M&M Nails offers beauty for hands, feet

By Abby Morris
Star Staff
amorris@starhq.com

   Whether you are getting ready for a special occasion or just looking to pamper yourself, M&M Nails has the answer for the beauty needs of your hands.
   "We offer sculptured acrylic nails, which is probably the main thing we do, as well as manicures and pedicures," said Melissa Hodge, owner of M&M Nails.
   She added that the business also offers Nail Tech, OPI and Tammy Taylor retail beauty products for sale. The shop also offers some jewelry for sale, including the currently popular Italian charm bracelets.
   This is the first business which Hodge has ever owned. "Actually I was in the dental field for 17 years," Hodge stated, adding that she began working part time as a nail technician in Blountville while still working as a dental assistant. "I had an overwhelming need from people who wanted me to do their nails but didn't want to drive to Blountville."
   It was that demand for her services that made Hodge want to open her own shop. The doors on M&M Nails opened in April of 2003 and in that time, her client base has grown so much that Hodge now has a second nail technician working with her, Diana Pierce. According to Hodge, Pierce, who started at M&M Nails in January of this year, is now accepting new clients at the business.
   The acrylic nails offered by Hodge and Pierce at M&M Nails are different than the types of artificial nails offered at many other shops because they are not plastic nail tips glued onto the natural nail and then covered with acrylic. The nails clients get from Hodge and Pierce are sculptured acrylic nails which are created to the form of the natural nail and to the desired length of the client.
   Another thing that separates the artificial nails offered at M&M Nails is the way the nails are applied. "We do not use drills on natural nails," Hodge said.
   In addition to offering acrylic nails for fingernails, M&M Nails also offer sculptured acrylic toenails, which are popular during the summer months when sandals and open-toed shoes are in season. While acrylic fingernails usually need to be refilled around the cuticles about every two weeks, the acrylic toenails are not as high maintenance. "They require little maintenance," Hodge said of the acrylic toenails. "They are good for about five to six weeks."
   In addition to the artificial nails, M&M Nails also offers some beauty treatments that are more on the pampering side -- manicures and pedicures.
   With a manicure, clients get their natural nails filed and shaped, a spa bath for their hands which is usually a milk and honey bath, a cuticle treatment and trim, an exfoliation, a complete hand and arm massage and get their nails polished with the color of their choice. The cost for a manicure is $15 and a paraffin wax bath for the hands is available for an additional charge of $5.
   When a client comes into M&M Nails for a pedicure, they receive a foot and leg massage up to the knee, have their feet filed, calluses removed, their toenails filed and shaped, their toenails buffed, a cuticle treatment and trim, and their toenails polished with the color of their choice. A pedicure costs $30. As with the manicure, a paraffin wax bath is available for an additional charge of $5.
   One of the main focuses of the shop is customer satisfaction, according to Hodge. With that comes another focus -- maintaining a sanitary and clean environment. "We really emphasize on cleanliness and sterilization," she said. "We use hospital level sterilization."
   M&M nails is located at 829 Broad Street and the phone number for the shop is (423) 543-3988.