Sugar Nails: An Haute-Couture Manicure In The Heart Of Tokyo

Savvy Nail Salon Review

By Alisa Kerr
September 20, 2016
Health & Beauty

A little piece of Paris has arrived in Minami-Azabu. Bienvenue à Sugar Nails — a Parisian style multilingual nail salon with highly creative nail art and super friendly service.

Located opposite the Sawamura bakery on Gaien-nishi Dori in Tokyo’s Minato ward, you feel like you’re stepping into a friend’s beautifully decorated Parisian apartment as soon as you walk into Sugar Nails. The intimate salon and friendly staff make you feel immediately at ease as you rest on the comfortable sofa, sip tea and browse through the wide range of creative nail designs designed by the Sugar Nail team.

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Sugar Nails is the creation of Laura Suga, a Tokyo native who has spent many years working in the beauty industry both in Tokyo and more recently in France, where she worked as an esthetician in the heart of Paris.

On her recent return to Tokyo, Suga wanted to create a cozy Parisian style salon, that offers high quality Japanese nail art, which is perfectly suited to the chosen Minami-azabu locale.

In a truly international salon style, Suga can speak Japanese, English and French, so expatriate clients can feel completely at ease ringing the salon for appointments or discussing the details of their manicure when they visit the salon.  

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The nail design menu at Sugar Nails is extensive, including both Soft Gel and Quick Gel designs. Soft Gel manicures (¥5,500 for one color) are amazingly durable, lasting for around 3-4 weeks on the average. The Soft Gel materials also allow for the greatest amount of flexibility for color and designs, ranging from simple to very elaborate nail art. Simple art (¥6,300) includes french, gradation (ombre) and crystal stones, taking around 90 mins. Special art (¥8,000) entails marble, peacock, double french, crystals stones and many, many more. The more intricate special nail designs can take 100 minutes plus depending on the design.  

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Anyone who has tried gel nails before will agree that the worst part is the removal. The durability means that gel manicures are quite difficult and time consuming to remove, and best done by a professional to minimize damage to the nail.

One of the great services that Sugar Nails provides is that with every gel manicure they will remove your old gel at no extra charge.

When removing the gel, the Sugar Nails technicians take the utmost care to ensure that your nails are not damaged, helping you maintain a healthy nail condition underneath your gorgeous manicure.

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Another great option is Quick Gel (¥5,000 for single color), which has a more light and natural finish, much closer to natural polish, and on average lasts from 2-3 weeks. Quick Gel is also less damaging on the nails and much quicker to remove than regular gel, but only simple nail art designs can be achieved with it.

But if in the end of the day nail art is not your thing, of course Sugar Nails also offers the regular one color polish (¥4,500) or french manicure (¥6,000), and you’ll know the difference in authenticity as soon as Suga or any of her multilingual staff take control of your hands. 

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Once you’ve decided on the nail art design, you’re seated in one of two oversized blue linen arm chairs, complete with gorgeously soft cushions. My technician gets to work carefully preparing my nails for the manicure while I sip my tea and snack on a delicious chocolate treat. Simply the perfect way to have some much needed down time.

Every Sugar Nails manicure includes Japanese style care for fingers, which includes shaping, cuticle care, and a nourishing finishing oil.

Sugar Nails has chosen only to use the highest quality products at the salon, including Japan-made gel, Swarovski crystals and diamond nail files. All of the Sugar Nails staff are professionally trained, and the salon uses the highest industry standard to ensure that all tools are properly sterilized and cleaned. All of this so that each client receives the highest level of service with their treatment.

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And most importantly, even though we met for the first time, the entire crew at Sugar Nails made me feel at home. We were chatting away, not realizing how quickly the time had passed.

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Throughout my treatment, Suga was there to help make sure that everything was communicated clearly; from my preference of nail shape, to the final details of color and nail design. The result is a perfect manicure, with no compromises. If you are looking for a high quality nail salon where you can really relax and enjoy some down time, Sugar Nails is the perfect place to visit and revisit. I know I will.


Savvy Exclusive! Special Promotion

All Savvy readers will receive a complimentary nail art on one finger with any one-color treatment orders. Select your preferred design from a wide array of samples, including the salon’s recommended “Autumn-Fall Fashion Trends”-inspired seasonal design (pictured below) and an elegant lineup of Swarovski crystal stones for a special discounted price of ¥5,500 (usually ¥6,300). Mention Savvy upon booking to receive this special offer.
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The Deets

Sugar Nails
Location: 5-2-38 Sakura Bldg. 2F Minami-Azabu, Tokyo
Access: 2-min walk from Hiroo station, Exit 3
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. Sunday and Holidays 12 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Reservations: 080-4433-5238
URL: http://sugarnails.tokyo/index.html


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Sugar Nails

A Newly Opened Parisian-Style Multilingual Nail Salon In The Heart Of Tokyo