Beauty Lounge of Paradise: Aniana Beauty Lounge in Manila’s Walled City

Beauty Lounge of Paradise: Aniana Beauty Lounge in Manila’s Walled City

       

Intramuros is probably at the top of every tourist’s list When in Manila. The cobbled stoned streets, the calesa rides and old buildings certainly bring you back to an era long gone but not forgotten. After visiting the ruins of Fort Santiago, the century-old San Agustin Church and the newly-renovated Manila Cathedral, why not take some time to relax at Aniana Beauty Lounge?

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Aniana Beauty Lounge

My love for nail polish probably added a lot to my excitement while I was on the way to their spa. “Today is the day that I will finally get to try gel nail polish”, I thought to myself. I found myself in a quaint little salon where I was greeted by a hospitable staff of five lovely women.

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Located at Unit 4, Casa Consuelo bldg. Solana St. Intramuros, Manila, Aniana Beauty Lounge believes that quality need not be expensive and this translates to their list of services that are both budget-friendly yet luxe in relaxation and pampering.

Named after the owner’s daughter, Aniana Beauty Lounge‘s offers include their popular hot stone massage (Php 700), gel nail polish (Php 200) and Signature Foot Spa (Php 350), in which Aniana Beauty Lounge’s custom-made scrubs and masks are utilized. They also have eyelash extensions (with human hair) and eyelash perming that are totally worth the Php 500 and Php 300 that you will have to shell out. They last for months!

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Owner April does careful research into each and every brand and service for her spa/salons. She makes it a point to ensure that all of the products used are organic, as well, hence the custom-made formulas for her spa’s treatments.

Aniana Beauty Lounge also has a branch in San Dionisio, Paranaque, which also has a hair salon inside of it. Having great passion for pampering and nail polish, her spa offers only the best brands for her customer’s nails. Her selection includes Orly, China Glaze, O.P.I., Zoya and Italian brand Cuccio for their gel nail polish (although they also have Cuccio for their regular nail polish service). Next for them is Korean brand Bandi, which they plan to introduce soon. 

Aniana Beauty Lounge

I got to try their Signature Hand Spa and Foot Spa (Signature Foot Spa is Php 350, while Signature Hand Spa is Php 280). What makes theirs so different is their 8 step execution of each one. They start with the hand or foot being (1) soaked in salt and then (2) scrubbed, (3) lathered with a whitening mask, (4) cleansed, (5) massaged, and (6) moisturized with lotion. For step (7) the nails are further cleansed and lastly, step (8) us where the palms or soles of the feet are hydrated with a spray. Phew! It’s a pretty intricate process, but totally worth it in the end.

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Cuccio’s 5 Step Gel Nail Polish
(Step 4 is the application of Nail Color)


Aniana Beauty Lounge

The Finished Product

And for the highlight of my visitL the gel nail polish! I was given two swatches with various colors from Cuccio, where I could choose which ones to use for my hands and feet. It was so hard! I was so excited and there were so many colors to choose from. I settled for a blue green color, which Miss April described as a very nice choice for summer. The only difference was that the nail polish I chose for my finger nails had glitters.

Apparently, their gel nail polish lasts for 3 weeks. After going through Cuccio’s 5 step process in applying gel nail polish, I was more than happy to see the finished product! 

Aniana Beauty Lounge

Me doing Aniana Beauty Lounge’s trademark pose