Britney Tokyo on the new LA nail scene post-Covid-19
By Sophie Nutt | 10 September 2020 | Expert Advice, Feature
LA-based celebrity manicurist & Scratch columnist for 2020, Britney Tokyo reveals what the nail industry looks like across the pond…
Britney Tokyo
Much like in the UK, a new style of life has begun since businesses opened back up in Los Angeles after the Covid-19 quarantine. The LA nail industry has also seen some changes that have affected work practices – and clients have been changing up their nail art requests, too.
The most major change at the time of writing is that nail salon operations are prohibited indoors and you can only receive services outdoors in California. This has major negative effects on urban nail salons in the city that receive extremely high demand for gel services. Gel products require UV light to cure and if the bright LA sunlight hits the gel bottle or applicator brush, it will harden.
As well as this, working outside means that dust in the air may travel with the wind and stick to newly painted nails. Some salons have set up temporary spaces in their parking lots with parasols so that they can continue to carry out nail services within the Covid-19 restrictions.
House calls aren’t exempt to these rules, so when visiting clients and celebrities in their own homes, the patio or poolside is the common place for me to set up my nail desk and work. At first, I was a bit confused by all of the new rules and it took a lot of getting used to but now I feel really lucky to be able to work under the Californian sun!
Follow Britney’s nail career on Instagram and check out her monthly columns in Scratch magazine throughout 2020!