Speaking With Your Hands—The History of the Manicure

Fingernails. These plates of alpha-keratin punctuating our fingertips represent an ideal canvas for expression, one that is eminently visible to others and ourselves. The figures support this observation; nail salon revenue in the United States has been estimated at more than $8 billion a year, a figure akin to the gross domestic product of a small nation (and is actually comparable with that of the Bahamas).¹ This figure also sheds light on the importance of properly manicured nails in modern society.