Nails Design

I always request for Andy to do both my mani and pedi. He spends a lot of time making sure my cuticles are trimmed perfectly and thoroughly scrubs my heels until they are smooth. No unnecessary banter. Coming from NYC it is tough to find nail salons that compare but this one comes close. The only difference is the price you’ll pay but all nail salons in London are expensive since there isnt that many of them and getting a mani and pedi is considered a luxury in the UK, whereas in NYC it is part of a woman’s weekly routine.

I live in the area where this shop is and have been going there for about 10 years. I think they provide a good quality, reasonably priced nail service compared to many, as regards manicure and acrylics. Have also had a pedicure and that was ok for the price but not fab, although better than some I have had for the same price or more. The acrylics are very good and my white tips last ages. The only problems are that sometimes you have to wait quite a while and it’s a very small crowded space. The manager is very friendly and things run better when he is there. Sometimes the staff can be a little grumpy and rude but I try to ignore that as I know they are probably over worked on some days. I’ll continue going there as the quality of the products used is good and my nails have never been damaged. I’ve seen women coming in with nails ruined by other salons to get them fixed here, so I think the quality must be good, despite some of the other negative reviews. I’d recommend it, but you need to be patient if it’s busy!

I would say only go here if you want your manicure to last for the night.
This place is really close to where I live so I have been about 3 times — its only £10 for a manicure. However its not really a pleasant environment, I agree with the other reviewer about the questionable hygiene, I didn’t think the premises or the tools looked clean. Also they talk to each other a lot in Vietnamese (I think) and don’t really say much to the clients and can be a bit abrupt although the guy who seems to run things is pleasant enough.
The last time I went here I chose an Essie colour for my nails and they appeared to use and Essie basecoat and topcoat however the next day my colour chipped — not impressed! I expect a professional manicure to last longer that 12 hours (seriously that was how long it lasted before I had two chips) so I’ve decided to not return. Its not a pleasant experience and the results are pretty lame.

This nail salon seems very popular in the Queensway area and if you want to guarantee that your nails will actually get done on a certain day within a reasonable time booking is strongly advised (though booking is not necessarily going to guarantee anything.) We had actually tried to go in at around lunch time but the wait was going to over an hour (and you know when they tell you that the wait is actually likely to be much longer) we decided to come back with a booking for 5. Even then we had to wait nearly half an hour.
Nail Designs is owned by a Vietnamese man and he is very friendly and seemed quite good at whipping around organising all the manicures. All the nail technicians are also from Far East Asia (sounding Vietnamese too) so you know that they are likely to be quite efficient. After we had finished with our pedicures he had left the premises and for some reason things went a little pear-​shaped for the ladies who had come in as walk-​ins. A number of them were getting frustrated with how long they’d had to wait and and all in brawl nearly started — I think a bit of the fault of the nail technician who was, sorry to say, giving some typical Asian attitude (not good) but also the customers who were being fairly rude. It was only entertaining because we’d finished our pedicures and were just waiting for our toes to dry. The nail jobs at Nail Designs must be pretty good though because despite all the fussing — everyone stayed to get their nails done!