Full set of nails in 1hour??

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Leanne P

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I think this might have been brought up before but i just want run this by the pro's! I just had a little look there at job opportunities as a nail tech because i'm considering working part time in a salon, i really think it'd help with my confidence! But anyway.. on pretty much all the ads is "must produce high quality sets of nails in One Hour"!
I think thats just unrealistic! It'd hardly be "high quality" if you squish a decent prep, application and filing/finish into one hour! I know i'm still fairly slow (i'm just under two hours at the mo) but surely one hour is too little??
 
I wouldn't even consider working in a salon if they just want to churn out nails in an hour and it's like a conveyor belt.... "NEXT"!!

It takes me an hour and 15 to an hour and a half to do a full set. I'm well able to knock a set out in an hour if I want to, but I know they won't be perfect so why do it?

I don't think you'd be happy working somewhere like that so have a look around.. maybe look at renting your own space so you'll be your own boss and you can still get the experience you need.

Good luck finding somewhere :hug:
 
I think this might have been brought up before but i just want run this by the pro's! I just had a little look there at job opportunities as a nail tech because i'm considering working part time in a salon, i really think it'd help with my confidence! But anyway.. on pretty much all the ads is "must produce high quality sets of nails in One Hour"!
I think thats just unrealistic! It'd hardly be "high quality" if you squish a decent prep, application and filing/finish into one hour! I know i'm still fairly slow (i'm just under two hours at the mo) but surely one hour is too little??

I've been doing nails as a working tech for 5 years and the only sets I can do in an hour are tips with a 1 colour overlay (in the summer :))....... I can't do a set of P+W's or a rebalance in an hour so I agree with your unrealistic comment.....

I prefer to take a bit of extra time, do a good job and actually interact with my client as well!!

Hth's
 
Adverts like that do make me wonder if they even care about the quality of the work....do they actually care more about what the nails are like or how long they take....is it about customer satisfaction and quality or maximum profit and get them in and out as soon as possible...

what would they rarther....

A full set in 1 hour

or

An amazing and long lasting set in 1.5 hours

:)
 
Phew I'm glad its not just me! It does really sound like a conveyor belt doesnt it!
yeah theres a few places advertising a space for rent so i might go down that road.. be good to have the salon admosphere but be my own boss! And not be under pressue to do nails in one hour!
thanks guys... was beginning to think i was really bad :)
 
Phew I'm glad its not just me! It does really sound like a conveyor belt doesnt it!
yeah theres a few places advertising a space for rent so i might go down that road.. be good to have the salon admosphere but be my own boss! And not be under pressue to do nails in one hour!
thanks guys... was beginning to think i was really bad :)

Never doubt yourself:hug:
 
There is a place by me that does nails in 45 mins for f set and 20mins for infills .............i dont know how they do it but the nails underneath are in v bad condition they seem to drill the natural nail........ i just cant understand how they cut down the time.... I take 1h 15 to 1 hr 30 xx
 
There is a place local to me that does nails in about 45 mins too. They dont do any prep apart from asking you to wash your hands when you arrive. They apply natural tips, blend apply one colour overlay, file and buff and then either airbrush on the white tips or give you a colour polish. Its very much like a conveyor belt. They have certain people tipping and applying product and then you get sent to another person for the tips to be sprayed on then you sit under a uv lamp until another checks them and takes your money.... they are always really busy though. You dont have to book, just turn up and wait.
 
I would never ever consider asking anyone to come to work in my salon to do nails in an hour! It has be quality all the way and i personally would avoid places that encouraged that conveyor belt mentality. an hour 20-to hour 30 would be just fine in my salon. I do them in that time and wouldnt expect anyone else to do them in less time.

tigi
 
Yes Gilly thats what they are like here.... they never advertise.... they use white tips or airbrush the white but i can tell a set of their nails a mile off the smile line is straight on the tips and the pink rather than pink they are red sore looking.... ususally ppl will say oh had my nails doe two days ago... they are still sore!!! Cant believe they go bk for more torchure its abot educating jo public.... if its cheap and quick ppl book its a shame x
 
Yes Gilly thats what they are like here.... they never advertise.... they use white tips or airbrush the white but i can tell a set of their nails a mile off the smile line is straight on the tips and the pink rather than pink they are red sore looking.... ususally ppl will say oh had my nails doe two days ago... they are still sore!!! Cant believe they go bk for more torchure its abot educating jo public.... if its cheap and quick ppl book its a shame x

Thats the thing though..... i know about this place because me and a friend used to get our nails done there!! Its not until you learn that this isnt the normal way to do things that you realise how bad they are!!!
I had no idea about all the different systems and proceedures and i'd never even heard of sculpting until i started learning..... its hard, many of the public just want a quick cheap job. I dont know if you would change their minds even if they did know!!
 
There are ways of doing a great set of nails in an hour. IMO it isn't the amount of time it takes you to do nails, it's the end result that speaks volumes. Not only that, it's also the environment of the salon, the attitude in the salon and whether it's a professional atmosphere using quality products or is it set up like herding people in and out like cattle with a unprofessional atmosphere and using less than products.
 
why is it unrealistic to be able to do a full set in an hour? I can do a fulls set of pink and white l&p and an hour with no problems afterward and they look fabulous. Now nothing against people who are slower but i see that alot on this site about not being able to do it in an hour and I'm curious as to why it is not realistic for you guys. I don't want to pick a fight but it makes me feel like you'd think my work wasn't comparable to yours if i can finish faster. In my area an hour is average for almost every nail tech.
 
why is it unrealistic to be able to do a full set in an hour?

I can only speak for myself but for a full set I do the following:

Santise hands
Apply cuticle Remover
Remove non-living tissue from all nails
Rinse
Remove shine with 240
Apply, shorten and blend tips or apply sculpting forms as I go along
Apply P+W product
Refine shape
Buff to shine

I cannot do that in 1 hour - it takes me about 45 minutes to have the nails ready for product if I'm tipping..... I can do a 1 colour overlay in 1 hour but p+w with smile lines take me about 15 minutes longer. When it come to rebalancing if a client comes in with some lifting how can you file that out to rebalance in 1 hour? I'm not being sarcastic, I truely can't r/b in 1 hour!!

I'm not critising anyone else's way of working but for me nails in 1 hour is unrealistic. My business is built in regular clients and as such I have loylatly to those clients and give them the best service I can at all times, I fully prep at each appt and I move the white smile line at each appt as well...... It's the way I do things and I don't like the conveyor belt mentality that some salons/therapists have.

Hth's
 
I am one of those techs who has to do a set in one hour. I am not happy about it and am still trying to get a job or a place elsewhere. Difficult time of year though. I can do it in one hour but I would prefer one and a half hours. It is a bit of a rush and I know that I can do better with more time.
 
I think it depends what method u use...for instance i can put a white tip on and acrylic over the top alot quicker than a f set of sculpted pink and white also some ppl use drills which cuts down time x
 
It is possible do do a near on perfect set of nails in an hour or even less if your product application is spot on.

Being a salon owner, when I take on new staff, I am looking for the quality of the work first and foremost because I know that the timing will reduce with experience and my guidance.

I would require a new staff member to be able to do them within 2 hours though :)

Gina xx
 
well i didn't want to make anyone mad. I would just be fired and lose clientele if i had to do one in two hours. Depending on how much repair i need to do or how difficult the nails are that day it might take me an hour and a half.
I see why doing the manicure previous to the full set or fill would make your service take that long. I don't manicure prior to an acrylic service unless the cuticles are to the point they would interfere with the adhesion of the set.
and to satin baby, i do use a drill but i do l&p sets, i can't stand those silly white tips...lol. I'm assuming most of you use a regular file? that could be why the time is long. If that is the case, sorry for my comment earlier. If i were using a file it would be the same amount of time for me.
 
oh I didnt mean to start a debate sorry guys! :hug:
thanks for all your replies, I think (using files) an hour and a half is reasonable. i see where your coming from tho Allthumbs, i'd say using a drill cuts off a lot of time!
 
I've done full sets in an hour when I sculpt, and that's with full prep. But it's also on a client with near-perfect nail plates (no nail biters!) and a good free edge that I can fit the form under. I hand file everything, too. This is not the norm, however. I usually do them in and hour and 15, sometimes an hour and a half if I'm illusion sculpting on a nail biter, and used tips. :) But I got no boss telling me to churn them out--just myself. :)

But yeah, if this place is insisting on one-hour full sets for every client, I'd look elsewhere unless you are fully confident that you can do that.
 

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