Ex MMA client query

[hannajadem]

I had my first ex MMA client today. She wanted infills, which I did because she said last time her nails were soaked off (3weeks ago-she has a soak off every other set:irked, they were paper thin and really hurt.
However, she had white tips on and I can tell by her next infill they will need the white replacing. I'm using CND l+P at the mo, and know that there will be a colour difference as the tips are so bright and CND'S white is so natural.
What can I do? Soaking off is not an option imo, as her nails were hurting her. Even when I removed the cuticles she was wincing. I was thinking of debulking the rest of the nail, cutting off the white tip, aplying a form to replace the white, then using opaque pink on zones 2 and 3 (as you can see the difference today between CND's clear and her 'clear', which was cloudy.
She was impressed with my work today, but I was banging my head against a wall when I got home cos to me the colour diff was sooooooo obvious!
Have any of you tried this/do you think it will work? If so, does it take much longer than a rebalance?
Thanks geeks-x

 

[Karen Minx]

I dont understand where you say there will be a colour dfifference in the white? Wouldn't you normally debulk the nail down to the thickness of an unblended tip then rebalance with l&p in a normal way over the existing tip? (smileline to form) Wouldn't your white CND L&P just cover over so you wouldn't see the exisiting white tip?

 

[hannajadem]

Okay, I think I'm with you. Sorry, I've never rebalanced a white tip before, only white L+P, wasn't sure if there would be a colour difference, i.e. a 'shadow' where you'd be able to see the new smile line filled in.
If rebalancing as normal would look ok, I'll stick to that then. Thanks for your help.

 

[Karen Minx]

The only problem i think you may have is filing the mma down to the thickness of an unblended tip, i've heard its a bugger to file down.
Maybe someone else can advise you with the sculpting bit you asked coz i dunno
I dont think, if i were in your shoes, use a coverage powder coz if the gals nail beds are as sore as you say they are then you are stuck with that colour until the mma grows out (if your not wanting to do a soak) or until her nail beds are feeling better iykwim. Why not try a pink? It might cover the cloudyness of the mma clear. x

 

[champagne]

If i cant shift the MMA (if thats what it is) and i wont spend ages filing it off cause it make me itch, it smells & it ruins my files.

I advise the client that there will be a colour difference and explain why.
Debulk as much as i can.
Rebalance as usual & cover the white tip with POW.

All the clients i have done like this have been pleased that it will grow off & nails underneath re-grow nicely.

 

[hannajadem]

I believe it's MMA because she said she caught her nail once in a door and 'ripped' her natural nail half off. God knows why she kept going back there for a whole year after that happened!
I don't have POW, I only use akzentz options soak off gel and I don't think that would be suitable for use over L+P.
Just to confirm...if I manage to debulk the whole tip area and rebalance with white powder, there will be no colour difference...am I correct?
I will try the sheer pink idea on zones 2 and 3 too!
Thanks everyone-x.

 

[geeg]

Well here is how I would do it.

I would clip off the old white using my nail clippers (not a one cut clipper)..

Use my file to create a nice smile line at the free edge.

Apply a form and

Sculpt a new clean and crisp new zone 1 back to the edge you created with your file.

Finally a small bead of clear over the whole thing to pull it all together.

This is how I do my own all the time ... so much faster and easier and hardly any filing at all.

 

[champagne]

Thanks for that Geeg....

I tried once to clip off an MMA nail tip & it caused great pain for the client and nearly snapped my nail clippers & it still didnt budge!

I am very wary with this type of work now...Some of these nails are horrendously difficult to work with,most clients say 'just get them off or make them look nice'.

 

[trusim]

I agree with geeg, this would be the absolute easiest & fastest. But what I don't understand, is why in the hell do these people go to these places??? Is it all about money and that is it???

 

[hannajadem]

I agree with geeg, this would be the absolute easiest & fastest. But what I don't understand, is why in the hell do these people go to these places??? Is it all about money and that is it???

It can't be for the clients in my area, we have 3 NSS that I know of, the cheapest cahges £28, ranging up to £38 for pink and whites!!!
The strange thing is, half of the people I know that go to these places are now wise to them, and realise that nail enhancements should not cause pain(!), but the other half think that they are the bees knees because they can do it so quickly (albeit with a drill!) I actually heard a girl in a hairdressers talking about them and said 'it's so clever, thay can airbrush the white tip back on when it grows out'

Thank you for the comments everyone, I think I'll try sculpting zone 1 and using sheer pink in zone 2+3.

 

[taylormaidnails]

Hi there I am so sorry but I diagree with you all. I would never ever apply L&P to a badly damaged nail. I would clip the tips & try me best to soak them off as best I could. Then I would strongly encourage client to come to me for regular manicures until you were satifisied the nail plate & nail bed were recovered and then apply L&P to healthy nail bed.
Taylor Maid using Tammy Taylor

 

[champagne]

but...... we are not talking about the damaged bit, we are talking about re-fill/rebalancing the growth...

A client with enhancements wants to walk out with refills not a manicure.

A good l&p can sometimes take the pain away from a damaged nail, an the nail can grow really nicely underneath..

 

[RedAdmiral]

I agree taking off the nails may cause her more pain.
It may be hard to take the tip out but you will know the instant you start to file on the nails as MMA is very hard to file.
TBH I would just infill as normal with whatever I had - this client is coming to you as she is not happy elsewhere, if you file as much of the product off and get down to the white tip it shouldnt really come through unless your white is too thin or not opaque. If you still see ghosting just tell her to bear with you and explain that you do not want to put her through another soak off and new set so together you are going to grow the tip out - it'll only be for a few more weeks.

I have clients from other salons come to me all the time and before I learnt custom blending I did what I could with the products I had - the majority were happy with what I did a few moaned but it wasnt me salon jumping!

 

[geeg]

It is more traumatic to the natural nail plate to remove the product than to just let it grow out quietly to a point where you can renew the whole thing.

As for you not being able to clip through the MMA and it causing pain ... i TOOK IT FOR GRANTED YOU WOULD FIRST do a little thinning of the product before clipping which is common sense afterall. I have done this quite a few times and never found the product broke my clippers or that i caused pain to the client.