SALON IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Neverland, Glasgow

By Kat Hill | 05 July 2017 | Feature, Salon & Spas

Neverland, Glasgow

Having honed her artistic eye as a tattoo artist, Frenchie Fabulous wanted a career change, inspired by her own love of receiving nail treatments.

“After working in a salon for a few months, I realised I wanted more control over my brand and image,” Frenchie explains. “A small studio space opened up in a beautiful old building, and I jumped at the chance to start up Neverland there. After a year there, I had the desire, confidence and client base to build Neverland into something bigger and more visible. When the shop on Elderslie Street became available, overlooking a leafy park, two minutes from my original studio, I knew I needed to be there! The shop was too big for just me, so I’m currently hosting a pop-up shop from Dragonfly & ButterBee Vintage, my new neighbours and clients of mine. They specialise in vintage style bridal wear, but are branching out into 1950s day wear. I just want to play dress up all the time!”

With her own space to thrive, Frenchie is able to offer beautifully bespoke, hand-painted nail art design for her clients. “Nail art is becoming more and more popular. Rather than relying on stickers and decals, I paint everything by hand. This means that my clients can request anything that they want – they’re not limited to what decals I have in stock. I’ve done everything from alpacas, portraits of Queen, characters like the Little Mermaid and Miss Piggy, Wizard of Oz, flamingos and unicorns, pet portraits, tattoo designs and henna.

“My nail art is very much done in my own style, and my brand is built on that. I wouldn’t discount the idea of perhaps welcoming aboard a beauty therapist or makeup artist, to offer the full package, but for now I’m quite content by myself” Frenchie continues.

“I use Calgel products. I love the versatility of their range and how kind it is to the natural nail. I also love how the products and your training is monitored and maintains. It’s more exclusive here in Glasgow too, with not many salons using it. The team are lovely too, I love a wee chat with the girls on the the phone when I’m placing an order!”

Frenchie style reverberates through her her salon, Neverland. “Both my studio space and my new salon were inspired by things from my childhood,” she states. “I remember helping my dad redecorate when he bought a house from an old lady. I loved peeling back all the layers of wallpaper, seeing all the layers of colours, textures and patterns, and that’s something I wanted to feature in my salon. Most salons I see now are very minimalist, clean lines, lots of white. While that’s lovely, it’s just not me at all. More is more is my style. I wanted my clients to feel comfortable and relaxed, as if at home. And where do you feel more at home than in your granny’s living room?! I love colour, and mixing old and new together.”

“I’m a huge Disney fan, and Peter Pan has always been a favourite. I love the philosophy behind it, that we can stay young for forever, and that anything is possible, and I hope that that comes across in my work too! I even have a photo of me as a little girl in J.M. Barrie’s house, the author of Peter Pan, on the wall in the salon.”

See more of Frenchie’s work by clicking here!