It was Thanksgiving week and my husband and I were heading to Connecticut to spend the holiday with our adopted American family. This holiday is a highlight for this Aussie girl and my Kiwi (short for New Zealander) husband, especially as we don’t have anything like this in Australia or New Zealand. On the way I noticed my newly polished nails had started to chip; if you know me, you know I do not do chipped nails. I begged my husband to make a pit stop at Mystic Red Door Nail Spa so I could have my nails fixed and of course indulge in some relaxation time (at the time I was 25 weeks pregnant with our first baby so I kind of had my husband wrapped around my finger – pardon the pun). I cannot say enough positive things about this spa – the extraordinarily high level of professionalism and warmth was beyond anything I had experienced in other nail salons. Now, I know what you are thinking – well you pay more for this level of service, actually they were reasonably priced; $27 for a warm cream manicure that began with a herbal tea and warm pillow being placed on my neck – definitely worth the extra money spent.
My manicurist Cadmarie started the treatment by spraying my hands with a delicious olive oil moisturizing spray and then perfectly prepped my nails. We started to talk about her background as she blended Elizabeth Arden 8hr cream and Elizabeth Arden luxury cream and firmly massaged from my elbows to the tips of my fingers, if I wasn’t so intrigued by her story then I am sure I would have fallen asleep on the spot.
Cadmarie was one of the most passionate manicurist I have ever met. She got her start in the business 27 years ago when her mentor moved back to California and handed over her complete client list to her. Not one to miss an opportunity, Cadmarie built up her nail business by specializing in nail art and only recently decided to take a break from running her own salon to work at Red Door Spa. From observation it seems that all staff employed by Red Door Spa are not only highly experienced but obviously enjoy the environment they work in. The place was buzzing with positivity and passion, I actually wanted to spend the day and soak in all that goodness.
Upon arrival I commented on how much I loved the concierge’s nails, they were red with a gold V painted along the moon. Now as many of you are aware I do not embrace nail art on my own nails despite loving it on others. I was feeling adventurous so asked Cadmarie to ‘style bite’ (copying someone else’s sense of style and making it your own) her work colleague’s nails and paint mine the same way. She used Essie’s ‘‘Size Matters’ as a base red and then free painted the gold V with Essie’s ‘Golden Nuggets’. I loved the end result, so chic! Once my nails were painted I was led to a dimly lit room with soothing music, offered another herbal tea and told to relax in the lounge chair while my nails dried. No noisy nail dryers here, just pure relaxation.
To say that my experience was sensational is an understatement I wish I could always have this amazing experience every time I had my nails done. So next time you are in Mystic, look up Red Door Spa and indulge in a mani or pedi, you wont regret it!
Until next time,
Ruth
Red Door Spa Mystic Marriott – 625 North Road Groton, CT
Ambience: relaxing and luxurious
Cleanliness of salon: immaculate, cleaned to perfection
Polish: Essie’s ‘Size Matters’ as a base red (Essie Retails $8) and the gold V was Essie’s ‘Golden Nuggets’ (Essie Retails $8)
Polish job & chip factor: Fabulous polish job, mani chipped after 5 days
Brands they stock: Essie, CNDC
Color range: High quality polishes with an extensive color range
Customer engagement: Friendly, professional and engaging
Price range: Warm cream manicure – $27 they also offer the Red Door signature mani & pedi, Olive Oil mani & pedi, Milk & Honey mani & pedi, Intensive Healing Mani & Pedi and nail enhancements.
