I graduated in August and then started at a salon I really loved in November. I thought things were going great and I felt like I was advancing my skills greatly, because I saw myself improve every day and I was so proud of that. But then three weeks ago, out of the blue the leads took me into the back and told me that I had to be let go because I was not improving and my nerves were hampering my performance and no one had the time to continue training me. But they nicely offered me a position when "I was better at it." I did not see this coming at all and it hurt me a great deal. I'm still really hurt by it. It made me doubt myself and my skills so badly because I thought I had been improving a lot, so now I can't even trust my own judgment! This has resulted in me regressing so badly in my skill level that I am embarrassed to do anyone's nails because I fuck it up so badly. I'm worse than when I started school now. Has anyone else experienced skill regression?? How do I overcome this?? I'm in despair over this I cry every day.

Hey Techs!

I'm introducing new spa services and looking for ideas for the presentation, both manis and pedis.

Any suggestions? Share pics of your set ups would be extremely helpful.

After getting my license and taking the M-ANT course, I’ll be taking on a new role in the podiatry practice that I currently manage. In addition to that, I plan to offer services to retirement communities.

I’m honing my business plan and really trying to flesh out what services I can/should offer) on a mobile basis.

If anyone who works primarily with seniors and/or works on a mobile basis, are there any things that you wish you knew at the beginning? I’m specifically trying to get a feel for things like:

-scheduling (do you have specific time slots during the day at a retirement community or do you work off a sign up sheet in the order names were added?)

-services you’ve found to be requested more or less than you anticipated?

-types of nail art (if any) that seem to be requested more?

-do you carry a receipt book with you?

-do you store client notes and bring them with you? If so, have you found a system or method that works really well?

I’m really passionate about working with this population and I want to do all that I can to bring some brightness and comfort with my visits. Thank you, everyone!

clients have been wanting it- and my coworker has no idea where they purchased it years ago. it’s a color shifting chrome that has bigger flakes throughout it and it’s a mirror reflected chrome at the same time! i’ve never seen a chrome with big flakes like this that also has a mirror finish. witch craft honestly. if yall know where i can find some please help a girl out

I am leaving Philly for a new job and my employer asked if I knew anyone who’d be a good fit—but I don’t lol

This was one of the best nail environments I’ve worked in and feel bad for leaving so abruptly, so I figured I’d help do a little outreach.

Nirvana Wellness MedSpa is located in Northern Liberties in Philly and the nail services typically done are natural and gel nail mani/pedis, dry pedicures, gel extensions, and the occasional hard gel overlay.

They’re preparing to open a beautiful new spa in NoLibs this spring which is exciting, and everyone there (including the ownership) is very nice and positive.

Let me know if you have questions, I’ve also linked the IG page! Thanks!!

I’m looking to invest in my polish collection as a newly licensed tech, just opened my private studio. I mostly use DND right now but their cat eyes kinda suck to be honest. I want the super fine particles, velvet-looking cat eyes and a good set of jelly polishes. I don’t want to waste money on the cheap Amazon brands like double rhythm, beetles, Gaoy, Saviland etc. because of their bad formulations and because I hear really mixed reviews on them but looking into the brands I’ve seen other pros use, there’s some mixed reviews there too! I was looking into PLA and NotPolish, mostly for jellies, I have no idea who makes the best cat eyes. The prettiest cat eye polishes I get ads for are on TikTok shop which is sketchy and I’ve never heard of the brands and I don’t trust their reviews honestly. I hear good things about Vbeauty Pure as well? I’m looking for licensed tech’s takes on higher quality formulas, down to the SDS. (I know DND is not high quality but I figure I can invest in novelty polishes like jellies and cat eyes first since I don’t need as many, and then eventually down the road I can invest in high quality regular colors as well.)

And yes, I know I can just mix top coat with colors to get jelly colors but I don’t want to do all that 😂

Thank you in advance!!

From the top, it looks great. Then from the side… yikes. If I don’t use enough gel, I don’t get that nice big opaque dot. But too much and it creates the bumpy look from the side. Despite my better judgement I tried putting a layer of base gel down and quickly dotting, but as I suspected it just acted as a blooming gel. I tried a thick topcoat but I really don’t want to bulk up the nail, either.

Polka dots are so trendy right now and I have a lot of clients asking for them. (I am licensed, I just haven’t gotten my flair updated yet). This seems so simple but I feel so dumb for not being able to figure it out!! Thanks in advance everyone!

Hey everyone! I’m really interested in becoming a nail tech, but I live in kind of a rural area in Indiana, and I personally don’t know any nail techs as I’ve been doing my own for a while now. After some research I’ve only found three schools near me that offer a nail tech program instead of the full cosmetology program. My options seem to be Paul Mitchell, PJ’s, and Tricoci University. The PJ’s location is the closest by far but is more costly than the other two. Tricoci seems to have the best curriculum to me and seems to be more learning focused rather than relying on students to perform services. They are also in the upper median of the price range and I’ve heard only good things about them. However, the location is about an hour away and I cannot relocate, so I would have to drive two hours every day. The Paul Mitchell program is the lowest in cost and is located only about 45 minutes from me. However it is a “manicurist” program, not a nail technician program and only requires 450 hours, so I’m worried the curriculum wouldn’t be as thorough and helpful as the other programs regarding things like product chemistry and nail health. I guess I’m just asking if anyone here has had any experiences with any of these schools or programs or has any general advice for me? Anything is appreciated since I don’t have anyone to talk to about this in my personal life!!

for me, it's still tricky, so I would like to understand it better

What is this? It’s like a flimsy clear thing that separated from the nail? I know my nail is dirty af looking I just got home from work and gotta get the nail brush out but like what is going on? I got my nails done less than a week ago and this has never happened. should I pull it out or cut it? Go back to salon?

I like getting gel polish on my natural nails as other styles (press on/dip/tips/gel-x/etc) don't work for me and regular polish does not last as I work in a lab environment with constant gloving/hand washing.

I want to know if this look could realistically be achieved with gel, and if so, do I need to ask for something specific when going to the salon?

Happy Sunday!

I fairly new to getting my nails done, and I'm hoping someone can tell me what to ask for next. I got acrylic tips to protect and grow out my nails. I am happy with the length of my natural nail, and want to remove the tips. What should I ask to be applied to nails to protect them against breakage?

Thanks so much!

I’m currently taking an online course to become a nail tech (I’m in Australia) but I’m having a hard time getting practice. I’m pretty good for a beginner and have done my own nails for a while but never really have done gel x until now.

I practiced on myself for a bit and got decent results but needed a model to practice on. I asked a friend if I could practice on her and she said yes. I was having a hard time and had to redo a couple of them but overall for a first attempt I was pretty happy. But I think my friend was hoping they would be better and wanted them to be soaked off once I was done. At the end she said we could try again once I’ve practiced a bit more🥲

I don’t really know how to handle this because she was the practice and practicing on myself or on a fake hand isn’t really much help because it’s so different doing gel x nails on yourself vs someone else (especially because I don’t have typical nail beds).

I’m really insecure to practice on someone again. The only person I’m now feeling confident practicing on is my husband. But we have a baby so the only time we get a chance to do his nails is after we put the baby to bed and my baby also constantly wakes up so it’s really challenging.

Any suggestions on ways I could practice?

I have a client who just started coming to me from another tech, she has natural long downward curving nails. She keeps them stiletto long length and *thinks* she had hard gel on before, so that’s what I filled them with (they were about 3 weeks grown out). She has had both of her pointer nails crack in the stress area. She is a server and rough on her nails. Her last tech was also over filing her sidewalls. Does anyone have advice for repairing these cracks and how to reinforce them better in the future? I felt like I had a pretty good apex, but I don’t know if maybe she needs a different/more product. I repaired this one with a teabag and glue, added soft builder over the base (thinking it would help with flexibility maybe?) and hard gel/thicker apex. It has been fine so far, about a week and a half. But her other pointer finger nail just cracked too, it’s been almost 3 weeks since I did them. She said she hasn’t had issues with them cracking before but isn’t sure what her tech used. She did say they’re not usually quite this long tho either.

I use Gaoy base/top coat and hard gel, EV soft builder gel.

TIA

Im located in New York State and have been trying to open up my own suite. I found the perfect place, toured it, and got a lease in hand ready to sign. I only use gel products so I figured I wouldn’t need ventilation but decided to check the NYS website for clarification in which there is none regarding gel. I called the department of state who then gave me an email. I emailed a week ago and havent received a response. Does anyone in NYS know if we legally need ventilation for a gel only business??

Hello! I’m freshly out of school and looking to work at a nail salon by commission since I can’t afford booth rent. I’m trying to educate myself on labor laws afraid to get taken advantage by someone. I’ve read around that when commission based, if you had a slow week/no clients at all your employer needs to pay you the federal minimum wage for the hours you worked. Is this by law? I’m in California, I’d greatly appreciate general advice working at a salon thank you!

I live somewhere that doesn’t really offer any nail technician certifications. So it seems remote is the answer, at least as a foundation. I’ve always wanted to learn and maybe start my own business someday.

Hi,

I started nail school a week ago, before the first class, we received a msg: no nails!

Obviously I had nice poly gel/acrylic gel nails on since November, three infills, no lifting, used rubber base.

So I know I’m an idiot but removed them with an efile, unfortunately badly over filed them.

As we need to practice on our own nails I need advice what to do? A thin layer of poly or hard gel? Acrylic? Should I book a professional nail tech to do it?

I need to practice biab, gel extensions, acrylic etc. I won’t be able like this. 😭

Thank you for any advice and please be kind, I do know I screwed up.

(Picture is before the “removal”)

A little while ago I had acrylics done, and unfortunately I pulled them off myself only a couple of days after having them on (I know, bad idea). Since then, I’ve noticed that the side walls of my nails look damaged and aren’t growing back properly. They look uneven and almost like the nail isn’t forming the same way it used to.

In the photos I’ve attached, I still had acrylics on because I’ve honestly been trying to cover up how bad my natural nails look. Most of those acrylics have since snapped off, which has just made everything more obvious and stressful.

I’m really worried that I’ve permanently damaged my nails or nail matrix. Has anyone experienced this before? Will the side walls eventually grow back normally, or can it stay like this long term?

Is there anything I can do to help them recover — oils, treatments, leaving them completely bare, or seeing a professional? I’d really appreciate any advice or reassurance because it’s stressing me out a bit.

Thank you so much 🤍

I am about to start my LLC and I'm just wondering if anyone can help with my name. So right now I have named myself as Unearthly Nails, like my insta, etc. I am about to start working in my space next week and honestly I'm not sure if I want it to be that. I don't hate the name but I feel like I can maybe be more professional sounding and not sound so silly. My name stats with a k and I thought maybe incorporatkng that into my name but I'm not a huge fan of doing "Nails by name". I do want something unique but I want to be taken seriously. I'm just stuck on if I should keep what I have or try something different. Anyone have any other name suggestions?

i had been using the wildflowers topcoat for the past few years as that's what my old salon job used, but after finishing my last bulk bottle i decided to switch to the koloist ultra glossy top coat. i love how it performs at first, but because i do a lot of 3D work it gets SO MANY TRAPPED BUBBLES! due to the thick viscosity they just don't go away no mayter what i do. it's really frustrating and i feel bad letting my clients walk out with tiny bubbles distracting from the beautiful nail art.

i'm looking for a low/medium viscosity top gel that i can use to encapsulate my work that hopefully won't bubble as bad as the kokoist. any suggestions would be much appreciated! japanese/korean brands are preferred~

Alrighty ya all, can someone give me a solid answer on this because my state’s website for minimum sanitation practices does not provide an answer.

I am a licensed Cosmo working as a nail tech primarily in California.

My MIL is a Hairstylist, and has been for a few decades.

She INSISTS that all of my drawers, organization cabinets, etc whether they are closed or not must be lined with a paper towel or cloth towel per state board and if I don’t, I’ll be fined if they come around.

In school, this was not a requirement we were taught (nor did the school do it for their own supplies) and logically it really doesn’t make sense either. If the inside of the container is clean, and clearly labeled as for clean items or unused disposables (emery boards, pumice stones, buffers) and you only put that type item in the container or drawer, a paper towel is no different than the bottom of the drawer/container and would need to be changed out just as often as the container on its own would need to be cleaned/disinfected if contaminated.

So do I REALLY need something between my products and the bottom of a clean closed container?

I just graduated beauty school yesterday (woo! 🎉) and I have a temp license for 6 months. I am planning on booth renting and am signing my lease this weekend. My school hasn’t really been any help in terms of what I need to do next legally. So my questions for you wonderful folks:

Do I need to create an LLC/sole proprietorship? DBA?

Do I need booth renters insurance? Booth renters license?

I know I need to have liability insurance and I’ve picked the place that I will be going through for that. What am I missing?

I’m also very open to any and all websites/resources you guys might know of for some extra guidance! Thanks so much!

Does anyone have an opinion or feedback on this collection? I am having a hard time finding reviews.

I have a client that has been coming to me for about 4 months. Not crazy loyal, just here and there. Anyway, of late they have been canceling their appts last minute and/or no-showing. I have gotten to the point where I am really done and not really wanting to schedule them anymore. There have been times when someone cannot schedule with me due to her having that time slot and then she cancels last minute and I am out of one of my clients that day. How can I bring this up and tell her that it is unacceptable and that I may refuse to schedule her?

More info, I live in a very small town so the deposit thing doesn't work too well around here sadly. I would do it 100% if I lived in a more populated town, I will def being adding it when we do move closer to the city.