Health & Beauty: We triple-dog dare you to …

Get plaid nails

Minx manicures and pedicures

The line at the nail salon for mani/pedis grows exponentially in the summer. The bottom of all those pools and the beach sand you’re lounging in can do a number on freshly polished piggies. And your chipping makes my wait that much longer. So I’ll do us both a favor and recommend a Minx makeover. Minx is the newest way to get your nails done—no chemicals, no chipping, no smudging. A heat process applies the film to your nails, and because there’s no polish involved, the colors and patterns run wild. The neons are bright, metallics beyond flashy, and designs range from Tartan plaid to paisley. Now get outta my line. Space 07 Salon, 1421 R Street; (916) 444-7474; www.space07salon.com. (K.B.)

Ditch the gym membership

Community-college fitness classes

Community-college tuition fees are going up, but their physical education classes are still a supercheap way to beat high gym costs—and a lack of motivation. The region’s four Los Rios Community College District campuses offer a wide range of classes like boot camp fitness, yoga, aqua aerobics and weight training. Classes typically run for eight weeks and meet Monday through Thursday. At just $26 a unit, these mostly one-unit fitness classes are a real steal. www.losrios.edu. (R.L.)

Raise your chi

Asian Therapeutics

Ever since I learned tai chi from my grandmother, I’ve wanted to try a number of alternative medicines to increase my chi. Perhaps this summer I’ll finally challenge myself to manage my stress, allergies and digestive health by frequenting Asian Therapeutics downtown. They have acupuncture (inserting needles into pressure points to help chi flow freely), moxibustion (stimulating chi with warmth), cupping (suctioning muscle and tissue to create blood flow) and a number of herbal therapies. All right, who’s with me? 1008 S Street, Suite B; (916) 444-2177; www.sacramento-acupuncture.com. (J.M.)

Shop where you eat

Bows Collective

First there was Olipom, a tiny Midtown shoppe run by Olivia Coelho and her Pomeranian. Next, she joined forces with artist/designer Trisha Rhomberg and opened vintage boutique Bows & Arrows. And now this month, the duo has relocated Bows to 19th Street and joined up with Jaymes Luu, chef at popular Davis lunch spot Fat Face, to launch Bows Collective: art gallery, vintage retail shop, cafe and bar. Visit for the inimitable threads, craft beers, cola-braised pork sandwich and small plates. Stay for the relaxing back patio and art gallery, which in July will feature the works of local (twin sister) artists Melinda and Melissa Arendt. 1815 19th Street, (916) 822-5668, www.bowscollective.com. (N.M.)

Be a lab rat

Volunteer for UC Davis clinical trials

Should you take the blue pill or the red pill? Decide for yourself this summer by being a lab rat for UC Davis. Various departments at the main campus in Davis and the medical center in Sacramento often seek volunteers for research projects. Although you may be poked or prodded, the projects don’t necessarily hurt, and may help advance science. Possibilities include vision testing, studies of vision loss and the brain, or research learning and young children. www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/clinicaltrials. (H.B.)

Fruit your face or jazzle your vaj

Suki Fit Spa

At first, I found it strange that Suki Fit Spa offers fruit facials. Browsing the spa’s website, you can find green apple ($85 per hour), pumpkin ($105 per hour), and papaya and pineapple ($110 per hour) flavors to pour on your face. Then I saw an advertisement for “vajazzling” and it all started to make sense. This is a great summer dare: First get a fruit facial, and then get your vajayjay jazzed up with rhinestones. As Jennifer Love Hewitt says in the site’s advertisement: “Vajazzle was my inner glow.” 8025 Greenback Lane in Citrus Heights, (916) 838-0654, http://sukifitspa.com. (J.M.)

Learn from the (natural foods) gurus

Davis Food Co-op cooking classes

What better time than summer to learn to grill asparagus, tame the wild tofu, concoct Indian brunch or turn your dinning room into a thriving natural-foods bistro? Look to the Davis Food Co-op for cooking lessons that will help you create surprising, on-a-budget winners. Offered at various times at the Co-op’s Teaching Kitchen throughout the summer, the classes are taught by Julie Cross, Amy Radbill and others, and are designed to strengthen the relationship between local farms, food and community. Kids cooking classes are available, too! 537 G Street in Davis, (530) 758-2667, www.daviscoop.com. (M.W.)

Get your sunburn stoned

Mo’ Batti Imports ‘medicated’ shea butter

You spent a Saturday afternoon at Paradise Beach, smoked some dub—and sat out literally and figuratively baking in the sun too long. There’s aloe gel at home, but what about giving your burn a buzz? This is where Mo’ Batti Imports “medicated” shea butter can help. The cannabis-oil-based lotion—whose ingredients also include tea tree, eucalyptus and sweet almond oils—can be applied from toes to noggin for a calming, soothing effect on irritated skin. Mo’ Batti also makes shower gel, just in case you wanna get good and clean—perhaps with a friend you met at the beach? Find Mo’ Batti products at your neighborhood medical-cannabis dispensary. (T.B.)

Transform your tresses into a cat toy

Feather extensions from Luxe Hair Lounge

What’s the dare in getting gorgeous feathers attached to your hair? If you live with cats, you could lose an eye while sleeping. For everyone else, feather extensions are a low-commitment way to add wildness to your locks for summer music festivals or outdoor parties. Luxe Hair Lounge and Day Spa has a wide array of plumage from natural browns to unnaturally vibrant pinks, reds, purples and greens. $30 buys a set of three in any color combination, adhered to your tresses with microlink, glue-free technology. The feathers can handle washing, blow drying and curling. They last three months—just like summer! 2015 J Street, Suite 203; (916) 443-1400; www.luxe-midtown.com. (B.C.)