Find Houston-area nail salons — manicures, pedicures, acrylics, gel and lash services.

Finding a nail salon in Houston

Both the salon and the individual manicurist are licensed in Texas by the Department of Licensing and Regulation, and licences must be displayed. This is one of the trades where the regulation exists specifically because of health risk, so it is worth knowing what the rules are for.

Sanitation is the whole safety conversation

The rules that matter, and what to look for:

• Metal implements must be disinfected between clients — clippers, pushers, nippers. Many good salons bring them out sealed in a pouch. That is what you want to see.
• Files, buffers and pumice are porous and cannot be properly disinfected. They should be single-use or brought by you. Some salons sell you your own kit that they store — a good sign.
• Foot spas must be cleaned and disinfected between clients, and pipe-free or liner-based tubs are easier to clean properly than older jetted ones. This is the source of the infections that occasionally make the news.

You are entitled to ask how implements are cleaned. A salon that answers comfortably is one that does it.

Know what you are booking

• Regular polish — dries soft, chips within days, removes with acetone in a minute.
• Gel — cured under a lamp, lasts two to three weeks, requires soaking to remove. Removal matters: gel should be soaked off, not scraped or forced.
• Dip powder — durable, and the hygiene question is whether the salon dips your nail into a communal jar or pours powder over it. It should be poured.
• Acrylic / extensions — a structural product with a fill schedule, usually every two to three weeks.

The damage people blame on gel is almost always the removal, not the product. A salon that takes the time to soak is protecting your nail plate.

Practical

• Ask the price for exactly what you want, including removal of what is already on. Removal is frequently a separate charge and it is the most common surprise on the bill.
• If you have a specific technician you like, book them by name — skill varies within a salon more than between salons.
• Tell them about any diabetes, circulation issues or recent injuries before a pedicure. It changes what they should do.