Bling It Nails: How a lifelong passion for art turned into a thriving salon

Sierra Rodriguez, creator and owner of Bling It Nails, has always been an artist. Almost three years ago, she utilized that passion, became a certified nail technician and opened her own salon in Placentia.

Rodriguez grew up with a love for art. In her childhood, she was spending her time drawing, painting and doing arts and crafts. That artistic love only grew the older she got.

“I D.I.Y. (do it yourself) all my Halloween costumes,” Rodriguez said. “I even DIY’ed my prom dress. I thrifted a $3 dress from the store, and with the help of my aunt, sewed on stuff to make it better. I've always prided myself in cycling, being able to make something from nothing, or make something better than it was when I found it.”

It’s no surprise Rodriguez had a creative itch; It ran in her family.

Her dad, uncle, cousins and grandma all had their own artistic endeavors. Each of them grew up painting, drawing or crocheting. In fact, Rodriguez’ grandma taught all of them to crochet from a young age, having them crochet a single chain over and over again until they would grasp it.

“My grandpa was an artist and I have his art signature tattooed on me,” Rodriguez said. “It's my last name. It's very special to me because I feel like my origins are really important to who I am as an artist. (Art is) a big part of my family and who I identify myself as. So I have that tattoo to not only honor his memory, but also the artist in me that I got potentially from him.”

As for Bling It Nails, it all started with a Youtube obsession. In high school, Rodriguez said she was obsessed with watching Youtuber Simply Nailogical, also known as Cristine Raquel Rotenberg, specifically with her more and unique challenging designs. When Rotenberg came out with her own nail polishes, Rodrigez bought every possible color she could to recreate Rotenberg’s designs.

“I became obsessed with her,” Rodriguez said. “I loved the colors she was coming out with… I started painting my nails every other day, or I was changing the color once a week.”

Fast forward to 2022, she was self teaching one day when her mom came into her room and suggested Rodriguez paint her nails.

Soon after, Rodriguez’s grandma offered to buy her food in exchange for a nail appointment. Then a few of her close friends got in on the action, offering to buy her nail products or food in exchange for manicures.

Before she knew it, Rodriguez had a regular clientele encouraging her to turn this so-called “side hustle” into a business.

“(They were telling me), ‘You have such raw talent, you need to pursue this,’” Rodriguez said. “It started to really encourage me.”

So, she took their advice and took nail art more seriously. In 2023, she attended Salon Success Academy in Upland, a cosmetology school, then went home to practice nail art on herself or press-on nails. She knew that with her talent for drawing and painting, along with her certification as a nail technician, she could open her own salon.

But before her salon in Placentia, Rodriguez welcomed clients into her own home, operating out of her family’s guest bedroom after turning it into a small studio for her to work in. The more clients she took, the more she realized she was outgrowing the small space and needed to upgrade, but the question was, ‘How?’

Rodriguez’ boyfriend’s uncle owned a property in Placentia where other small businesses were operating. Knowing that she was looking for a larger space, he offered her a room in the building to use as her and offered to discount her rent in 2024.

“Without him, my business would not have grown to the point that it's at right now,” she said. “Him offering me the studio space really got me started. It pushed me even more to get more clientele and advertise. I had to afford the rent, I needed a way to make money and make a living.”

With the need to make rent, she started feeling the pressure of operating a business.

She credits Trevor Parquette, her boyfriend of almost four years, as her biggest advocate and support system, encouraging her to find time for herself outside of her business and pushing away any doubts that arise.

“I wouldn’t be where I am today without him,” she said. “He has always pushed me, supported me, calmed my fears and fueled my confidence to get to where I am today. Without him, I don’t know where I would be.”

Rodriguez said what sets her apart from other nail artists is the time and dedication she invests into her clients, which she herself has rarely received in a nail salon. Rather than rush through a client to get as many appointments as possible in a day, Rodriguez strives to build a personal relationship with her clients so they feel comfortable with her.

“I’ve had my own personal bad experiences in nail salons where they treat me like I’m just a paycheck to them,” she said. “I never want my clients to leave unhappy. It’s so important for women to feel beautiful and to take pride in their looks. Nails play a role in that. If I can play a small role in you feeling good about yourself, then I’m proud to do that.”

Rodriguez’ specialty is allowing her own unique style to seep into her work. She said there isn’t any other way of describing her style except as her own. She loves bright, fun colors, she also has a dark side to her. While her studio might be decorated with bright and fun neon lights, Rodriguez is almost always rocking her signature grungy style at work.

“I’m a maximalist to the max,” she said.

Her personal artistic style is heavily inspired by movies from Studio Ghibli like “Howl’s Moving Castle” (2004) and “Ponyo” (2008), as well “Coraline” (2009) and all of Tim Burton’s movies. It’s no surprise then that her favorite nail art is centered around Halloween, which is creeping around the corner.

Rodriguez hopes to see herself in a self-owned studio one day. She also hopes to employ other upcoming artists to give them a space to show off their craft, so long as they care about their clients the same amount that she does with hers.

“I'm really happy that I found a job that I get to go to every day and create something new, and leave customers satisfied,” she said.

Follow Bling It Nails on Instagram to book an appointment, see more of her nail art and to follow along with her growing business.

Taylor Moore can be reached at bytaylormoore@gmail.com.