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Cambodian-American nail artist From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jenny Bui (born c. 1969) is a Cambodian-American nail artist known for her crystal-studded creations. She was named Nail Artist Influencer of the Year in 2019 and is known as "The Queen of Bling."
Among her clients are Love & Hip Hop cast member Yandy Smith and rapper Cardi B. Her designs have become part of Cardi B's signature look.
Bui was born around 1970[1] in Cambodia, one of nine children.[2][3] Her father was a cook and her mother a street vendor; both are Chinese.[3][4] She was five when the Khmer Rouge came into power, and her family fled when she was eight, spending years trying to escape; a younger brother died of starvation-related illness.[2][5] Bui and family members fled to Thailand, then Vietnam.[6]
When she was fourteen she and her mother and a brother immigrated to Montreal, sponsored by an older brother who was already there.[2][5] She waited tables and picked strawberries, eventually getting a job in a dental office.[4] At 22 she married and in the 1990s moved to the Bronx with her husband.[5][6] She had her first child at 23 and her second at 25.[4] After her second child was born she attended cosmetology school, planning to style hair, but switched to nails after watching a manicurist.[5][3][4] She had her third child at 28, after which she became a single mother when she and her husband divorced.[4]
Bui first worked in a sister-in-law's salon.[5][4] Four months later she opened her own nail salon in the Bronx but didn't make enough money; she sold it for $3000 and opened another in Harlem.[2][4] She described being verbally abused by racist customers at the Harlem shop.[4]
In 2001, while at the Harlem salon and newly divorced, she developed her "signature style" using Swarovski crystals applied to acrylic nails in intricate patterns that "[turn] nail art into jewelry."[7] Her style was originally inspired by an article in a Japanese nail magazine a friend had sent her.[2][4] She specializes in long nails in "stiletto, almond, and coffin shapes" that can take up to three hours to produce and cost up to $300.[5] According to Vogue, 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) is the shortest nail length she's willing to work with.[6] Her creations have earned her the nickname "The Queen of Bling."[2][8]
Her work caught the attention of Love & Hip Hop's Smith, who became a client and helped her set up an Instagram account to showcase her designs.[2]
In 2012 Cardi B, then still working as a stripper at upscale club Sioux's, became a client of Bui at the Harlem salon; Bui designs acrylics 2 inches (5.1 cm) to 4.5 inches (11 cm) long for her.[5][7][6] Cardi B has referred to her as "a second mom."[8] Bui's design for Cardi B's 2018 Grammy appearance "helped bring bling back into the mainstream" according to Christina Parella writing for NYCGo.[5] Bui's designs have become a part of Cardi B's signature look and were featured in a 2019 Super Bowl commercial the rapper appeared in.[9][10]
Other fashion and beauty influencers also contributed to Bui's increasing prominence.[7] Bui has a partnership with Swarovski and her own line of nail polish, Jenny Secret.[8][7]
As of 2020 Bui has two salons, Jenny's Spa in the Bronx's Fordham neighborhood and Nails on 7th in Harlem, and 20 employees.[5][7]
Bui was named Make Up Artist Influencer of the Year award at the 2019 American Influencer Awards.[2] She was a judge for the 2020 Beauty Envision Awards.[11]
Bui was impersonated by drag performer Gia Gunn on season 4 of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.[12][13][14]
Bui has been married three times. She has three children with her first husband and two with her second husband.[2][4][7][6] She met her second husband, Billy Bui, who owned an auto body shop, in 2004.[4]
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