Until recently, if you wanted fancy fingernails, you could paint them yourself or go to a salon. Now you also can rely on a mechanical manicurist, which is how I found myself at the Chaska Target store as a robot covered each nail with glossy lacquer.

As having your nails done has become relatively affordable, manicures have transitioned from special-occasion splurge to regular grooming regimen for many women. But those tight on time and money can't always get to the nail salon.

San Francisco startup Clockwork hopes to fill this nail niche with its new robotic "minicure": a 10-minute, $10 paint job, tucked into a Target run.

I booked an appointment through Clockwork's website (first-time users can get $2 off), signed a six-page Terms of Service agreement and headed to the Chaska Target. In the Health and Beauty section, I found a black box the size of a picture-tube TV with a hole in the middle attended by a Clockwork staffer.

The attendant showed me a selection of 24 colors and helped me insert a small bottle of polish into the machine. Then she advised me on how to best position my thumb on the hand rest inside the hole.

With the click of a button and a few photo flashes (so the machine knows where to aim), a small robotic arm began dispensing thin lines of polish, outlining the edge of the nail and then working its way inward, tracing a spiral. The tip of the dropper barely touched my fingernail; it wasn't painful, or ticklish, or too hard to hold still.

On my second hand, the robot missed the tip of one nail, so the attendant helped me remove the color and redo it. In less than 10 minutes, each fingernail was precisely coated. After the attendant applied quick-dry drops, I was good to go.

Clockwork's machines aren't intended to replace a full-service salon manicure, where you can have your nails shaped and filed, cuticles trimmed or receive gel polish or nail art. Online beauty buffs are debating their drawbacks and merits: Some relish the personalized pampering in a salon's cushy chair, while others prefer to avoid the human interaction or are concerned about the industry's reputation for exploiting manicurists.

Target is beta-testing their devices at locations in California and Texas in addition to Minnesota's lone option in Chaska. Clockwork envisions placing the manicure machines in venues such as airports and hotels — and bringing us more autonomous beauty services.

Where: Target Chaska, 111 Pioneer Trail, Chaska.

When: Wed.-Mon., 11 a.m.–6:30 p.m. (subject to change).

To book: Go to likeclockwork.com/target (ages 13 and up).

Rachel Hutton is a general assignment reporter in features for the Star Tribune. 

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