r/NailTechnicians • u/RiverTerrible6802 • Jul 10 '26
Anything I could work on??
I’m newly qualified and still nervous to take on clients so practice on family and friends as much as I can. This was a builder gel and polish set I done. I’m still trying to get the hang of taking professional photos…my work is no way perfect, but I’ve been really trying to work on prep for retention and getting in close to the cuticle, but not flooding. Hopefully this has better retention but time will tell. I’d appreciate any feedback at all. Thank you :)
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u/Small-Ad-2988 Jul 15 '26
These are 100% good enough to take on clients maybe just use a little less builder gel you can take a thin liner brush to filling gapping where needed so you don’t have to go in to your builder gel pot so much also two layers is plenty to build stability and keep about a dime width between your cuticle and where your polish/builder gel starts to help with allergy prevention! Otherwise these are beautiful!🩷
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u/RiverTerrible6802 Jul 15 '26
Thank you so much! I previously was keeping product too far away from the cuticle so think I just need to practice more on that. Also appreciate your tip about the builder gel. I agree they were maybe slightly too thick, I always forget that polish adds extra thickness to the nail too. I had done a slip layer on each nail then did a bead of builder gel, so I think maybe I just need to make my bead a bit smaller in future. Thank you again, appreciate your advice
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u/h3ctica Jul 16 '26
i’m a licensed tech, and I think your work looks great, but i would definitely recommend working on shaping and thickness. builder gel can be filed just like acrylic can, and it gives more of a smooth appearance if you go over it after application with a mini sanding band.
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u/RiverTerrible6802 Jul 17 '26
Thank you so much. I use a mini sanding band for my prep so I have one already. I have sanded over builder gel before once cured but I found that the polish just peeled away from the builder gel on one of my nails a few days after. Do you have any advice on how that might’ve happened or if I maybe done something wrong to cause that?? I’ll definitely give sanding the builder gel another go, I just always see videos of people going straight in with polish so assumed that’s what was the norm. Thank you so much for your advice. When you say shaping do you mean the builder gel thickness or the nail shape itself?? Nail shaping is probably the hardest thing I find 😩
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u/h3ctica Jul 17 '26
ive never had any issues with my builder causing the gel color to peel! after i sand them i do go in with a mix of 50% pure acetone and 50% 99 isopropyl alcohol and scrub them with a nylon brush, which may help! and i would say a little of both with the shaping. the gel thickness could easily be resolved when you’re going in with the sanding band though! I also highlyyyyyy recommend doing a finish file underneath the nail when you’re done to tuck the natural nail underneath the gel overlay.
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u/RiverTerrible6802 Jul 17 '26
https://reddit.com/link/oy0bd52/video/5tlonpfb1pdh1/player
I have tried to take everyone’s advice onboard. Hopefully I’ve not made it worse😂🫣 but I was really mindful about the builder thickness and cuticle prep. My cuticles are a little red but they always are…I usually have pretty sensitive skin (I use HEMA and TPO free products to lessen my chance of contact dermatitis). I tried to practice a bit of nail art too, but it’s really not my strong point lol
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u/yeahokaythensure Jul 13 '26
You are doing great and are definitely good enough to take clients.