Help!!! - French Manicure

[Miss Bliss]

Dear geeks,

I am new to this site but from what I have seen it looks fab, I am really hoping to get some good advice, I qualify with my NVQII Beauty Therapy next month, I am loving learning and really excited about going mobile and undertaking more training etc...

HOWEVER I have one manicure problem, french manicure, I just can't seem to get a good, straight, white tip even though I have sat down with my tutor for ages watching her etc it just doesn't want to happen especially if peops have shorter nails!

Anyone got any good advice on how they learnt to be great at this??

Thanks in advance!!!

Kath xxxxx

 

[bexi]

Hi

All I can say is PRACTISE PRACTISE PRACTISE!!!

Also the slower you go the worse it is (i find) just take the plunge!!

My french has to be tided so much so I definatly recommend a tidy pen!!

I'm sure other geeks will be able to give some extra advice!!!

Becki xxx

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH WELCOME!!!

 

[fifitrix]

Hi

All I can say is PRACTISE PRACTISE PRACTISE!!!

I agree with Becki, I used to have a real hang up with french manicures, I practised on tips for ages and ages until I was dreaming about them! Don't worry if you have to tidy your smile line, what I do now is not think about it too much (that's when I mess up), I just go for it. I now don't dread clients asking for a french manicure.

I need to practice my blooming quote boxes arggh!!

 

[joolz]

practice,practice as has been said but what works for me is to load up your brush,steady yourself with your elbow on the table and do it in one sweep like a half circle motion,lol does that make any sense,also if you do a search on nailfresh its a product made by creative brilliant for tidying up smiles,i use a gel brushfor this
hth:hug:

 

[Noodle]

Practice and patience.

PS: If you do a search "French" or French Manicure", you will find lots of threads giving useful hints and tips.

Welcome to The Salon Geek btw :hug:

 

[liz4real]

yer these girls r right the quicker the better! never work with a sticky white the newer the better! wot i also found that helps is putting a form for sculpt acrylic round to save mess on the finger! also doing one layer of natural, one layer of white, then another layer of natural over the top to dull the white, there for disguising any mistakes and looks more natural...try it chik, let me know wot u think...lizxxxx:hug:

 

[Miss Bliss]

Thank you so much for your advice!!! It is just a bit of a mare as it is the only thing that I am struggling on and is driving me batty. My friends are fed up with me grabbing their hands at every opportunity I think :lol:.

I will search nailfresh too and good thinking no the acrylic!

Thanks again, what a wicked site!

 

[Sals]

The best bit of advice I was given was do it quickly and don't think too hard (no problem of that in my case!:green

About a month ago it just all clicked into place. Keep practising and you'll soon wonder what all the fuss was about!:green:

 

[neko]

A beauty girl gave me a great quick'n'easy tip. Push the tip of your thumbnail on your non-dominant hand under the client's free edge (gently of course) and then sweep the french on, in a smooth arc from left to right, then another smooth arc right to left. This prevents you from getting polish on the tip of their finger under their free edge.

Of course, this don't work so well if you are wearing polish :green:

 

[Miss Bliss]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh good thinking!! I will give that a go too!!! If not am seriously going to have to buy an airbrush system and use that but it just doens't give the same effect, my french on a pedi has improved lots lately so just the mani I am working on!

Thank you so much for being so helpful and nice to me as I am a new geek :lol:. I am seriously getting addicted to this site though!!

K xxxxx

 

[NailLounge]

Hi. You might find this useful...
Make sure you have a completely clean nail
Whizz your white on - you don't have to take much time with this
Dip your acrylic brush (i use my old one so I don't ruin the bristles) in acetone.
Now tidy up your smile line from the inside (like with sculpting)
You will have THE most perfect white
Then I use a matt pink tinted ridge filling basecoat (constance carroll is ace and about a pound!)
Finish with topcoat
Et Voila! A complete cheat but such a perfect french polish they look like tips!
Good Luck xxx

 

[frenchys]

Hi there,
another good tip I was given is to cut the bristles of a varnish brush into a point at the end-this really makes it much easier to get a nice thin line. hth.
june

 

[Dreamer_1]

have any of you tried the new french polish from bourjois?? it has a smile shaped brush so seemingly all u have to do is one dab and you have it! i've never tried it cause im pretty ok with my french but its worth a thought!

 

[Miss Bliss]

Hola!

I have tried out the Boujois shaped brush and didn't think much of it. Although one of my friends in the bizz uses it all of the time I thought it was really poor, it all depends on the size of the clients nail as to whether it will fit with the brush.

I will defo be giving the acetone suggestion a go and also cutting my brush into a point there must be someway that I can get it perfect, I have started dreaming about white tips (sad I know!)

Will let you know how I get on or if I find a miracle cure!

xxxxx

 

[NailLounge]

Hi,
I wouldn't bother cutting your brush to a point, just use one thats already pointed. If you find the ones at the beauty suppliers pricey, go to a craft shop and get a sable one, they're usually cheaper. Let me know how you go on with the acetone suggestion. I swear, you'll love it (not too much acetone though) x