Dingwall nail artist wins Nail Technician of the Year North title at Scottish Nail Brows and Lashes Awards in Glasgow
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A ROSS nail artist was left speechless after winning a prestigious national competition.
Tracey McAlinden, from Bella’s Perfect 10 studio in Dingwall, was crowned Nail Technician of the Year North in the first edition of the Scottish Nail Brows and Lashes Awards, which were held in Glasgow recently.
Ms McAlinden was nominated by a colleague and was unaware of being in the run until she was told she was one of the finalists.
She admitted: “I couldn’t believe it, I was left with a bit of shock to be honest!”
Ms McAlinden started her business four years ago, and despite having gained all the necessary qualifications required to open a nail salon, her nail art skills came at first from a necessity.
“The person who did my nails went on maternity leave and I decided to start doing my own nails. My partner bought me a gel machine and I started getting into it, and with time I started doing nails for friends and family.
“After some time a friend said I should start doing it professionally as I had quite a few people getting their nails done with me, so it kind of started from there.”
Ms McAlinden now works at the Commercial Hairdresser at Inverness UHI as well.
She added: “This award is surely an advantage for my business, let’s just see what happens in the future.
“What I really like is that sometimes people tend to hide their hands and feet, but with a nice manicure or a good reconstruction you see people smile, show off their nails and it’s a big confidence boost.”
