Ji Baek has been a beauty rebel since childhood when she would smuggle clothes and makeup out of the house and away from her conservative parents’ watchful eyes. She continues to buck the standard in the beauty industry as the founder of Rescue Beauty Lounge, the first nail focused luxury salon in New York City. Originally, Ji was on the path to becoming a professional viola player. An injury cut that dream short, eventually leading her to the male dominated world of restaurant management. It was during those endless days in painful heels that the concept for Rescue Beauty Lounge came to fruition. With pedicures being the only reprieve for her aching feet, Ji was disgruntled with the nail options in NYC. Having to choose from dirty, cheap nail shops (I call them “chop shops”) or upscale salons where nails aren’t a priority, she set her sights on giving Manhattan women a hygienic, pampering destination that specializes in hands and feet.

I had the pleasure of meeting Ji at her Gansevoort St. location during my last trip to the city. Tucked in amongst the designer showrooms and trendy eateries is a very unassuming building with no visible signage, just a call box that lists Rescue Beauty Lounge. Up on the 2nd floor, I found Ji waiting for me. A most welcoming host, Ji is insanely chic and beautiful. She’s one of those women that probably takes five minutes to pull together an outfit that the rest of us would spend hours pondering. Wearing a layered gray ensemble and killer black leather boots with a perfectly placed slouchy knit cap resting upon her wavy black tresses, she’s the picture of effortless style (I’d show you but Ji’s camera shy). Learn more about Ji, get the deets on my visit and see pics of the latest additions to my RBL arsenal after the jump.

My first impression of Rescue was of its clean, modern design, amazing skylight (what a find for NYC!) and of course, the polish. Ji says fate brought her to that space and well she must have amazing luck to find such a locale. With an obvious talent for interior design, Ji chose a muted, cool toned palette to outfit her salon. Very soothing. Before proceeding to the “lounge” I made a stop at the polish display to decide on a color for my mani-pedi. I was like a kid in a candy store, perusing all the shades I’d been dying to see in person. When you see them, all lined up on crisp, white, minimalist shelves, it’s overwhelming. Needless to say, it was not an easy choice but I selected Dead Calm, a shade at the top of my lemming list. Dead Calm in hand, I took up residence in one of the intimate lounges (pictured left) to receive my services. Each space is appointed with comfy couches and surrounded by high walls, providing peace and privacy. A few minutes later, Ji joined me for a chat and a fresh mani of No More War to replace her 9 day-old, but still acceptable, Teal tips. Ji comes across very laid back and calm. Like she doesn’t have a care in the world. She’s not one of those chatty, mile-a-minute talkers (like me). She’s more reserved, with a twinkle in her eye that makes you think she is a keeper of great secrets. Though I will say that she’s very forthright when it comes to discussing the industry, her work ethic and style and personal passions. Here’s a bit of what I learned about Ji.

Ji is a punk at heart
As a teen she was restricted from any permanent beauty transformations due to her involvement in orchestra. As a former flautist, I know the pain of wearing those hideous black and white uniforms for concerts. It really is enough to make you want to dye your hair pink (something Ji would love to do someday). So she would don punk clothes and wear outrageous makeup as a way to express herself.

Her hair was once short and blonde
Can you imagine? That gorgeous mane cut off and bleached blonde? I guess we all go there once.

She is a hands on owner.
Ji works seven days a week. She didn’t grow her business to just sit back and drink in the success. You can usually find her at one of RBL’s two Manhattan locations.

Ji hand mixes new colors right in the salon
That’s right kids. On any given day you might find Ji at the front desk, mixing polishes, working on her next creation.

There is no RBL Warehouse
You heard me. When all of you go crazy, ordering new collections, they pull stock from right in house and package on site. Spending all weekend getting your orders out if necessary.

She’s a perfectionist
Every polish that joins the RBL lineup must withstand Ji’s rigorous testing. She will send a shade back to production over and over until it meets her standards. Each lacquer must last nine days when used with her treatment system and be perfectly pigmented, requiring only two coats.

Her inherent love of fashion influences the RBL collections
No More War, Teal, Yellow Fever, Recycle, Starfish Patrick, Bikini Bottom, Chinoise… they’re all straight from the runways. Ji takes inspiration from her favorite designers and translates it to nails.
Chinoise is a man magnet and the perfect intro to bold nail color
One of Ji’s long time clients works in a law firm, opting for safe, office appropriate colors. Hearing that she had a date, Ji convinced her to step outside her comfort zone and try Chinoise, a sexy red. Not only did it impress the man but her client has been experimenting with the rainbow of RBL shades ever since.

Polish names can have multiple meanings
Ji revealed that some shade names aren’t as literal as they appear. While No More War is certainly a statement about our current political state, she says that Teal isn’t just a color descriptor. That it also references a state of calm.

Black Russian is ReVamp
We can put that question to bed, once and for all. For legal reasons it was renamed Black Russian.

Ji does what she wants, on her timeline
You’ll never see a RBL collection rushed in order to meet magazine deadlines. Ji refuses to conform to traditional release dates or industry standards. If that means releasing just one polish or giving us a double whammy with two fall collections, so be it. She answers only to herself.

She doesn’t pay attention to the competition
Not wanting to be influenced by other nails brands, Ji isolates herself from what they are doing.

Ji works hard and vacations even harder
With RBL being her main focus, Ji doesn’t have a ton of downtime. So when she takes a vacay, it’s for serious. We’re talking total relaxation. There’s no snorkeling trips or hiking excursions involved. In fact, she hardly ventures off property. A fave destination of her and the hubby, Cancun’s luxury resorts.

She’s childless by choice
Much like the boyfriend and I, Ji and her husband have made the decision to be child-free. And we both wish people would stop telling us we’ll change our mind. It’s not always different when it’s yours.

Now what kind of nail polish fanatic would I be if I didn’t bring home some RBL goodness to share with you. Here are my latest additions.

Square Pants – the perfect banana pudding yellow. It’s intended to be more sheer but I used three coats.
Dead Calm – my new favorite blue. My 2008 wish of discovering the perfect blue creme came true when I met Dead Calm.
Chinoise – how could I not select “man magnet” red? Ji’s right, the boyfriend loved it. He digs red polish so I knew he’d be a sucker for this one.
In addition to the polishes, I snagged Rescue’s treatment system, it makes the polish wear like iron, and Citrus Vert hand lotion. If you love citrus scents, you’ll DIE over this. Though I forgot to pick up a copy of Ji’s book so I plan to get one while I’m in NYC next week.

I want to give a heartfelt thanks to Ji Baek for inviting me into her lovely world of polish. Be sure to visit RescueBeauty.com to satisfy all your RBL lemmings.

images: Ji Baek, Rescue Beauty Lounge, All Lacquered Up, Style.com