We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mia Rubie a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Mia, appreciate you joining us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?
My name is Mia and I am the founder of Sparkle SF Nails. I am a creative who has always wanted to work for myself – I just wasn’t sure how and what it would be until I discovered that I loved doing nail art and I could share it with the world and make a living doing it! Following a tiny creative outlet that started when I was a child has led me to opening a salon and becoming a leader in the San Francisco nail art culture.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I started doing my own nails as a hobby when I was in junior high school. I would grow my nails out and paint them for fun. When I got my first job in high school, my first paycheck was used to get my nails done in the fanciest style I could afford. I had my eyes on a wild set of acrylic nails from the board of nail designs displayed at the salon on Divisidero street in San Francisco. I remember them distinctly – black and neon green split down the middle with a stripe of gold dividing the colors diagonally with rhinestones at the base. They were everything and brought me so much joy!
After high school, I went to college to pursue a business degree with a concentration in entrepreneurship. I’ve always been an independent spirit. My dream was to own my own business and provide something to people that would improve their lives in a fun and positive way. In my early 20’s, I had no idea what my passion was. I was kind of floating around working different jobs and looking for inspiration. It wasn’t until much later that I would connect the dots and the light bulb would go off to realize that something I enjoyed so much as a young person (nails) would end up being the industry I’d find myself starting a business in.
Flash forward to graduating from college and working at corporate office job, I found my evenings returning to painting my nails again. It was around 2009 that I started noticing the flashy designs on celebrities that were starting to be incorporated as fashion in the styling of music videos and magazine editorials. Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Fergie and others big artists were rocking these looks that I had never seen on nails before. Intricate patterns, ultra metallic shades and fashion prints were so eye catching to me. I had to figure out how I could have this style of nail art on my own nails. I searched around the Bay Area and couldn’t find it. Then I found out that nail stamping was a thing. I bought a kit and I was off to the races, changing my nail styles weekly. Friends and colleagues started to notice my fingertips and would excitedly ask me where I got them done. It was a cool feeling to tell them I did them myself! After playing around on evenings and weekends and buying all the nail supplies I could get my hands on, I had someone tell me that I was so good they would pay me to do their nails. Bingo – lightbulb moment. Something I learned in business school was that whatever I was going to sell or create needed to be something I was passionate about, not easy to acquire and difficult to replicate. This was when it all made sense.. The only thing stopping me was having a manicurist license and proper training to legally provide services.
I went to cosmetology school in the evenings and weekends after work. I finished my manicurist program within a year and opened up my own super tiny studio in San Francisco. I was doing pop up events at local businesses and department stores, street fairs – wherever I was requested, I was there. I was so excited, I took every opportunity I could to gain traction and get my name out there. Within a year of opening my studio, I was booked solid and able to leave my day job.
I have now been a nail artist and salon owner of Sparkle SF Nails for 11 years. I have expanded my business to bring on new and upcoming nail artists to create their own path within a space of creativity and support. I have found my niche in colorful gel nail art using premium products and techniques I’ve spent years working on.
I am very proud of staying the course and also taking a leap of faith into an industry that wasn’t clearly defined for me. Nail salons are everywhere – but not many that focus on intricate art work and long lasting gel nails. Over the years, I have had opportunities to work on celebrities and with some of the greatest photographers and brands. It’s an honor to be trusted with that level of professionalism and artistry. But the best part of the journey has been developing relationships with my loyal customers and gaining creative freedom to grow.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I was an early adopter of Instagram. I was fortunate enough to find it in its infancy and start posting pictures of my nail art over 11 years ago when social media wasn’t flooded with so many accounts and ads. I think people found me and liked the uniqueness of what I was doing. There weren’t too many nail art accounts so I had no trouble gaining followers. The key to keeping my followers and growing my audience over the years has been consistency. I don’t overthink my content. I do minimal editing. I just make sure I have good lighting and the nails are interesting and well done. Consistency for me in the beginning was posting 3-4 times a day. Nowadays, that is probably too much. So I keep to at least 3 posts and 3 stories per week. You need to let the algorithm know you didn’t drop off the face of the earth! The platforms want to know you are engaged and tuned in so make sure you interact with other accounts, build your community of accounts that inspire you and like, comment and share at the minimum. Video content and reels have been a challenge for me. I am not great on camera and I’m a bit shy in person so I mostly let my nail work do the talking, of course providing a caption and information, while letting my personality shine through in simple ways. I’m humorous and also enjoy sharing things outside of nails to let people know I”m a real person behind the account – someone they might be able to relate to in terms of business, art and motherhood.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The joy my customers and online community express toward the art I create on nails is unmatched. I am at a point where I am allowed a lot of creative freedom in my profession and it is I create my own schedule, work at my own pace and get to dream up colorful ideas for my clients. Many people have told me that “nail day” is their favorite day of the month. How special is that? Being a source of simple joy for someone else – that’s amazing to me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sparklesanfrancisco.com/
- Instagram: Superflynails
- Facebook: Superflynails
- Yelp: Sparkle Nails
Image Credits
Sparkle Nails and Superflynails logos by @Deb