It's quite a challenge you've got here. I think I like the first one better because it feels more cohesive, but I worry about the legibility of it. I think you incorporated the martini glass nicely. I did however read Polish as the nationality which is where your problem comes in. If you were to incorporate a nail polish bottle it might be more clear but then you'd probably have to drop the glass. Is the name set in stone? Maybe your client never even considered it could be misread.

i think the fact that it reads as a nationality and not the nail polish is something that's partially out of your hands. i personally don't think there's anything you could do to avoid that other then to go with a bad web2.ohhh glossy red font to look like nail polish was put on the typography.

with that said, I'd definitely be leaning towards the bottom one. the overlapping letters of the first one leads me to think you have something hidden in the martini glass/letter i. you definitely nailed it on the head when it comes to incorporating the olive in the i, as for making it appealing to men, that comes back to the name.

the only thing I'd work on is the tag line underneath, I'd be tempted to go with something in all-caps. let the bar run out a bit on either side, but make the "polish" align with the tag line underneath the bar.

all in all, i think you have something stronger then you even realize.
nice job, keep us posted!

EDIT: right after i posted this, i thought of something, have you tried to make the top of the martini glass maybe look like more of a finger nail? this might be a challenge to avoid making it look like a wine glass though... or maybe that's where you bring in the color when it's time to do that.. just a thought! :D
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I thought "nationality" and opened your comments fully expecting to get my feathers all bent on behalf of my Polish husband. So yeah, that's a problem.

Once I saw what you were about, though, I thought you'd come very close to a classic with that first variation. It has a cool urban feeling to it. How perfect it would be if the bar were on the ground flooor of the Chrysler Building!

I don't see anything nefarious in the "i"; however, I think the martini glass would read better as a martini glass if it were straight across on top instead of slightly arched.

Keep us posted!

Mara

Totally makes me think of nationality, especially living here in Chicago where we've got the biggest population of Polish people second only to Poland. I think you might share with your client how she may have overlooked that fact. If that doesn't change her mind, then I would say you need to make the text glossy. Not exactly 2.0, but def glossy or sparkly - maybe even use a nice brush to simulate nail polish being brushed on.

Finally, for the bottom text, it does look a little overdone, I would try and use the shortened terms "mani/pedi/wax/bar (or lounge)". Everyone using that place would know what they mean anyway.

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” - Albert Einstein

Hi,

Yeah it does remind me of the nationality. I had a thought while reading some of the other comments, and this is just a thought... have you tried going with a lowercase p?
might help distinguish the two, though i dont know what your client would make of it.

I wonder if your introductory subject line "Polish Nail Bar" had something to do with how we all immediately thought Poland. Maybe we wouldn't have, if you'd said "Nail Polish Bar."

Mara

ps: Still loving the top design, but I've changed my mind about the flat top on the martini glass. That would fight with the curves and angles you've given your ascenders. Maybe something matching that? The arch doesn't work for me.

Incorporating a Nail polish brush into the design. I know you said that your client is deadset on having the Olive for the O in the martini glass but I was thinking that a nail polish brush in there, or even through the olive (in the place of a tooth pick) might work. Could get crowded quick.

Also I was pretty convinced it had something to do with the nationality when I first clicked on the thumb. Try playing around with the size of the 'l' versus the 'o' and draw attention away from the full 'O' sound in the word.

Just a brainstormer there.