Purple nails, lucky red and good news

Twice over the years, I’ve had a customer choosing her nails for a job interview—once when I worked in Wellington, and once here in New Plymouth.

Both loved bold colours. But with an interview coming up, both wondered whether French tips would look more professional.

The customer in New Plymouth was applying for a position at a law office. She liked long nails and had her eye on purple.

We talked about it while I worked. I told her the choice was hers. What would help her feel comfortable walking into that room? If she loved the purple, perhaps that familiar pleasure would help her settle some of her nerves.

Then we got onto typing. There would be plenty of that in a law office.

Perhaps, we thought, someone might ask how she managed to type with those long nails. That would give her something to talk about—because she was very good at it.

She chose the purple.

Later, she came back with good news. She’d got the job.

And now she wanted her acrylic nails cut shorter.

That part still makes me smile. Long purple nails for the interview; something more practical for getting down to work.

The customer in Wellington chose red, a colour she had always loved.

When she returned to tell me she’d been offered the job, she was convinced: red was her lucky colour.

I was hardly going to argue. It had been her favourite all along.

Both became regular customers. I wouldn’t claim any credit for their success, but I loved being part of those conversations: the nervous choosing beforehand, then the happy news afterwards.

Sometimes you get to hear what happened next. Those are lovely days in the salon.