tips n tricks?

[Yuri]

I think the general rule is...a swipe with scrubfresh on the girlfriend OR the koala will work !!!

Sorry, I was wondering - do you think this would this work with the green & white CND buffers as well (I think they're called miracle shine buffers)?

 

[oey]

dont think we've had one of these for a while so....good time to start another thread.

What have you learnt along the way that would be INVALUABLE to someone else???

I'll start the ball rollin' (im diggin deep in my tiny brain!!)

- pre tailoring sculpting forms (pic in the gallery) learnt on my masters

- How to do a custom blend with brisa gel (thanks to a thread from ruth) How do you do this then?

- pre blending tips (makes life SO MUCH easier!)

- have a 'landing pad!!' to wipe your brush on when using gel (saves on loads of nail wipes) best thing for a landing pad...................a wax strip !! (mandini's FAB idea when she saw me being a messy tech!) What do you mean by a landing pad?

spill away geeks dont keep all them tips n tricks to yourselves:hug:

How good is it to see an old thread come back! Now my gel skills have moved an abit I have got lots of questions on your tips Amb!

Have marked the questions in red above! :wink2:

Good thread!

 

[Klassy Klaws]

I use a permanent marker to write on top of the lids of the Brisa Jars whats in them as they all look the same.
As I use a different brush for glitter and to stop me getting mixed up I have painted the end of the one I use all the time with my favourite nail enamel and left the glitter one plain.

 

[ValencianNails]

Sorry, I was wondering - do you think this would this work with the green & white CND buffers as well (I think they're called miracle shine buffers)?

Nope, it doesn't work, I tried it and ruined my Glosser big time...

- How to do a custom blend with brisa gel (thanks to a thread from ruth) How do you do this then?

- have a 'landing pad!!' to wipe your brush on when using gel (saves on loads of nail wipes) best thing for a landing pad...................a wax strip !! (mandini's FAB idea when she saw me being a messy tech!) What do you mean by a landing pad?

http://www.salongeek.com/nail-geek/11763-mixing-breeze-brisa.html

When you need to put your gel brush down it's a good idea to have somewhere ready that isn't dusty or fluffy, I use a lintfree pad but a waxing strip sounds like an even better idea

hth's

 

[gillian w]

Ive got so fed up with lint free wipes not being lint free and leaving bits on the nail especially noticeable in colour gel that i cut up some good quality quilted kitchen roll in to neat squares it looks perfectly professional and is better than any nail wipe i've used.

 

[oey]

Ive got so fed up with lint free wipes not being lint free and leaving bits on the nail especially noticeable in colour gel that i cut up some good quality quilted kitchen roll in to neat squares it looks perfectly professional and is better than any nail wipe i've used.

My Bio sculpture trainer uses cut up pieces of kitchen roll too!

 

[VHunter]

Here goes...

- When using a self-leveling gel, after applying, turn hand palm side up (nail side down) but straight, so that gravity will pull gel where it needs to be most, to help with the apex, just for a few seconds and cure.
- For coloured gels, put a dollop of it on the lid of it's container and cure. Then you can see right off what the colour is when you show the client.
- But a makeup brush stand for your brushes. It's a round cup, with a stiff foam in it, and holes to insert your brushes. That's where I keep my brushes and it's great (I do gel). I bought it at the dollar store, and tossed out the cheap crap makeup brushes that came with it, and it holds my gel brushes.
- I use the 'old' gel brushes for anything to do with glitter
- Use pots like these for making gel glitter mixes or whatever, then store in a dark plastic container so the sun doesn't cure them. Also great for storing minimal amounts of acrylic paint so that you don't have to have a whole slew of bottles at your table. One pot is plenty to hold enough of a gel-glitter mix for several french's. AND it keeps you from mixing too much.

hth's

 

[lanzaclaire]

oh i've got the self-leveling gel i'm going to try that, I need all the help I can get with building the apex! Lol

Thanks babe

 

[EllaX]

Use a wrist rest for your clients - it stops them from clamping their hands to the desk !! Better angle for working on too i think xx

 

[slhallford]

I'm struggling with my smile lines and find holding tips too awkward for practice. I pulled out my reusable OPI sculpting forms and stuck them on my nail trainer fingers. They go on and off quickly and I'm able to follow the lines (lol, well sort of) and since i'm just using the forms themselves, I don't have to worry about even changing out the nail beds.

S

 

[mel77]

I find the easist way to pre-tailer my tips with a full well is to use a 100 grit file, holding it flat at a slight angle, hold the tip with my thumb and forefinger and just stroke down quickly untill its the size you want then just peel away the excess and your left with a perfect well shape...My college tutor taught us that years ago.

 

[wg19]

Don't know if this has been mentioned before but just thought about it as someone just mentioned they found it difficult to hold tips when practicing their smiles.

Get a pencil & put a small blob of blue tack on the side of the pencil at one end. You can then push the tip you are practicing on to the blue tac & voila! - grip the pencil as you would a clients finger. A lot less fiddly but slightly more wooden!

 

[~Emmsybabes~]

I did read once a tip for using the centre peice of your form , to reinforce the underside of the form, (brilliant tip might I add )

But the other day when doing my own sculptured nails, I trimmed some off the end off the form, and stuck this to the underside,
It holds the shape well , reinforces the form , so less seepage from the weight of the product and the pressure applied,
and I'ts a really good fit ,
I'll take pics as soon as I can to show what I mean xxxx

 

[sealgr]

By Kitchen roll, do you mean paper towels? In school we used those blue Paper towels from Walmart that are in the mechanic section.

 

[sj1973]

i thought i would bump this up as i was just browsing and thought what a fantastic thread for us newbie,s.........i was going to say small beads of l &p aswell like snugglepuss.....anybody got anymore advice before the xmas mad rush!!!! xx

 

[muggle]

i have one... sorry if its been mentioned.

i apply oil to the nozzle of my glue when i have finished using it. this way if you need to unblock it the glue just cracks away easily, so you dont have to nip the end off, leaving you free to glue away!