful, noisy, grimacing and outright disrespectful. Careful — - I wouldn’t go here if you don’t have triple the estimated time. Unless you are in the mood to be undeservedly berated!

I have patronized this nail salon for quite some time, but no more. Though clean and somewhat well appointed, the manager always tries to upsell you. I finally relented last week only to have them basically ignore me when a large party walked in. I’m swimming in paraffin and they didn’t even take time to clean under my nails. And I’m a semi-​regular customer, so really? I’m done, I’ve learned my lesson.

I went to this salon this morning for a pedicure and I feel that it was $ 40 wasted. The woman doing my pedicure was talking on TWO phones for almost the entirety of my service. Nothing makes me feel less safe when someone has clippers near my skin than that person not paying attention to what they are doing. I even had to remind her that she had not finished one leg before she moved on to the other. In the same hour that I was there, a woman left because they directed her to a chair and then just left her there for over 20 minutes while all the technicians were chatting and passing her by, AND there was a disagreement about whether or not the salon was going to honor a gift certificate that another customer had brought to pay for her service. They kept telling that poor girl that they had to call the owner (who was out of the country) even though her fiancé had just purchased it. Bad customer service, It was my first and last time to go to Far West Nails and Spa.

First-​Christine is the only one in there that can do nails. If she isn’t there don’t bother-​just walk away!
I popped to have my nails filled; unfortunately Christine was out-​so I let the other girl do them. AWFUL. I feel like a beauty school student could do a better job. She knew I was unhappy and then price gauged me because I kept telling her I wasn’t happy and she kept telling my nails were too long-​then proceeded to cut them even after I asked her not to. Let’s not even discuss the burning of the drill because she obviously does not know what she is doing.

I found the sweetest nail tech, her name is Ivy. She worked at Arboretum Nails but now she is here on weekends. The implements are sanitized and the salon is very clean. Ivy and I have wonderful chats about our precious pooches, school, movies and whatever is going on in Austin. The staff is friendly and I always feel relaxed when I leave.

I realize my reviews tend to be four times longer than necessary, so I will try a short and sweet approach.
Pedicure: $ 26
Service: A+, excuse me, 5 stars. I have been putting off getting laughed at and talked about in a foreign language right in front of my face because of the state of my feet, but I finally broke down and went somewhere new. Everyone was friendly, and I never once had the feeling I was being called a Sasquatch. Two people were out sick, but I only waited four minutes in a massage chair (see massage chairs) while my feet soaked in warm water. Horrendous way to spend four minutes. The best part was the owner bringing out two huge pieces of chocolate cake and screaming «Happy Birthday» to the eleven year-​old getTing her nails done with her mother and best girlfriend. Precious. How did he happen to have cake in the back? I wanted some of the chocolate goo all over my fingers and lips, but I restrained myself.
Magazines: I am not a «People» or «Cosmo» kind of girl, so I was delighted to see options like «Gourmet» and «Food and Wine», and was tempted to steal them because I could not commit all of those recipes to memory when I was in such massage chair heaven. (See massage chairs)
Massage chairs: Closet thing to an orgasm in weeks. They seemed to be more inclined than most to knead deeply into my stressed and abused back. I actually moaned out loud at least seven times.
Skill: Nothing to complain about. No more dead skin on my heels. No more radical cuticles on my toes. No more amoebic shapes of peeling pink on my nails. I was happy to see that he took the time with a paint brush to remove the excess polish from the skin around my toes, but I was disappointed to see when I returned to work that there was still some excess that I had to scratch off.
Shorter reviews: A fine art that is lost on me.
Jen M.: I feel pretty.

This is one of the places I go to for foot pampering. I had a great «deluxe» pedicure recently and when you go this is what you get:
–the usual massage chair that can be adjusted to whichever mode you like or can be turned off
–two walls of OPI nail polish to make your color selection.
–flat screen television or magazines
–serious nail scrubbing, soaking, trimming, filing and shaping.
–an hour of sensational pampering that includes several levels of leg and foot massage.
–wonderful icy green goop that stimulates the skin followed by a hot towel wrap.
–your choice of wine or soft drink.
–a spectacular ready-​to-​wear-​opened-​toed-​pumps look!
FINAL BILL: $ 40.00 + gratuity.