Should i give up nails?

[creativemarie]

Hi everyone,

I'm very new to this site and so so pleased to find lots of lovely people on here helping each other out, its so nice!
I've been doing acrylic nails for 3 years but very on and off so not constant, therefore not enough sets in one go to see if anything is going wrong with them. Its only until now, working in a salon i've had loads of clients coming back saying their nails just 'popped off' or they had major lifting so therefore pulled them off!
Its knocked my confidence like MAD and just want to give up now. I have a nail trainer so do you all think i should practice, practice, practice on that to perfect everything and then try again? (its all creative Retention products by the way)
I did a course in Brisa a month ago and had no problems with that (touch wood!) but want to ideally do both!! Oh i don't know, i think i'm just crap! Please help geeks xx

 

[g5m_sh]

I have one client that says her nails just 'pop off' but it hasnt got anything to do with her havin them in her mouth all the time, but if all my clients are coming back i would be a bit worried!

Are you prep'in proper??

xx

 

[user 17140]

I am sure you are not crap! Do you have any work collegues that you can troubleshoot with , maybe its something simple, or a case of bad luck, i have clients who say they just pinged off, (never heard them go ping before) but they have them in there mouths while i am there , and not a scrap of nail left on the nail plate, when they return! I had one who had none left after 48 hours, a miracle! After telling me they all came off , she texted me to say that she felt bad because i had spent 2 hours making them nice, a guilty concience if i had every seen one!:hug:

 

[geeg]

I think your problems are a combination of two things:

1. Not enough salon experience and

2. The usual clients' "it just fell off" synodrome which appears when they want something for free.

If it is happening allot that you are getting lifting then that is down to you and most likely your PREP. You are simply not removing something from the nail plate that is acting as a barrier to the product. When you use a primerless product like Retention+ then your PREP must be perfect ... then you really scrub those nails with ScrubFresh until squeeky clean. After that you should not have any lifting issues as long as you press theproduct firmly onto the prepared plate..

You can only go 2 ways with your PREP if you want to avoid lifting problems.

A clean PREP, the way CND advocate, for healthy strong nail plates

OR a mechanical PREP which involves filing the surface of the natural nail to provide a key for products that need primer.

Using either method will solve lifting problems.

A clean PREP is the long-term approach and leaves the client with healthy strong nails and no lifting issues.

A mechanical PREP is a short-term approach which weakens and damages the clients natural nails and leads to lifting further down the line but stops it short-term.

I am a professional and I always take the long-term approach.

 

[littlegrohl]

Acrlics cannot just POP OFF!!! even with the worst prep they wont pop off they will lift however and then get chewed and picked off.. practise on yourself your nail trainer and a close friend or family member and get some conifidence in you application method and yourself, once you have that you can say to the POP OFF brigade that you are 100% certain they did not pop off and advise them during the process that if they have any lifting or problems that you need to see them so you can see whats going on and fix them up.. ask them to please not chew or pick them because if they do you will know.
the POP OFF brigade are out there.. and if you think about it.. when we remove the bloomin things how HARD IS IT?? it requires soaking and filing and at least 30 minutes of your time.. :hug:
you will be right mate just understand the pop off mentality and get your prep perfect!
x

 

[creativemarie]

Thanks geeks, this is a big help. There aren't any other nail techs at the salon but i have a feeling the receptionist is putting me off a bit as she's really loud and tries talking to you when your doing nails! I reckon i've missed a bit of vital prep or am not doing it enough! I've printed off the preperation page from you geeg and its FAB! Thanks so much. One last question, should i prep one hand at a time as clients do all sorts of things with the other hand when your working on one like touching their hair etc? Also geeg, is Brisa definately as strong as l&p? xx:hug:

 

[fifitrix]

Thanks geeks, this is a big help. There aren't any other nail techs at the salon but i have a feeling the receptionist is putting me off a bit as she's really loud and tries talking to you when your doing nails! I reckon i've missed a bit of vital prep or am not doing it enough! I've printed off the preperation page from you geeg and its FAB! Thanks so much. One last question, should i prep one hand at a time as clients do all sorts of things with the other hand when your working on one like touching their hair etc? Also geeg, is Brisa definately as strong as l&p? xx:hug:

You could try prepping on hand at a time to see if it helps, it's so annoying when you've prepped both and the client sits running her hand through her hair etc., especially if they have product in their hair like wax or whatever and it transfers onto the nail.

 

[foryouiwill]

I just want to add that it could also be your liquid and powder ratio. Too much liquid could also cause lifting. Good luck and don't give up. I'm sure we've all been there:hug:

 

[creativemarie]

Oh really? I didn't realise that it coulld be too much liquid. I'm going to get my nail trainer out and have a go tonight at practising! Thanks so much for your help. I have trouble making them thin too and always use too big of a bead. Can you tell me what size beads i should use really, their fairly small aren't they? xx

 

[lotus blossom]

i prep both hands ie remove non living tissue and then use citrisoak and water to remove that, then i only stay on one hand,
i scrubfresh one hand and say to the client, ill stay on this hand so you can use your other hand for the time being, then i dont let go of their hand atall!!!!

dont be disheartneded, the more clients you have ,you will see if you are doing ok, as the percentage of your clients will be the test,

if most of them come back with lifting , nails popping off then im afraid you have to look at your work,
if half come back with problems, then you can look at your work, but also at their responsibility to their nails and homecare,
if most of them come back with perfect nails but the odd few come back with a few problems, then i would say you are doing ok,
unfortunatetly if you only have a few clients, then this percentage thing is hard to understand,
when you have a lot of clients its easier!!

i still have a few clients that have problems, but i know its down to them, as they tell me what theyve been doing with their nails to get them in a state
or, they leave their appts too long,
well thats their problem , not mine, i just fix them up and take their money!!!

 

[JuicyLucy]

Personally, rather than using the nail trainer, I would use one of my own nails to practice. You can then see how the product reacts over time under normal use. I don't suppose anyone has experienced lifting on a nail trainer! I know my own nails do not lift, ping etc. so I know my clients are doing something if it happens to them.

 

[nailzoo]

perfect prep is one step, ......application is another (every step has to be done properly to get nails to stick/last) including product ratio, filing technique .... blah , blah blah. It's not just a matter of perfect prep (thats just the start).

 

[geeg]

Thanks geeks, this is a big help. There aren't any other nail techs at the salon but i have a feeling the receptionist is putting me off a bit as she's really loud and tries talking to you when your doing nails! I reckon i've missed a bit of vital prep or am not doing it enough! I've printed off the preperation page from you geeg and its FAB! Thanks so much. One last question, should i prep one hand at a time as clients do all sorts of things with the other hand when your working on one like touching their hair etc? Also geeg, is Brisa definately as strong as l&p? xx:hug:

Brisa Gel is definitely as strong as your liquid & powder if you are working at the same thickness and building the nail structure correctly..

If you were working too wet, I think you would know it as the product would be difficult to handle.

perfect prep is one step, ......application is another (every step has to be done properly to get nails to stick/last) including product ratio, filing technique .... blah , blah blah. It's not just a matter of perfect prep (thats just the start).

Zoo is not incorrect in what he says, but as a trainer my experience has taught me that when I do 121's with students, I find that 99% of the time their lifting problems are down to 2 things ..

incomplete prep or not pressing the product on firmly in zone 3.

 

[nailzoo]

so perhaps a 121 is your solution, rather than worrying about prep, flooding cuticles/clearing cuticles/overfiling (underfiling), not curing properly, applying too thin/thick, yep a 121 would be better than information obtained, then decyphered and put into practise from here.

 

[loubylou]

When your clients come in and say " they pinged off, popped off etc" give the nail a wipe with scrub fresh and you will be able to see all the damage they have caused to their own nails with picking and teeth etc then you will be able to explain to them again about home care required by the client hth

 

[blossom]

I'm sure with all this excellent advice you will get to the bottom of what is causing your probs - we've all been there, you will come through it and out the other side. Don't give up, you CAN do it :hug:

Also, for the "ping" brigade, when you can see the telltale white marks on the nail, lift the finger to look at it closely while saying "aaah, yes, look at that . . ." They always go "what's that then?" You can then go on to explain that the white marks on the nailplate are a giveaway to the fact that they have been "helped" off - they indicate trauma

Some people are ever so much more careful when they know you know what they're up to!

 

[liz4real]

nails usually ping off only if there too thick at cuticle!! , if the girl has banged them then there will usually be some acrylic left on the plate, and some trauma! make sure there ultra thin at cuticle and work up!! obviously after prepping and making sure the nail plate is clean and clear of even a speck of dust!!!! xxxx good luck chik x

 

[Classy Claws]

I have seen cases of nails that do indeed "ping off" that is they lift right off the nail plate leaving no damage, this is normally within hours of them being done... BUT this happens from one NSS that I know of that doesnt A. Remove shine or B. Prep the nail in any shape way or form (no cuti removal - no dehydration nada!) so yes its possible for pingers to exist! but NOT when your using good product and some form of prep.

 

[Suzi-Sue]

Hi - I too feel as disillusioned as you. I completed my training in England using NSI and then converted over to Creative by completing the basic level training course. I had a number of clients in England on a part-time mobile basis and didn't have too many problems. However after moving to Spain I find that expanding my business is a lot more difficult.

I have one client who used to go to The Spanish Champion for her nails and never had any problems with lifting at all - as you would correctly expect. However since taking over this client's nails I have had serious problems with lifting. I have meticulously cleaned, wiped and dehydrated before applying l&p and low and behold in under two weeks the lifting is back. I feel so disillusioned and feel it has to be something I am doing wrong so I have asked my client to go back to her old technician. I do not at this stage feel that I can carry on putting her nails, and my reputation, at risk. I have always been open and honest with my clients to the extent that I have refused to apply enhancements to one lady as she had a case of the "greenies" and told her that once this had grown out I would be more than willing to be her technician. She did not return and has obviously found someone less scrupulous to do this work for her.

However after reading this string I shall keep on practising and I will get it right. Thanks to everyone for their input it does help techs who have no physical backup in a salon.:sad:

 

[mannipatch]

aah please dont get disheartened, keep on trying, on your own nails. Follow the same procedure (exactly) and then watch what happens. In my opinion nails can pop off but for a reason. I remember a Hairdresser coming to me for nail extensions with tips and she had not left me 2 hours until she rang saying all and I repeat all her nails had popped off in Loblaws while pushing the trolley (was a long time ago but I remember the humiliation like yesterday, non of us are perfect all of the time, I forgot to prime, so many bottles, so little time). I felt exactly the same as you. My mistake, nails are like driving for me, after a while it comes naturally. I try to run my little studio on the emphasis that the client is always right even when I know for sure that is not the case. I am assuming you are working with gel, if so have you tried working with 2 UV lamps, working on one nail on one hand at a time. On clients who have problems (eg hairdressers, beauticians, nurses) I find it works for me and them. Good luck.