Mei Kawajiri
[Originally published in office magazine Issue 20, Fall-Winter 2023. Order your copy here]
What is your ideal office?
My ideal office is an exciting space full of colorful transparent walls. Everywhere you look is kawaii. I do love how my nail studio has come together and feels like me from the moment a client walks in. It is filled with lots of tiny art, painting, and figurines. And of course cabinets of my past work, which I call my nail museum.
What was the first art form you felt drawn to?
My first art form was canvas painting. I would paint the view of the sky from the window of my childhood bedroom in Kyoto.
What is your most prized possession?
My nail archive! Each nail tip is full of memories from a time in my life. I have nail tips from past runway shows, campaign shoots, and even celebrities who keep the tips and give them to me the next time I see them. Gigi once kept her tips from a Marc Jacobs show and gave them to me in a little Ziplock bag for my nail museum. She knows how much it means to me. It’s like collecting vintage.
Can you describe the last dream you had?
I co-hosted a big nail party with Pharrell! A bunch of my friends were hanging out on the couch in my nail studio. He had long square natural nails, and he wanted me to paint them a bright red polish.
Which pattern best represents your personality?
Plaid.
If you could only see the world in two colors, which two would you choose?
Red and sky blue. Red is passionate and fiery. It’s motivating and active … when I am in “on mode” I feel red all around me. Sky blue is calm, chill, and peaceful. This is my “off mode” and everything is so relaxed and nice. When I was a student in Japan, I used to dye my hair red and always had my nails painted sky blue.
What mythological creature would best describe you?
A fairy … I love that my nails would be even tinier and cuter.
What’s the last thing you were wrong about?
I just learned what chickens look like.
Where is the most spiritual place in New York City?
On the street.
How might you like to be reincarnated?
An eagle! It symbolizes power and freedom, and I’d love to fly!
