Like many Manhattan gals, I am beauty-on-the-go kind of person: skip lunch for a pedicure, wake up a few hours early for an eyebrow thread. I deal with the rigid, quickie-spa owners that jostle you in-and-outta there faster than an In-and-Out Burger drive-thru, simply because that's the status quo. Even if I had the time to relax in a heated massage chair while someone meticulously scrubbed my feet, the job would still be rushed, only to chip and disintegrate into my ill fitting pumps a couple of days later. When a friend waxed poetic on Ji Baek's legacy at her zen-like enclave in the Meatpacking District, Rescue Beauty Lounge, testifying that it was the longest-lasting nail work in town, I decided to do some research.

Beauty Mark: Rescue Beauty Lounge. MVP: Ji Baek, developed own brand of varnish, nail expert, germ freak. Claim to Fame: Long lasting manicures and pedicures, relaxing atmosphere. Perks: Jazz music playing softly, private booths, sun light, a natural-dry method, waxing and massages.

Baek has long been known in the beauty industry for her expertise and talent. Prior to becoming a lacquer-obsessed spa owner, she was a germ-obsessed restaurant manager, parlaying her need for cleanliness into a major driving point for her need for a super-sanitary but relaxing manicure. In her quest, she scoured New York's spas, spanning the spectrum of grubby, unsanitary chop shops, and overpriced luxury beauty meccas. There was nothing to close the gap, so she opened up her own, quickly earning critical acclaim and a star following.

This service-centered spa to the stars caters to those seeking solitude in their beauty routine, long-lasting manicures and pedicures, and products that take their treatments to new lengths. She achieved the perfect manicure she was looking for by creating her own line of nail polish, taking two years to finally settle on a lacquer with a Teflon durability. The result is a long-wearing polish created with resin and high-molecular polymers to improve flexibility, durability, and high shine -- it's a crazy glaze that refuses to chip. Known as the best in town, this MePa spa is a sun-drenched beauty mecca, offering clients privacy booths for manis and pedis so they can actually enjoy their experience. It's a clean, cushy, private environment that comes with Ji Baek's own personal beauty bible for DIYs at home. Imagine that: a spa that keeps you coming back by trying to keep you away.

I decided to try manicure and pedicure combination on the eve before a trip. If anything could withstand speed packing, dragging luggage, and running through the city desperately hailing yellow cabs, I would have to abandon my penchant for last minute pedicures of the chop-shop variety.

Thursday 11am - Sit down in a tiny booth with Ji Baek's book, decide to try manicure and pedicure combination on the eve before a trip. 11:15 - Simultaneously receive hand and foot massages. 11:30 - Is that a cheese grater they're using? 11:45 - I think my other shop regularly misses some important steps in a pedicure. 12:00 - Color is gorgeous on fingernails, toes are edgy, but Baek's book inspires me to step outside of my comfort zone. 12:15 - Finished, told to sit for 20 minutes. They mean I can stay here? Just sit. Right here? 12:30 - Get up to exit, am inspired to buy a bottle of Rescue Beauty's exfoliation scrub. 12:40 - Dent my nail on the door. Nail technicians implore me to come back so they can redo. Instead, the polish is smoothed out by pressing down. Miracle.

Almost seven days later -- after a weekend of dancing, walking in flip flops, and gym hopping, my toes look like they just got a fresh coat of paint. My nails aren't as perfect, but there are no obvious chips. I'm converted.

Photo: Vampy Varnish