Cuticle cutting?

[cjNailz]

Hi again,

Ive been taught at college that IF and only IF there is cuticle build up this is what you cut away. Ive been doing some studying and I have read that you do not ever cut the cuticle as this could scar the skin. so could someone try and tell me what I am meant to be doing as I gave myself a manicure today to practise and wasnt sure if and where I was meant to be cutting I thought I understood but the more I read about cuticle work the more confussed I am.

Thanks you guys x x x

 

[Nataliya]

Hi again,

Ive been taught at college that IF and only IF there is cuticle build up this is what you cut away. Ive been doing some studying and I have read that you do not ever cut the cuticle as this could scar the skin. so could someone try and tell me what I am meant to be doing as I gave myself a manicure today to practise and wasnt sure if and where I was meant to be cutting I thought I understood but the more I read about cuticle work the more confussed I am.

Thanks you guys x x x

There is a lot of misunderstanding about what cuticle is actually))

Get your hands on GIGI Rouse's Nail Class book - there is a BEST explanation about what is cuticle and how to deal with it.

hope this helps

 

[Bev Rose]

You should never cut 'living tissue' away from the eponychium.
The eponychium is there for a reason, to protect the Matrix, where the blue print of the natural nail is made.
Once you cut it, it will grow back - twice as thick, as it feels it was not doing the best job in the first place, so over grows to compensate.
The ONLY thing you should trim away are the the loose bits of NON-LIVING tissue if it's hanging in the way. Be sure to use a good quality tool that will remove this without tearing any Living tissue.
Personally, I do not cut/trim anything, other than the odd hang nail.

Have a look at this, you may find it interesting...

http://www.schoonscientific.com/downloads/article-Professional-Beauty-2007-07-p310.pdf

 

[DEBI-DEE]

I, too, was confused about the cuticle for a long time different people/companies had different ideas about what cuticle is. I am very clear about it now. It is okay to gently remove cuticle from the nail plate as it is NOT living tissue. When i was at college, the `cuticle` i was taught about was really the eponychium :smack:

 

[siulum1314]

Hi again,

Ive been taught at college that IF and only IF there is cuticle build up this is what you cut away. Ive been doing some studying and I have read that you do not ever cut the cuticle as this could scar the skin. so could someone try and tell me what I am meant to be doing as I gave myself a manicure today to practise and wasnt sure if and where I was meant to be cutting I thought I understood but the more I read about cuticle work the more confussed I am.

Thanks you guys x x x

Yes, the only cuticle you nip off is the surface layer on the nail plate. As nails grow out from the matrix, cells are compressed to form a nail and when it grows out the top layer are dead cells which you remove with cuticle softener and a cuticle pusher, this is call the Pterygium or True cuticle. after you push back cuticles there will be some pterygium left hanging loose on the nail plate edge. thats what you nip off. u dont cut off the actual live skin on the edges nail plate which people calls the 'Cuticle' and actual name 'Eponychium'. This can cause infection in the matrix and disturb the growth or destroy the growth of nails.

So its only the loose bits of dead cells hanging off on the surface of the nail plate after you have pushed back cuticles.

 

[Eni]

"It is okay to gently remove cuticle from the nail plate as it is NOT living tissue. When i was at college, the `cuticle` i was taught about was really the eponychium "

Ditto I was taught the same and I now know YOU DO NOT cut living tissue at all. I cringe when I see someone bust out one of those v shaped cuticle trimmers....ouch!

 

[princess fifi]

Hello everyone & CJ nailz

Sorry to hijack the thread for a minute, I am sure some of you have experienced this before as well.

I slipped into a state of paranoia, when one of my clients two weeks ago said she loves the look of deep rounded cuticles, that "U" shape where all the moons (lunula) are showing she asked if I can make hers look like that?

Some people don't have that perfect "U" shape look if you know what I mean.

In order to give her this look I would have to push against the eponychium and that will just leave a mess, when you are pushing the cuticles back, do you push against the eponychium with any pressure? I was taught not to do that, what do you all do if a client asked you to make the cuticle look deep?

 

[xAnnaBannAx]

Hello everyone & CJ nailz

Sorry to hijack the thread for a minute, I am sure some of you have experienced this before as well.

I slipped into a state of paranoia, when one of my clients two weeks ago said she loves the look of deep rounded cuticles, that "U" shape where all the moons (lunula) are showing she asked if I can make hers look like that?

Some people don't have that perfect "U" shape look if you know what I mean.

In order to give her this look I would have to push against the eponychium and that will just leave a mess, when you are pushing the cuticles back, do you push against the eponychium with any pressure? I was taught not to do that, what do you all do if a client asked you to make the cuticle look deep?

You cant give someone something they haven't got....you can only make better what they have got I would say....you gently push the eponychium back and remove the non-living cuticle from the nail plate....tell your client to religiously use solar oil everyday to keep her nails and surrounding skin tidy...dont try to give her plastic surgery lol x

 

[xAnnaBannAx]

Yes, the only cuticle you nip off is the surface layer on the nail plate.
You wouldnt nip the cuticle off....you need to use the correct tool ...a currette for example...that will gently scrape away the cuticle from the surface of the nail plate.

As nails grow out from the matrix, cells are compressed to form a nail and when it grows out the top layer are dead cells which you remove with cuticle softener and a cuticle pusher, this is call the Pterygium or True cuticle.
As the new cells grow out from the matrix they compact...the cells formed at the back of the matrix will move up and over until they are vertical to the cells that have formed at the front of the matrix..
.....the internal ? eponychium produces a sticky substance that sticks to the cells that are being formed in the matrix.....as the cells move forward towards the free edge the sticky substance is also pulled along with it..on the surface of the nail plate....THIS STICKY SUBSTANCE IS CUTICLE.....NOT PTERYGIUM/TRUE CUTICLE

after you push back cuticles there will be some pterygium left hanging loose on the nail plate edge. thats what you nip off.
After you push back the EPONYCHIUM...there will be CUTICLE/non-living tissue (the sticky stuff!) on the surface of the nail plate particularly around the sidewalls and lateral folds....not nipped off...removed by gently scraping away with the correct tool.

u dont cut off the actual live skin on the edges nail plate which people calls the 'Cuticle' and actual name 'Eponychium'. This can cause infection in the matrix and disturb the growth or destroy the growth of nails.

So its only the loose bits of dead cells hanging off on the surface of the nail plate after you have pushed back cuticles.

:hug:

 

[xAnnaBannAx]

There is a lot of misunderstanding about what cuticle is actually))

Get your hands on GIGI Rouse's Nail Class book - there is a BEST explanation about what is cuticle and how to deal with it.

hope this helps

The cuticle is talked about in Gigi's book but this book is mainly useful for help with techniques...I think there are perhaps a couple of people on this thread that would benefit greatly from Doug Schoon's Nail Structure and Product Chemistry :hug:

 

[min11]

The cuticle is talked about in Gigi's book but this book is mainly useful for help with techniques...I think there are perhaps a couple of people on this thread that would benefit greatly from Doug Schoon's Nail Structure and Product Chemistry :hug:

This is very true but if I had been in possesion of Nailclass when I first trained I would have found life so much easier. It's a very good book to have open in front of you as a guide when your on your own after your course and could just do with the confidence boost of your teacher over your shoulder. As you read Nailclass its like hearing Geeg talking to you. Fabulous.

Both books, and this is just my opinion, have been invaluable to me and I wish I'd had them both from the word go.

xx :hug:

 

[nailzoo]

you have to be very precise whenever you cut anything.
I have a video showing basic preparation, including removal of cuticle and what I deem correct to cut.
New Video Page

second movie down in the natural nail section.

 

[Lou-Lorena]

I realy wish every one was taught the same Nail Anatomy.....

It realy confuseing for new techs when they see that Educators all teach different Nail Anatomy....
e.g:
Pterygium ,True cuticle, eponychium, cuticle
its different for all nail systems

Very annoying

 

[cjNailz]

hello

So we never cut living tissue just dead tissue, how do you lot tell the difference?

x x x

 

[cjNailz]

I just wanna say thank you this has helped alot cant wait to get back to college on tuesday so I can refresh x x x

 

[Guna]

I do cut the cuticle off (I leave around 0.5mm) if the client askes for it (and most of them do). I always cut my own off, that is just something we have all been taught back home (manicure with cuticle just pushed back was called "european manicure"). For me personally nails do look much neater when cuticle is kept as short as possible.
When I was taking up some courses here in England to get my NVQs I was told that we should not concentrate on cuticle work at all and allow maximum of 5 minutes per hand, and whole 15 minutes of treatment must be allowed for nail-polish as this is what client takes home with them (sounds rubbish to me as anyone can polish their nails at home, that is not what clients come to the salon for, is it?). So obviously with 5 minutes per hand being a trade standard there is not much you can do with cuticle anyway. But if say a man comes in for his very first mani in 30 years, his cuticles have grown to the point where they cover half of the nail, wouldn't you cut it off?

 

[princess fifi]

Hello Gina

If you have time, could you please have a look at nail zoos video, the second one called "The video of the whole process" he has posted the link in his post on this thread,is that what you do? If not what do you do differently?

You mentioned that you leave 0.5mm are you talking about the cuticle or eponychium? Do you use the same tools as in the video or a knife?

 

[karenstars]

I never touch the cuticle unless its clearly dead skin and in the way. Sometimes clients ask me to trim it and i really don't want to.

 

[ValencianNails]

I do cut the cuticle off (I leave around 0.5mm) if the client askes for it (and most of them do). I always cut my own off, that is just something we have all been taught back home (manicure with cuticle just pushed back was called "european manicure"). For me personally nails do look much neater when cuticle is kept as short as possible.
You're not cutting cuticle though, you're removing eponychium and that's living tissue.
Cuticle is non-living tissue that adheres to the nail plate as it grows down and away from the eponychium.

But if say a man comes in for his very first mani in 30 years, his cuticles have grown to the point where they cover half of the nail, wouldn't you cut it off?
You only remove non-living tissue and then prescribe home maintenance for him ie Solar Oil and Cuticle Eraser, daily use will help to push back and shrink the eponychium and condition his nails and surrounding skin, within 3-4 weeks his nails will be totally made-over.

Every time the eponychium is cut it grows back tougher and forms a 'scar' (thicker tissue), it's there to protect the body from infection.

hth's

 

[becki x]

Every time the eponychium is cut it grows back tougher and forms a 'scar' (thicker tissue), it's there to protect the body from infection.

hth's

I got a pair of nippers in my manicure kit when i very first started ,i went to town :o now i have a lovely big fat lump of scar tissue which has been reduced (solar oil is a godsend) but still,be very wary ...... i can't remeber the last time i used them on a client . hth's