White Lotus - Ballard — Local services in Seattle

Very disappointed with the gel manicure I received at White Lotus Ballard last weekend. I went in for a gel mani with design and a pedi. Pedi went fine but my manicurist was rushed and didn’t push back my cuticles or give my nails a proper cleaning. Then when the design came it became clear that she didn’t have any experience with design. I purposefully chose a design off their Instagram beforehand because I knew they should be able to do it. I was wrong. The design needed a powder to give it a color sheen and the manicurist chose the wrong one making my nails chrome. When I pointed out that they were a different color, instead of starting from scratch she buffed it out. She began rushing through. I was skeptical but it was dark in the salon so I let her proceed, she got the right powder and decals and continued. I paid and left. When I walked outside and looked at my nails they were horrendous. My nail beds were still lined with chrome, the decals were super messy with globs of top coat all around my nail. It looked like a failed art project. After spending close to $100 I felt cheated. I went back inside and asked for a refund or a redo. They did a redo, same manicurist. She was really apologetic and honestly very nice. The only reason I give this a 2 vs a 1. After she finished the color, I asked for the powder to add the sheen. She said that it wouldn’t work on my nails because they were too short. I’ve never heard that at any salon. I suspect they didn’t want to waste more product. I asked for another design because they already charged me $15 and I wanted to get my money’s worth. I went for a simple daisy. The manicurist was all for it but I realized again that she didn’t know what she was doing. I wish she would’ve just told me she couldn’t do designs and just refunded me the design fee. After a week my nails look like they’ve already been on for 3 weeks. I’m really disappointed with the end product, the lack of eye for detail, and the lack of communication for what designs were actually available. Needless to say I won’t be...

I keep trying to give this place a chance and leave disappointed almost every time. I’ve come here multiple times in the last 2 years and the quality of the manicure has been inconsistent at best and poor at worst. One nail tech, who I have gone to multiple times, repeatedly ignores my requests to make my nails shorter and has left on old tips when I come in for a new set. I’ve been getting dip powder on my nails for 7 years and I have never had an issue with my nails chipping and literally fraying except when I come to this salon and this particular nail tech. In fact, back in October a few of my nails chipped, so I called and made an appointment to have them fixed. When I went in, I asked why my nails were chipping and fraying this same nail tech said it was because I was washing my hands too much. In this same appointment, she used the wrong color to fix my chipped nails and when I pointed it out, instead of starting over with the right dip color, she put the gel version of the right color on top, which has a slightly different hue! Every time I’ve come here I have to file my nails as soon as I get home as large chunks of dried powder, and rough/sharp edges of my nails are left behind. My most recent experience was the last straw for me. I asked for a simple design - 4 solid color nails and one French tip with a little heart on the other. Not only did this take 2 hours, the nails that had the design ended up completely uneven/wavy and the gel color she used was a different shade than the solid color nails. I wish I would have had better experiences here as it is close to home and a nice atmosphere, but I’m done...

My friend and I found White Lotus and we're excited to try this nail salon for the first time. The decor was lovely and the atmosphere seemed perfect for a Saturday afternoon girls outing. Unfortunately the decor and music were all this salon and staff had to offer us. My nails were cut jaggedly. The gel color I chose was not the color painted but no one cared until the very end, when they found the color and preceded to paint several layers of color over the gel polish they had just finished. So I ended up with 7 layers of gel polish on my hands and crooked nails.

My friend asked for a basic pedicure, nothing special. What she got instead was a foot soak and nail color. My friend noticed they didn't make any effort to remove calluses/scrub her feet, and made an inquiry as to why. That nail tech moved on to provide a service for another client while a different tech begrudgingly came to remedy the callus issue. The tech used a chemical callus remover and the metal foot file this time but didn't rinse the chemical adequately. Instead of offering to rinse her feet again they showed my friend a bathroom where she could do it herself.

My friend (as to not influence other clients' experiences) quietly expressed her discontent to the manager at the time of payment. Her amicable comments were met with a quick "oh, sorry" and a request for my payment info.

Once we realized nothing would be done, not even a heartfelt apology, we submitted or payments complete with tips and left.

Needless to say we will not be revisiting this salon for a less than mediocre experience.

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