Memoir Mondays: A Not-So-Great Idea

There are things that I’ve done in the name of beauty… Using Summer Soliel in my hair as a teenager is one of those things. Waxing my brows is another. However, the dopiest thing I think I’ve ever agreed to, because it seemed like a good idea at the time, was having a trendy fabric glued on to my toenails when I worked in the cosmetics industry.

After college I went to work at iVillage, where I was an Assistant Beauty Editor. I got to test out the latest products and write about them. (I also learned how to do back-end HTML, which has served me well in the blogosphere.) One job later, I found myself doing merchandising and some in-house public relations for John Barrett. While there, I was talked into trying out a new type of pedicure that BuffSpa, the nail salon that was ‘related’ to the salon, was doing downstairs. It involved having Burberry fabric glued to my toes. Well, I was in my early 20’s and had never owned more than a scrunchie by Burberry, so I thought, why not?

Nothing bad came of it (i.e., no fungal infections, no lost toenails), but when my teachery-self looks back on the picture of my feet, which I decided to photograph, I wonder why I chose to do this. Was it so I could talk it up on the phone with an editor or was it because I wanted to feel cool? Quite frankly, I think it was a combination of both, but probably more the latter, than the former reason.