Affina Beauty & Spa — Local services in New York

I was going to count my $50 loss and just go to a different salon but I thought about the health and safety risks of this manicure, and decided to leave a review.

This wasn’t my first time to this salon and I had previously had an okay-ish experience but the customer service was exceptional. I returned in hopes of having a similar experience. To start, the previous gel removal was done at the station in the back most corner with all the surplus supplies. It wasn’t even cleaned. Honestly, I’m doubtful that area was meant to be a manicure station, because there wasn’t any supplies readily available.

When we ended up moving to a proper station (for better lighting?) they didn’t bother wiping down the area. As soon as the lady before me wrapped up, I jumped right into her seat).

The actual manicure was really rushed. I went in the late evening so maybe the tech was tired, but she completely ignored cuticle prep and care. She didn’t push back any of my cuticles. She maybe cut the cuticles on 5 fingers or so.

The gel application was horrible. She applied 3 coats but most of it was focused on the tips of my fingers. She kept getting gel on the skin surrounding my nails and attempting to use her latex glove to wipe it off. Regardless, by the time I got up to pay, I had gel on my skin on about 5 fingers. (I later found out that’s apparently a huge health and safety risk because that could cause an allergic reaction - thank God I didn’t have one).

I asked the receptionist (the man delagating the techs) if the gel would fall off later on maybe if I attempted to scrub it in the shower. He burst out laughing. The nail tech attempted to use acetone to wipe it off but obviously that didn’t work, so she had to file the gel off my skin. once she realized that there was gel on so many fingers she just let me leave with the file. I definitely would...

Update! I updated my rating because James from Affina gave me a call to come in for a redo. The redo experience was amazing and my nails look great!

Original Post

So I've been to this location three times so far. The first two times were 4 star experiences. I usually get the gel extensions with gel polish. However, after my 6 PM appt today, I'm not going back. I went in for a gel pedi and gel extension mani. The gel pedi went meh. I noticed she cut a couple of my toes a little too much to the point where they were stinging when she used the alcohol at the end. The worst part was the mani.

I could tell she hadn't done a lot of them because usually you pool the gel glue on the nail bed to allow the gel extension to cure without any bubbles. I noticed as she completed some of the nails that she didn't use nearly enough gel glue. There were so many bubbles. I told her and she said that it was because of the rough surface of my nails. If that was the case then why did the other techs not have the same issue?

She tugged on my nail to show me that they wouldn't come off and they weren't moving so I decided to just continue. I needed my nails done. After attaching the other extensions, she starts filing them and two of the nails popped off. At this point, I should've left but she fixed them without me saying anything so I stayed. After she completed my nails, I paid (They've raised their prices btw - I wouldn't mind if the quality was the same as my previous experiences) and went home. It's 10 PM and one of the nails cracked. I had to use nail glue to secure it lol. Using nail glue after paying $120+ tip for services.

In the end, request the same person if they do good work. I can't remember the employee's name but I hope...

I’ll start this review by saying the only think I like about today’s experience is the color of my nails. Today was my second and last time going to Affina. The first time I went I left mostly impressed with my gel extensions. There were some minor annoyances I had with the nail tech but nothing worth noting. I went back today for a pedicure and gel fill/polish change. I had the same woman, Amy, do both, and she seemed like she was rushing the whole time. The pedicure was probably the worst I’ve ever received; in total my feet probably only soaked for a few mins each. It was a very unusual process from what I’ve experienced at any other salon. After the pedicure, Amy also did my gel fill. I asked her to shorten my extensions down to where my natural nail is, which she did, but then she proceeded to file the nails horribly. I had multiple nails that were lopsided and uneven. At first I didn’t say anything thinking that she’d make some final fixes later but i ended up having to ask her to re-file them before she did the final coat.

As she was painting my nails, I noticed she spent a lot of time painting the tips of my nails, which is pretty unusual. Low and behold it’s because of how THICK my nails are now!!! It looks gross. My nails are chunky and Unsmooth, with the beds of my nails also being uneven because of how much she put on.

Then, at the end, she charged me $91. The pedicure was $29, but whatever you want to call the manicure that she did was $62. I have no idea how this was actually calculated since I’m pretty sure their basic nail extensions is just a few dollars more. Nothing on their pricing menu listed anything for $62. I feel like it was a huge waste of money and time and I will not...