I've written about how much I love and miss mani/pedis (scroll down to Number 6), but also how they are mega expensive here, so they only happen for me when we go back to the states.
But, for my very first Mother's Day, Husband and Elliot went to the only place in town, Bare Clinic, and got me a gift certificate for the kind of mani/pedi I love, which means nothing too fancy, just the good, soaking, rubbing, scraping and painting.
First, my hands...the cuticles were trimmed and shaped, then my nails were clipped and filed and then painted.
Next I sat in a comfy chair, which reminded me of the ones in dentist offices, but without the bright lights, tray full of scary shiny instruments and an anticipation of imminent pain. My feet soaked in a pan of hot soapy water and the polish was whisked off. The sweet technician rubbed my feet and got every bit of calloused skin off. Then she polished them properly, which is much more challenging than it looks.
And if it sounds like the sweet, sweet mani/pedi that I used to love...the one that can be had in every major American (and most non-major as well as non-American) city...the one that costs in the range of $17-50 depending on how swanky the venue...
That would be because it is the same.
The process is similar and even the polish is OPI.
The difference is that this mani/pedi cost 1490 kroner.*
And, depending on the day and the exchange rate, that is about $231.
I say this, not to necessarily share the cost of the present, but to illustrate a bit of the way things work here.
The pricing of these kinds of services are based on the time it takes to perform them.
The manicure was the 60 minute mani which cost 700NOK ($108ish). Husband could have chosen the 15 minute one, which is a polish change, or the 45 minute which is in between.
It is the same with the pedicure. The lower end one is just a polish and the higher end one, which is what I had, takes 80 minutes and costs 790NOK ($122ish).
In comparison, check the price list for the waxing,* which is really when a skilled person smoothes hot wax over chosen and/or various hirsute body parts, covers the wax with linen strips and rips.
It's pretty quick, or at least, if you're the one having it done, you hope it is.
So the prices are pretty comparable to the US prices.
Also, the time it took for the mani/pedi (140 minutes) is approximately the same amount of time as it takes to cut and color my hair. It is also about the same price.
The root of it all, in vastly oversimplified terms, is that everyone is paid a "living wage." Which also means that while a manicurist may not make the same wage as a CEO, proportionally, there is not the same massive difference that there is in the US.
In related news, one also does not tip.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
*Don't judge or think I'm spoiled. I'm not, or if I am, it's only a little bit. I was my very first Mother's Day, so my boys got me my very favorite thing. It was the best present ever and I appreciated it like crazy.
*Go to XE, if you'd like to convert for yourself.
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13 comments:
Wow!! That's expensive! I live right outside Oslo and I pay 400 NOK for pedicure and 550 NOK for manicure - and I have the fancy acrylic stuff too...
But your feet look great. It's not easy to paint your toenails yourself.... :-)
oh no! you're reminding me of the perfectly mani/pedi'd extremities I used to boast!! Ah - those were the days!
GOOD present!! Well done A! :D
The concept of the living wage is all well and good, but seems like in this case could create something of a Catch-22: manicurists may make decent money, but at those prices, can anyone afford to get one??
You went to one of the most espensive placed in Stavanger!!! No wonder you think it's expensive.... I go to Aroma and I pay 250,- for mani and 350 for pedi. And the result is just as good as your photos!!
Stavanger-girl
Wendy: Norwegian woman can afford it. Beauty salons in Norway have increased their income with 20% the last year (even during the financial crisis).
When you look at the prices they dont just represent the wages. Most beauticians/manicurist etc are selfemployed, they "rent" space in a beautysalon and are not employed by the salon.
My manicurist will charge me 530,- to refill my nails etc. no matter if it takes 50 og 70 minutes. She doesnt charge by the hour.
Trude
Hey all,
Thanks so much for your comments. I'm glad you are reading. And I appreciate the feedback.
Wendy--I think that it takes mani-pedis from being an affordable luxury for everyone to being a special thing for the masses, if they do it all.
Stavanger-Girl--I knew I was at a fairly swanky salon, but I searched high and low for somewhere else. Thanks so much for the tip, but also, that is still about 100 USD for a mani/pedi. Which really makes it about 1/2 as much as a swanky salon. And funnily enough that is about the same ratio as it is in the US. Swanky is always about twice as much as the basic.
Trude--Norwegian women do take good care of themselves. And renting a chair is a standard all over the world. And I didn't mean to insinuate there is a specific and hard and fast dollar:time ratio. But there is a direct relationship to the amount that any worker makes per hour and the cost of their services. And that cost is passed on to the customer.
Pro/con arguments aside, it is much much more expensive to have beauty treatments done here in Norway than it is in the US and this is one of the main, if not the primary reason why.
And Elisabeth and Cecilie--Thanks! Really, it just makes me happy to look down and see them all pretty and shiny. I know it's nuts, but I LOVE a pretty mani/pedi!
I'm completely jealous! I haven't a mani/pedi in ages! I told my little Vietnamese nail lady back in Florida that I wanted to fold her up and fit her in my suitcase. We should open up our own nail salon/daycare/Starbucks :P
Ahhhh Starbucks....
When was Mother's Day? I missed the American one and promised my mom I would send her a card on the Norwegian one. I'm so confused. :-)
I'm jealous of your mani/pedi, too, Elizabeth! What a lovely, thoughtful present from your two men. And if it made you happy, it was worth every penny. It was your first MD!
Beauty treatments are totally expensive here but, after three years, I'm so used to it I don't get exercised over it anymore. I finally found a hairdresser I like and I think that, at 480NOK til å klippe håret mitt, she's super affordable. Slappe av, ja? :-)
I think Michele is quite right. You get used to the prices.... But then again, I wouldn't mind the American cost for this - and Starbucks!!
I think Norwegian women find it expensive as well. There's a reason why a lot of us enjoy going on spa-weekends to Riga or Tallin! (a whole weekend there, including hotel and treatments, costs as much as a mani/pedi/facial in Norway) Or have a mani/pedi in NewYork!!!
The OPI on your nails Elizabeth look great - do you know which color it is?
Elisabeth :-)
Hey you guys, Sorry for the late replies, but in case you check back....
Hey Michele...it was in May! And man oh man, I know I shouldn't do the math still, but I do....And other than a little hair color (which I've cut out as a recreation, now it only happens as necessary) a mani/pedi is all I really care about...
And Elisabeth...the color was OPI Red. It is the only one that doesn't have a quirky name out of their collection and it doesn't change with the seasons...
;-)
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