Thread for Beauty
She started her Union City beauty salon as a hobby two years ago, but today 33-year-old Nimisha K. Trivedi boasts hundreds of customers who come from Manhattan and as far away as Edison and South Jersey just for her eyebrow threading.
It’s an ancient beauty technique to shape the eyebrow by removing unwanted hair. It takes a little getting used to. Trivedi uses a cotton thread that she twists and rolls along the surface of the skin. The hair is then lifted out from the follicle. Though it is not clear when it came to the U.S., the history of threading can be traced back to the Middle East and India.
On a recent Friday at 6 p.m., three women sat and made small talk at Trivedi’s salon, Diamond Unisex (201-601-8901), waiting their turn. Trivedi was born in India and came to the U.S. a decade ago. Prior to owning the salon, Trivedi only threaded her friends and family’s eyebrows.
Trivedi learned the craft in her home state of Gujarat. But she says most of her customers are Hispanic or non-Hispanic whites, not Indian. “I don't know how they found out about me,” says Trivedi, who has grown her business mostly through word of mouth.. She says she’s had to learn Spanish, because most customers speak the language. “I found out it is as important as knowing English,” says Trivedi, who also speaks Gujarati and Hindi.
Her threading service costs just $5. “There’s a lot of competition everywhere, especially from salons on Bergenline Avenue, that is why I only charge $5,” she says. Most other area salons offer eyebrow waxing, but not threading. You can pay $6 for Dulce’s waxing and $5 at Eloy’s, two nearby salons.
Plucking, waxing, and now threading — get those eyebrows in shape!
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