Skip to main content

Alina
Symonenko

Alina Symonenko

Nail master, educator and salon consultant. 18+ years at the table, 8 national championship titles, and a stubborn belief that technique can be taught to anyone willing to work.
Portrait of Alina Symonenko, nail master and trainer in Warsaw

My way here

I started in 2008, in a school in Kyiv, with a diploma in nail modelling and design and absolutely no idea that this would become my life. What followed were years at the table — first as a master learning the craft, then competing, then teaching it.

Along the way I built my own studio from nothing, made it work, and eventually sold it. That decision surprised people. But I had stopped being the person who greets clients at the reception desk long before I signed the papers — my work had already become teaching masters and helping owners fix what was broken in their salons.

Today I live in Warsaw and work for myself. I train nail masters here in the city, I travel to salons that invite me, and I consult owners who are building or rebuilding a business. Starting again in a new country was slow and frightening. It was also the best professional decision I have made.

18+ years

In the profession since 2008 — as a master, competitor, studio owner and educator.

8 titles

Eight-time champion of Ukraine in nail artistry, across salon manicure and technical categories.

2× trainer

Trainer at the XXIII and XXIV Ukrainian SPU Championships (2020, 2021).

Level 5

Certified at the highest qualification level for nail aesthetics by the Beauty Salon Standards Committee.

Credentials

I am not fond of listing awards, but when someone is about to hand me several days of their life and their money, they are entitled to know exactly who is teaching them.

Championship titles and placings

Eight-time champion of Ukraine in nail artistry. First place in men’s manicure, Kyiv Cup 2016. First place in salon men’s manicure, professional category, Kyiv Cup 2017. Second place in salon women’s manicure, professional category, Lviv 2017. Second place for creating a perfect nail surface with soak-off gels, professional category, Lviv 2017. Second place in classic pedicure, Global PodoNail 2017. Third place in salon men’s manicure, professional category, Lviv 2017.

Trainer and judge roles

Diploma of Trainer at the XXIII Ukrainian SPU Championship (InterCharm, Kyiv 2020) and at the XXIV Ukrainian SPU Championship (Kyiv 2021). Certified statist of the Union of Beauty Industry Professionals of Ukraine with national certification renewed from 2018 through 2022, granting the right to work professionally at national championships.

Education and certification

Master in Nail Modelling and Design — 120 study hours at the Vocational Nail Technician School of Iryna Amrosieva, Kyiv 2008. Akzentz Certified Educator (A.C.E.), Haigh Industries, Canada, 2018. Master of Manicure, fifth qualification level in nail aesthetics, certified by the Beauty Salon Standards Committee, 2016. IBX System Education Program, 2018. Instructor’s Workshop, 2017.

Podology and specialist training

Hardware pedicure, Nataliia Hrynchyshyn Nail Service and Podology Studio, Lviv 2017. Foundations of podology — practical and theoretical work with foot and toe problems, Liudmyla Levchenko Podology Centre, 2020. Plus specialist courses in combined manicure, French technique, airbrushing, gradient and complex nail design between 2013 and 2017, and brand certifications from Staleks, Veratin and Omnia.

The paperwork

Twelve of the documents behind the claims above. Click any of them to read it properly.

Akzentz Certified Educator diploma awarded to Alina Symonenko

Akzentz Certified Educator

Haigh Industries, Canada · 2018
Trainer diploma from the Ukrainian Championship 2020 awarded to Alina Symonenko

Trainer, XXIII Ukrainian Championship

Union of Beauty Professionals · Kyiv 2020
Trainer diploma from the Ukrainian Championship 2021 awarded to Alina Symonenko

Trainer, XXIV Ukrainian Championship

Union of Beauty Professionals · Kyiv 2021
First place in men manicure at the Kyiv Cup 2016 awarded to Alina Symonenko

1st place — men’s manicure

Kyiv Cup · 2016
First place in salon men manicure at the Kyiv Cup 2017 awarded to Alina Symonenko

1st place — salon men’s manicure, professional

Kyiv Cup · 2017
Second place in salon women manicure, Lviv 2017, awarded to Alina Symonenko

2nd place — salon women’s manicure, professional

Lviv · 2017
Second place in soak-off perfect surface, Lviv 2017, awarded to Alina Symonenko

2nd place — perfect surface with soak-off gels

Lviv · 2017
Second place in classic pedicure at Global PodoNail 2017 awarded to Alina Symonenko

2nd place — classic pedicure

Global PodoNail · 2017
Master of Manicure level 5 certificate awarded to Alina Symonenko

Master of Manicure, qualification level 5

Beauty Salon Standards Committee · 2016
Diploma of Master in Nail Modelling and Design awarded to Alina Symonenko

Master in Nail Modelling and Design, 120 hours

Amrosieva Nail Academy, Kyiv · 2008
National certificate in nail aesthetics awarded to Alina Symonenko

National certificate — nail aesthetics

Union of Beauty Professionals of Ukraine
Foundations of Podology certificate awarded to Alina Symonenko

Foundations of podology

Levchenko Podology Centre · 2020

What I believe about this work

Technique beats talent

People tell me they cannot draw, so they cannot do French. Nonsense. French is not about talent — it is about brush position, pressure and hand movement. Change those slightly and the line becomes perfect. I teach the mechanics, and the mechanics can be learned by anyone.

A good master is more than good nails

The masters who thrive are not simply the ones with the neatest cuticle line. They know their strengths, they build a service people want to return to, they work with materials they trust, they protect their health, and they stop underpricing themselves.

Service is what stays

An interior can be copied. A price list can be changed. A service can be improved. Genuine care for the person in your chair cannot be faked — and it is what the client remembers longest.

What I do now

Two things, and they feed each other.

I teach masters. Beginners who want a profession that travels with them, and working masters who want to be faster, cleaner and worth more. Small groups in central Warsaw, one-on-one, or at your salon.

I help salon owners. Training their teams, auditing quality, setting up processes, and standing beside them while they launch or rebuild. I have run a salon myself, so I know which advice survives contact with a real working day.

Alina Symonenko – Manicure & Pedicure master in Warsaw

Let’s talk

Whether you are choosing your first course or deciding what to do about your salon, write to me directly. I answer personally.