All That Glitters (9 page)
Authors: Jill Santopolo
That night the girls sat in their bedroom, counting the money from the donation jar.
“Seven dollars and thirty-oneâno, thirty-twoâcents,” Aly announced.
After the soccer team had left, Lily and Charlotte showed up for manicures
and
pedicures, and then Brooke's friend Sophie and a few other third graders had come in for just pedicures. And then a couple of people who saw the sign in the True Colors window for the grand opening of a kids' salon.
“Do you think we'll have regulars now?” Brooke asked, tucking the donation money into a glittery zippered pencil case.
“Well, the soccer team probably,” Aly said. “Jenica invited us to watch them play sometime.” She slid the elastic off Brooke's braid.
“Ooh, that would be fun,” Brooke said, scooting closer so Aly could brush her hair out. “I hope they won today.”
“They're really good. I bet they did,” Aly said, reaching for the hairbrush that was on her bed. “But really, I bet they could win without our sparkles.”
“Maybe âsparkle' should be in the name of our salon,” Brooke said, squirming. “Ouch, Aly. I think I have a knot over there.”
“Sorry,” Aly said, putting the brush down and working on the knot with her fingers.
“How about Power to the Sparkle?” Brooke suggested.
“That sounds like a nail polish color,” Aly said, “not like a salon.”
“The Sparkle Sisters' Salon?” Brooke asked. Then she shook her head a little, but not enough to mess up Aly's unknotting. “That's not right either.”
“How about . . . how about . . . Sparkle Spa.”
Sparkle Spa. Sparkle Spa. Actually, it sounded perfect. Just like she'd done by choosing Lemon Aid for Heather's nails and suggesting two-person polishing during busy times, Brooke had the right idea at the right time.
“I love it!” Aly said.
Brooke twisted around and gave Aly a huge hug. The grand opening had been a grand success. And with a name like Sparkle Spa, Aly hoped things would only get better.
The Tanner sisters were smart. And strong. And sparkly. And their spa was too.
(or a Friend!)
a Rainbow Pedicure
By Aly
(and Brooke!)
Paper towels
Polish remover
Cotton balls
Clear polish
Red polish
Orange polish
Yellow polish
Purple polish
Pink polish
1. Put some paper towels on the floor so you don't have to worry about spilling polish.
(Once, Aly spilled while she was painting my toes, and Mom got so, so mad and we still have a purple splotch on our carpet!)
2. Take one cotton ball and put some polish remover on it. If you have polish on your toes already, use enough to get it off. If you don't, just rub the remover over your nails to get off any dirt that might be on there.
(Even if you can't see it very well, there still might be dirt!)
3. Rip off two paper towels. Twist the first one into a long tube and weave it back and forth between your toes to separate them a little bit more. Then do the same thing with the second paper towel for your other foot. You might need to tuck it in around your pinkie toe if it pops up and gets in your way while you polish.
4. Open up your clear polish and do a coat of clear on each nail. Then close the clear bottle up tight.
(Aly usually starts with my big toes and works her way to my pinkies. You might want to do that too.)
5. Open up the red polish. Do a coat on each big toe. (When you're finished with each color, be sure to close the bottle up tight.) Open up the orange polish. Do a coat on each pointer toe. Open up the yellow polish. Do a coat on each middle toe. Open up the purple polish. Do a coat on each ring toe. Open up the pink polish. Do a coat on each pinkie toe.
6. Fan your toes a little to dry them a tiny bit, and then repeat step five.
(This is when your colors start to look very brightâand sparkly if you have sparkle polish!)
7. Fan your toes a little again, and then open your clear polish. Do a top coat of clear polish on all your toes. Be sure to close the bottle up tight.
(You can go in the same order you did last time!)
8. Now your toes have to dry. You can fan them for a long time, or sit and make a bracelet or read a book or watch TV or talk to your friend. Usually it takes about twenty minutes, but it could take longer.
(After twenty minutes, you should check the polish really carefully by touching your big toe super lightly with your thumb. If it still feels sticky, keep waiting so you don't have to redo any nails!)
And now you should have a beautiful pedicure! Even after the polish is dry, you probably shouldn't wear socks and sneaker-type shoes for a while. Bare feet or sandals are better so all your hard work doesn't get smooshed.
(And besides, then you can show people how fancy your toes look!)
Happy polishing!
JILL SANTOPOLO
is a big fan of sparkles. She's also a big fan of sisters. And spas. And writing. In addition to the Sparkle Spa books, she's the author of the Alec Flint Mysteries. You can find her online at
www.jillsantopolo.com
. Or you can find her in person in New York City, where she likes getting her nails painted with Good as Gold nail polish.
Read more
Sparkle Spa
books!
ALADDIN
SIMON & SCHUSTER, NEW YORK
Meet the author, watch videos, and get extras at
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
First Aladdin hardcover edition February 2014
Text copyright © 2014 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Jacket illustrations and interior spot illustrations copyright © 2014 by Cathi Mingus
Jacket designed by Jeanine Henderson
Jacket illustrations copyright © 2014 by Cathi Mingus
Book design by Jeanine Henderson
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
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The text of this book was set in Adobe Caslon.
Library of Congress Control Number 2013949501
ISBN 978-1-4424-7381-2 (hc)
ISBN 978-1-4424-7380-5 (pbk)
ISBN 978-1-4424-7382-9 (eBook)
