When you first walk in to a salon to have a Manicure or Pedicure, what is the first thing you notice? Is it the smell? Is it the Color Selection available? Do you ever look for their salon grade, or notice the cleanliness of the salon? Most consumers are not "In the Know" on what to look for before receiving Nail Services. Have you ever heard the term "You get what you pay for"? This is very true when it comes to Nail Services.  North Carolina State Board of Cosmetic Art requires the following sanitation requirements: *All files, buffers, orangewood sticks should be thrown away after use on a client, or given to the client to take home. They are not to be reused on any other client. If you can see file marks on the file or buffer, they have been used on a previous client. *Pedicure Spas should be filled with clean water and an approved disinfectant and cycled through the jets after every client. If the place you are going to is not doing that, you should not even consider putting your feet in their Pedicure Spa. *Implements (Clippers, Cuticle Nippers, Pushers, Foot Files, etc.) should be scrubbed with anti-bacterial soap and then placed in a hospital approved disinfectant such as Barbicide, Marvicide, etc. for at least ten minutes, then dried with a clean towel. UV light sterilizers are not  effective! *Licenses are to be displayed in a conspicuous place, look for it. Watch after your pedicure or manicure and see what your technician does with the implements they just used on you. If they take the entire cup and set it in a UV light, or even just lay them in the UV light, those items are not being sanitized properly, and you are at risk for infections, and/or diseases. You should always go to a reputable salon to receive Nail Services. When you walk into a Nail Salon, and you smell that strong odor, that simply means they are using the cheapest products available on you. The stronger the odor, the cheaper the product. Reputable salons do not have any odor at all because they are using top quality, professional products. Many places claim to use top quality products, but then use cheaper knock-offs to make more money. So, it is up to YOU, the client to be informed on which products and cleaning methods are being used. Only accept the best! A reputable salon will not mind you asking questions about their sanitation and products. When it comes to your health, a $10 difference in price is definitely worth the peace of mind that you are receiving top quality services by a licensed technician in a clean environment. If you are unsure of the place you have been going to, check on the NC State Board website. It will show you the Sanitation Grade of every salon in the state by town. Be informed before going in for a service! ...read more