In the late seventies, our heroine Galina Ivantsova changed her job at a scientific institute to a place at the manicure table. Soviet women are not some “dirty French women.” It turns out that queues for manicurists lined up in the morning, although this was not included in any social package or standard of everyday Soviet life. About tips, conditions and cronyism - a story by Galina Ivantsova for Onliner.by.
Several years ago, Galina Ivantsova retired. I would have continued to work, but my eyesight began to fail. For a manicurist, the eyes are as important as the confidence of the hands, so our heroine changed her sedentary work pattern to an active retirement: home, garden, grandchildren.
- I came to hairdresser No. 2 in 1979,- says Galina (by the way, the Minsk hairdresser on Kirova, 1, opposite the station, is still open). - Before that, she worked for six years as a technician at the Institute of Soil Science and Agrochemistry. There is science all around, professors...
The Soviet reward system, of course, was not without costs. For her work at the institute, Galina Ivantsova received 70-80 rubles a month. After a while, working as a manicurist, she will earn three to four times more.
- My mother pushed me: “What kind of salary is this!”- Galina recalls. - Through a friend I came to get a job at hairdresser No. 2. Cool place for those times. Everyone came to work there “from someone” and on a recommendation. They didn't take people off the street.
Jobs in the hairdressing salon appeared extremely rarely. The traditionally lucrative public service sector was protected.
- Five masters in the women's room, the same number in the men's room, four manicurists, cleaners, wardrobe maids - with the exception of a couple of people, all Jews: well-groomed, stately, smart. People went to them for hairstyles, manicures, communication and, of course, culinary recipes. They taught me life without a drop of doubt, and I am still grateful to them. It was high time for many of them to retire, but they were in no hurry. And only when the path to Israel opened up, they began to slowly gather. So the opportunity arose to get a vacant position.
There was no place to study - sit next to me, watch and memorize. A couple of weeks later, after doing manicures for my mother, friends and neighbors, I took on my first client.
A manicure cost 22 kopecks - cleaning without coating. For 30 kopecks it could be made with a coating. The set of loaf plus black bread cost the same. Cheap? Yes. Today I would not go for a manicure, being a pensioner.
We had a plan - 7 rubles per shift. Calculate how many cleanings needed to be done. And not just how, but to gain clientele.
There was a problem with the instrument. Liquid varnishes produced exclusively terrible colors. In quality they were more like construction paints. But there had to be 20 flowers on the table - they mixed, they were tricky. To make it look beautiful, we bought jars of Vaseline at the pharmacy. The Vaseline was washed out and the jars were filled with varnish. They put everything in some boxes of imported sweets or cookies. Then the French perfume “Klima” appeared. When the perfume ran out, clients brought us empty bottles. We poured varnishes into them. The workplace was transformed.
Even later, imported varnishes appeared on the market; we bought them with our own money. The client could agree to Soviet varnish according to the official price list, or he could quietly pay us extra for the imported one.
The masters of the women's salon earned the most in the hairdressing salon, especially during the season when styling, curling, and coloring began - you could get up to 25 rubles a day. My official salary was 140-160 rubles, not counting “left” money. Today, tipping is legal, but in the past, management looked at it differently.
I remember well the first time they left me 15 or 20 kopecks as a tip. This offended me. But the Jewish colleagues quickly cooled down: wait, then you will be offended that you didn’t put in enough. In fact, I began to earn several times more than at the institute.
One day, a respectable woman came into the hall holding a child by the hand. She introduced herself as the wife of the chairman of the city executive committee and told her to cut her grandson’s hair without waiting in line. Hairdresser Arkasha, pointing to the end of the line, replied: “Lenin - he was standing in line too.” Yes, we were what is called “useful” people.
I came to work at twenty to seven in the morning and saw a crowd in front of the door: students, workers, pensioners, gypsies. There was a live queue, registration was conditional. If one of the VIPs entered through the back door, then they were simply entered retroactively. And so that the people in line would not become indignant, the cleaning lady would carry a sheet out to the back door. And the dear client entered the hall already in the image - they say, “at work.”
Store directors, BSU professors, wives of officials... We received reciprocal benefits. Walking into stores felt like coming home. The cleaning lady runs in: sausage has been delivered to the neighboring store! We take a sheet, go in through the back door and come out with a full bag. Weighing, payment - everything later.
In the late eighties, hairdresser No. 2 closed for renovations, and Galina Ivantsova moved to another, even more famous salon - Alexandrina.
- I can only say good things about my colleagues. We managed to get our hands on, support and develop a strong manicure school. In conditions of shortage and lack of tools, we managed to show amazing results. Its own customer base was not an official goal. But this is the only way the first experience of helpful and attentive performers was formed in the USSR.
The nineties are completely different times for manicurists. Tools and varnishes appeared on the market. Men began to come more often; there were businessmen, bandits, and ordinary people. Alexander Solodukha drove up in a Mercedes, played us a cassette with his songs - we listened. His hair has always not been very chic, but he is a sociable and cheerful person. There were deputies, artists, scientists...
- Do you miss the USSR?
- What are you talking about! No, no and NO! We often had guests over, and setting the table was a real disaster. We could go to the store director, but if he himself is empty, what will he share? Constant running around, grabbing, deficit. It’s just because of this that I don’t even want to think about the past. And the streamer of queues at the end of the month? Was my family wealthy? There was a TV, a Zhiguli, a VCR appeared. But what is this, wealth? That’s why I don’t miss the USSR.
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First, a short excursion into history:
1980s:
The longer the better, acrylic is at the height of fashion, and there is really only one rule: fingernails and toenails must be exactly the same shade. Bright. The nails were carefully grown and then filed at the edges, forming a pointed center.
Early 1990s
instagram.com/cndworld
Popular
Nails with a stained glass design, lots of glitter, rhinestones and nail “earrings”: at the beginning of the last decade of the 20th century, fashionistas seemed to be making up for all those long years when nail polish was only red. At the peak are mother-of-pearl and “acid” shades. The “acute” form gets the beautiful name “almond-shaped” and has practically no alternatives.
1996
instagram.com/cndworld
This year stands apart in the history of manicure, because it was in 1996 that the CND Nails company took part in Fashion Week, and all the critics burst out with articles that manicure is also part of a fashionable image, and the designer’s approach to it is very justified. In fact, this is the beginning of a new era: manicure has turned from a purely philistine procedure into an art object. For the first time, nails are filed, leaving corners: the “square” on long nails turned them into small spatulas, but it was fresh! Original! Daring!
2000s:
instagram.com/ninel_bk_beautysalon
From bright colors and provocative combinations, the pendulum swung sharply in the opposite direction: French reigned supreme. The neutral shade on the plate and the white rim along the edge symbolized (well, should have symbolized) the owner’s disdain for ostentatious luxury and desire for everything natural. The shape has also changed: a “soft square”, when the outer line follows the shape of the nail bed, is still considered the most successful for a harmonious image. “French” in salons still costs more than the standard coating, but it rather shows a certain isolation from the world of fashion.
2010s
instagram.com/jamberrynails
Civilization! Robots work hard, not people! Down with kitchen slavery! Nail stickers have entered the market. With or without patterns, long-lasting or one-day use, they almost replaced painting with varnish, since you didn’t have to try to apply them evenly, they didn’t peel off, were easily removed if necessary, and made you feel like a designer. At the same time, a nail printer appears: even print a portrait of your beloved grandmother! Thanks to the victory of technology, nails began to grow again: it’s easier than ever to apply a sticker!
2012
fotoimedia/ImaxTree
The fashion for long nails is finally going away: now cool - cut to the very root and covered with a dark glossy varnish. Black, dark blue, purple are absolute hits. In contrast, Chanel declares the fashion for pale pink shades and short nails on the catwalk, and no one can resist the queen of fashion: next year is coming...
2013 - 2014
fotoimedia/ImaxTree
...The nude era. Beige, nude, cream, milky, ivory, neutral, natural: whatever definitions were given to the new color trend. French lovers breathed a sigh of relief and continued to paint a white stripe along the edge, while the most advanced divas limited themselves to a shiny coating on top of the base. Long nails are completely ostracized; they are “allowed” to grow 1-2 mm, no more.
2015
fotoimedia/ImaxTree
And everyone soon got bored with this lacklusterness. Nail art is experiencing a real heyday, a golden era: sophisticated, aristocratic, minimalist design is in fashion: a thin strip in the middle of the white coating, a small color accent in the corner. It’s not boring anymore, it’s not boring yet: perhaps it’s time to ask to stop for a moment. But it won’t stop: new trends are on the way...
Office manicurists of the Soviet Union received clients exclusively in white coats. You could get a manicure (as well as a haircut and pedicure) by appointment or on a first-come, first-served basis.
USSR brand – hair salon Charodeika
Every Soviet woman dreamed of going to the Enchantress hair salon, which was opened on Novy Arbat in Moscow in the 70s. Only professional craftsmen worked here. Equipment and cosmetics were also used only the most advanced. Women had haircuts, perms, manicures and pedicures. They also cut children's and men's hair.
Women's and men's rooms were separated. Each room had a huge window facing the street. And a cleaning lady from a school or a famous actress could get service here - prices ranged from 5 kopecks to 5 rubles, depending on the type of service.
Bottom line
Different eras made their own adjustments to nail art. But one thing has remained unchanged - that the women of the USSR, that the ladies of the digital 21st century, take care of their nails and love to do manicures.
We have salons, they have hairdressers
One should not think that while building the Great Socialist Union, Soviet women forgot about manicure. Even at that time, nail care was at the forefront of Soviet fashionistas and ordinary women. There were no nail salons in the modern sense in the USSR. There were hairdressing salons (which were called that), in which places for manicures were equipped in a separate room or on separate tables.
There was only one type of manicure in the USSR - edged. Traditionally, it was done by steaming the fingers in warm, soapy water and trimming off excess skin with tongs. Women who had tools did their own manicures, but also actively turned to masters at hairdressers.
The manicure procedure in the USSR, in addition to steaming and cutting the cuticle, also included a hand massage with Amber, Lanolin or Velor creams.
Nail polishes, unfortunately, did not please our ancestors with variety. There were only red, pink, orange and pale yellow colors. Soviet craftswomen managed to mix varnishes of different colors to obtain new shades.
Views: 1906It feels like in Smolensk everyone spends all day doing manicures! - my capital guest exclaimed irritably, calling two dozen salons.
- What else! In Soviet times it was even worse. “I couldn’t get a manicure,” I consoled.
- Come on, in Soviet times we didn’t even have manicures, what a Smolensk!
I don’t know how it is in the capital, but, according to Olga Kaurova, a manicurist with twenty years of experience, manicure was very popular in Smolensk. Apparently, the people of Smolensk devoted much more time to it than to something that “does not exist in the Soviet Union.”
YOU GIVE MANICURE IN THE USSR!
I began to be interested in manicure back in my early childhood, in the early eighties. For the first four years of my life, I simply admired my mother’s nails, and then I applied the acquired knowledge in practice. I secretly took my grandmother's "Lankom" from the foreign exchange store and "manicured" myself, the dolls, the hares... I also didn't ignore the wallpaper and new furniture. Next came the grandfather’s false jaw, but fortunately, the father woke up in time.
“Well, mommy, bunnies want to be beautiful too,” I whined, hiding under the table.
A little later, my mother brought back some miracle of technology from a business trip. It was a bright red device called "Echo" with many strange attachments. The name did not quite correspond to reality: the device produced such sounds that no echo in the world could compare. This was the great-grandmother of modern hardware manicure. I didn’t like the car from the first day: my mother paid too much attention to it. I didn’t understand how “Echo” could contribute to the beauty of nails. However, I still have not been able to comprehend the secret of the “Sovdepov miracle”.
- Mommy, why did you cut yourself like that? - I asked every evening.
When mom finally got tired of the naive childish question, she threw “Echo” away. A couple of weeks later, a certain Aunt Masha came to visit us. She was clearly not in a good mood and was in a hurry to get somewhere.
- What kind of aunt is this? - I asked as soon as Aunt Masha disappeared.
“This is my manicurist,” my mother answered proudly. It was the mid-eighties.
“I’ve been doing manicures for twenty years,” says manicure and pedicure specialist Olga. “I remember very well how it all began. I was going to go to a physical institute, but it didn’t work out. I came across an advertisement: a manicurist was needed. I immediately went to study. Then I didn’t I imagined what it was. Some kind of scissors, forceps. They didn’t explain anything to us, they just showed us. I returned to Smolensk and started work. There were few salons, but there were many people willing. I will never forget my first visitor. She waited patiently an hour and a half, during which time I managed to cut nine fingers! My hands looked even worse than before the manicure... Manicures were done then mainly by the intelligentsia. All the fun cost ninety kopecks. Gradually I learned everything, even became a laureate of an all-Russian competition. Ko Lines began to line up for me. Yes, yes, real lines, like for sausage!" The Soviet Union collapsed and a new era began. People were interested in more vital issues. Only a select few went for manicures.
THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THE ARTS IS...
“A real lady’s nails should be well-groomed and painted with red lancome,” my mother said this phrase at every opportunity.
I understood why Vitalik from the parallel class did not pay attention to me, and complained to my mother. Mom made a decision: it’s time.
This is how I got my first “adult” edged manicure. The end of the means did not justify: Vitalik did not notice anything. Then I painted my nails black, orange, colorless... until I stopped liking Vitalik. I was completely disappointed in manicure. Then there was graduation, studying at the institute. Manicures were becoming popular again. The fashion trend did not pass me by, and after a long break I went for a manicure again. The red lancome has gone out of fashion. Now fancy “Playboy bunnies” were painted on the nails, decorated with rhinestones and piercings. My nails have become unimaginably long. I thought for a long time about what to draw on them, and decided to leave everything as it is. It was the end of the nineties.
WIFE! IT'S TIME FOR A MANICURE!
professional advice
how to care for your nails
- do not forget to smear your hands with protective cream
- do your homework wearing gloves
- use homemade scrubs regularly
- make hand masks, sea salt baths
- in winter, do not leave the house without warm mittens
- get a manicure at least once every two weeks.
. #ProPodo has prepared material to supplement this section. We managed to find a master who, in the seventies, managed to work in the field of manicure and pedicure in both a Soviet hairdressing salon and a Swedish salon. We talked with Victoria Wolfer about those distant amazing times.
— We didn’t have basins. There were chairs, in front of them there were foot washbasins with taps and running water, and foot rests for the client. These washbasins were washed with some kind of cleaning soda; it supposedly cleaned and disinfected. They poured water and a soap solution into it, the clients put their feet on it and held it there for about five minutes.
Pedicure in the 70s began with the heels. They cut it with a straight razor. First we cleaned the heel area, then we looked at where else needed to be cleaned. Then we moved on to the nails and trimmed off the excess around them. Then they did a light massage to remove excess skin. The cream was applied and a light massage was repeated again.
Creams, varnishes, acetone, and soap were given to the craftsmen. After the cream, wipe off the remaining cream from the nails with acetone and apply varnish. It was possible to take on two clients at once because the baths were nearby. While you are doing it for one client, the second one is “soaking”; while one is drying, you are doing it for the second one. Conveyor. One procedure took about an hour.
Alcohol was provided to disinfect instruments. After each client, the instrument was wiped with a cotton swab and alcohol.
Clients paid everything at the cash register. The procedure cost about 1.50 rubles. The craftsmen received a fixed salary. It rarely happened that a “tip” was given. Sometimes it was true that the client did not pay at the cash register, and then the master shared the income with the cashier in half. There were no sales at the barbershop. Clients received their procedure and that’s it.
I moved to Sweden in 1979. I completed a six-month course in learning Swedish, which was provided by the state so that I could quickly assimilate and start working.
Finding a job was quite easy. Previously, in Stockholm there was a chain of stores “Sholl”, which sold shoes, insoles, and correctors. They also had pedicure rooms. There it was necessary to serve about ten clients a day. The procedure lasted from 45 minutes to a maximum of an hour; it could not be done longer.
I did not receive any training from them. The store manager arrived, asked if I knew how to do a pedicure, and asked me to do it for her. I did and she said to go to work the next day. In those days it was so simple, now of course it’s not at all like that.
The only thing that made the pedicure different here was that instead of a straight razor, I had to work with a disposable scalpel, which I quickly mastered. All materials and tools were also provided to the craftsmen by their employers. The master did not disinfect the instrument. After the procedure, we put everything in metal trays, put it away and took a new set of instruments.
It was very inconvenient to work without a client’s footrest: you had to hold your leg in your arms. There was a chair, the same bathtub with a tap, which we washed ourselves with some kind of powder, and a master’s chair.The lighting was very bad, but somehow we didn't need anything.
The master did not plan to record clients for himself. If a window opened, the manager immediately found clients, so there was a large flow. And since all the offices of the “Sholl” network were equipped in the same way, they had to work all over the city, where there were not enough specialists and they were sent there.
Of course, I didn’t like it all, and at some point I ended up on sick leave: due to the constant tension in my arms and back, due to weight-bearing work, my back began to hurt. Then my husband and I decided to open our own office. At first we wanted to open our own business completely with our own equipment and tools, but the bank did not give us the money for this. Then we found an advertisement that a ready-made, equipped office was available for temporary rent. There was an autoclave, instruments, a chair, but you only had to carry water in a plastic basin. You didn’t need any work permits, you just had to register your own company to pay taxes.
At first there were few clients, and we ourselves dropped advertisements into mailboxes to attract people. They offered to do pedicures three times, but only pay for two. At the same time they set a fairly low price. However, after that I had to work from seven in the morning until eleven at night. Some clients paid generously for a third procedure. Because my procedure was already quite cheap, and my clients were satisfied with the result. After some time, we learned that there are pedicure machines in special suitcases. And we bought one so that I could also go from house to house to service it.
