tips with no wells

[geeg]

As the blended tip would be flush with the natural nail, I would presume that it is less likely than a tip that has that little step from the natural nail and tip.
David

You are right David.

A tip that is just sitting on top of the natural nail is far more likely to break down than a tip that encloses the natural free edge and protects it in a snug little well.

I also think that the well helps to guide the tips in a perfectly straight direction when they are being applied and cannot see how a wellless tip can be easier to apply to oneself than one with a well that guides it where it wants to go.

All this pre blending and filing would take more time for me than just getting it on the nail and quick blend and away you go.

I think it is all a matter of experience. Use your Raptors for a while until you can do good smiles using your different colored powders. I bet that when you return to a tip with a well you'll find it a piece of cake!

It sounds like most are using these tips because they don't want to create their own smiles and can't be bothered with blending! Which is what I suspected. Can't see one single other point anyone has made in favor of using them other than that. Which is fine for you maybe ... but the natural nail showing would really annoy me and I would tend to pick at it too. Plus the hygiene thing, and the fact that I like to 'create' a smile line that suits the client not be dictated to by the shape of the tip. These are my opinions.

 

[Bagpuss]

With regards to the raptors and the ridge as it sits proud on top of the nail....to me it looks no different to when i have seen L&P done, in L&P you apply a tip and then apply your white creating a smile line and it isn't flat to the nail ...it sits proud of the nail, then your pink is butted up to it...its the same thing except you are doing the tip and the white at the same time...all in 1 go...the ridge is there ready for you to butt your pink up to it and then over the whole nail in clear. This is why its quicker cos your doing to steps in 1 and with only buffing required instead of blending. I can see the attraction but agree that they are not something that can be used long term as the nail grows out but i have used them and rebalanced as normal using paint on white to create a new smile line ...so yes you do still need to be able to do a smile line by hand and it would be my first choice to do so but like i said earlier i still like to have the choice. I have had clients who have only wanted them for a weekend or special occasion and then removed, if there nail beds allow for them i would use white tips. If wanting long term beautiful nails then i would create my own smile line.

xxxx

 

[Mandini]

Are the raptor tips thinner than the contact area of Velocity for example?

If it is - then I could see the point - easier to blend/thin and nearer for your product to be near the nail plate.

I think the biggest question is: ARE THESE WELL LESS TIPS AS THIN AS GOOD QUALITY CONTACT AREAS? I would love a tip that was as thin as the contact area of Velocity its whole length - but I'm pretty sure that quality control would go out of the window - it must be very hard for the manufacturers to produce thin fine tips consistently.

I believe contact areas have become a bit redundant since about 1996 - gone are the days where we stick the tip half way down the nail. Creative's Formation and Eclipse tips are rarely used in their entirety anymore.

I see Geeg's point too about the all important "stop point" - encasing the nails for maximum strength and durability (and hygiene!!).

For me the most important thing about a well less tip would be it's thinness on the natural nail, not an off the shelf smile line.

If someone could check a raptor/Lotus tip against a Velocity/Formation contact area - I'd love to know!!

 

[Bagpuss]

Hiya...no they are not...the Raptors are thick and tough, i think the idea behind them is that once on the nail you then only have to apply the pink L&P and your stop point up to the white is already there for you., so ensuring a crisp smile line...if you think of a nail with the tip applied, blended and then the white L&P put on...(it has that little ridge ready for your pink to butt up to)....then thats how a Rator looks when on. Then just pink and over the whole lot with clear to seal. You would file them down abit first though. xxxxx

 

[Mandini]

Thanks Angie - you're a star x

I would like to ask if when you guys use well less tips and use them as the smile line - do the heavy handed bunch lose them?

I suppose it's the same theory as a white tip - ie you leave it there, coz that's the whole point - you want to see it/follow it. But some of the guys don't thin raptors down, thus leaving the thickness of the final nail mostly to the tip and not to the product, and mucho adhesive therefore giving a weaker enhancement - well at least for the rock climbing horse riders!!!

I've been reading this thread with real interest and I'm still coming to the conclusion that I'd rather cut thin contact areas out into the smile that suits and follow that.

1) I don't have to blend, because that's my smile
2) The contact area is thin - more product contact, tougher nails
3) I can tailor the smile line with my scissors to suit every nail (deep/gentle)
4) The stop point seals in the natural nail

I wonder if some people have resorted to well less tips (which now I understand are thicker than most contact areas), because no one's taught them how to use curved scissors successfully?

If I could somehow put using curved scissors into words, then we can all put our smiles where and how WE want (not the manufacturer) PLUS using thinner tips??

What do you think? Or am I missing the point???!!!!!

 

[Bagpuss]

Thanks Angie - you're a star x

I would like to ask if when you guys use well less tips and use them as the smile line - do the heavy handed bunch lose them?

I suppose it's the same theory as a white tip - ie you leave it there, coz that's the whole point - you want to see it/follow it. But some of the guys don't thin raptors down, thus leaving the thickness of the final nail mostly to the tip and not to the product, and mucho adhesive therefore giving a weaker enhancement - well at least for the rock climbing horse riders!!!

I've been reading this thread with real interest and I'm still coming to the conclusion that I'd rather cut thin contact areas out into the smile that suits and follow that.

1) I don't have to blend, because that's my smile
2) The contact area is thin - more product contact, tougher nails
3) I can tailor the smile line with my scissors to suit every nail (deep/gentle)
4) The stop point seals in the natural nail

I wonder if some people have resorted to well less tips (which now I understand are thicker than most contact areas), because no one's taught them how to use curved scissors successfully?

If I could somehow put using curved scissors into words, then we can all put our smiles where and how WE want (not the manufacturer) PLUS using thinner tips??

What do you think? Or am I missing the point???!!!!!

Hiya...xx Isn't this the same thing...? white tips are not blended...so you are asking if this makes them weaker...but then you are saying you don't blend your tip either...so now i think i may be missing the point....lol

Because i blend each and every tip i apply (apart from white) i don't have a line to follow as such and actually like painting my smile on cos i can make it look better then some clients natural smile line. My 1 and only reason for wanting and using white tips sometimes is just choice...some of my clients are only having them for a special occasion and may have lovely long nail beds to carry a white tip off...and wants the sharp pink and white look...so i would use white tips. Short nails beds..No way...more natural look...No way....long term client...No way.

As for curved scissors...I do use these sometimes for removing the well from Formation tips when a Velocity tip isn't suitable for the clients nail shape and it doesn't matter if it isn't cut perfect cos i am going to blend it anyway. So are you cutting the well away...then applying the tip and not blending...? or have you preblended to make it nice and thin so there is no lip...? sorry for all the questions Amanda but i hate to think i am missing out on something that sounds like a good idea... lol xxxx

 

[Amanda]

I wonder if some people have resorted to well less tips (which now I understand are thicker than most contact areas), because no one's taught them how to use curved scissors successfully?

hi
The EZ flow classic French and perfection well less tips are extremely thin (in fact I have tried tips from loads of companies and they are by far the thinnest imo :lol: )
I havent tried the raptors etc that have been mentioned in the posts but it sounds to me that they are probably gonna be too thick for me.
The well less french are just another option for my clients and I havent had any more clients with breakages than I normally would with a blended welled tip.
Amanda

 

[Cathie!]

The natural Raptors are I'd say 2-3 times the thicknes of the contact area of a Velocity and they don't have a lot of give to them, so major thinning is required if they are going to be used because yes, you would and up with a massive step if you didn't, plus a massive amount of product on the whole of the nail to make up for the step.

I think you are right Mandini about how to used curved scissors because I know not everybody can...I use them all the time to cut out the wells from my tips.

Very interested to hear that you don't blend Velocity....I always do but if I don't have to then I won't....always glad to find ways of working smarter not harder!

....you say that you cut out the contact area as required for the nail (I generally leave about 2-3mm) and what is left of the contact area is going to be your smile....so you don't blend and simply apply the white to the edge of the unblended contact area?? Would you do this with an Eclipse too? These seem thicker than Velocity to me....well actually I don't get on with Eclipse tips at all lol....never used Formation...do they have a contact area as thin as Velocity?

More questions...look forward to the answers lol.

 

[geeg]

I tend to cut put all my tips with curved scissors and apply to the smile line and then just a bit of thinning ... even Eclipse.

The Eclipse tip well is specifically designed for those clients who have the very high arched and squarish shaped nail plate. When you use it on the right person you KNOW it is the perfect tip for them. The tip well is notched so it will 'give' and flatten a bit for less arched plates, this makes the technique for blending them slightly different than normal.

Velocity is perfect for the European higher arched nail plate. It is slightly tapered for a sleeker look and fits most clients. It has a reduced well area which can be customized further if needs be. The reason Velocity was named 'velocity' was because the tip well is so thin for SPEED of blending.

Formation is a full well tip for the flatter nail plate and for those who like the Square -nail having straight and parallel side walls. The shape of this Formation tip has been copied by more companies than any other tip shape!! It is perfect for the flatter American-type nail plate shape.

The better they applied, the quicker ALL tips blend if you are blending them at all.

 

[Carolep]

Hi Amanda

How does this tip work without a well? Is it sucure on the nail?

hi there
I have been using ez flows classic french tips and they are fabulous, very thin with a gorgeous smile line and no well. Does anyone out there know if any companies do a natural version of the well-less tip? I believe Tammy Taylor have just introduced them but not sure how I would get hold of them.
Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated.
Amanda

 

[nicjill]

So are you cutting the well away...then applying the tip and not blending...? or have you preblended to make it nice and thin so there is no lip...?

I rarely use tips as I sculpt 99% of my l&p but if I do tip, I use Velocity tips. I always pre-tailor my tips by removing most of the contact area, so that when I apply, there is just a slight overlap. This way, all I have to do is lightly file as Velocity are already very thin & don't require much thinning. Plus, I use white powder so I cover the contact area, so minimal blending is required. I find Velocity are very easy to work with & I don't like the idea of well-less tips, I know my clients would pick if they could reach their natural nail underneath. The nice thing about Velocity tips is that they are flush with the underneath with no step or gap. There is nowhere for dirt to gather & clients don't have anything to pick at.

 

[paula1973]

Thanks Angie - you're a star x

I would like to ask if when you guys use well less tips and use them as the smile line - do the heavy handed bunch lose them?

I suppose it's the same theory as a white tip - ie you leave it there, coz that's the whole point - you want to see it/follow it. But some of the guys don't thin raptors down, thus leaving the thickness of the final nail mostly to the tip and not to the product, and mucho adhesive therefore giving a weaker enhancement - well at least for the rock climbing horse riders!!!

I've been reading this thread with real interest and I'm still coming to the conclusion that I'd rather cut thin contact areas out into the smile that suits and follow that.

1) I don't have to blend, because that's my smile
2) The contact area is thin - more product contact, tougher nails
3) I can tailor the smile line with my scissors to suit every nail (deep/gentle)
4) The stop point seals in the natural nail

I wonder if some people have resorted to well less tips (which now I understand are thicker than most contact areas), because no one's taught them how to use curved scissors successfully?

If I could somehow put using curved scissors into words, then we can all put our smiles where and how WE want (not the manufacturer) PLUS using thinner tips??

What do you think? Or am I missing the point???!!!!!

I don't understand the point of well-less tips, maybe cause its late lol, but i've been reading this and getting more confused, if theres no well for the nail to sit snuggly into then as they start growing up it must look quite un attracive from the back, where as a tip with a well is completely flush from the nail ( sat here looking at the back of mine) i know when i've seen a tip fitted incorrectly, and not sitting flush to the nail it's not nice and surely thats what a weel less tip would appear like, i'm a velocity and curved scissors girl myself and don't see that changing
love paula xx

 

[aminah]

I love 'em, well-less AND pre-etched. Can't stand the "other" tips since beginning to use Pre-EtchedTM brand. And love the fact of zero time spent etching. Just glue tip and lay product. Oh, and not to mention no splitting. YES! Can't wait to see the Raptor ones, haven't as of yet.

 

[aminah]

Velocity is perfect for the European higher arched nail plate.

Formation . . . is perfect for the flatter American-type nail plate shape.

I have never in my almost 20 years of doing nails seen, heard, read, learned that nail plates vary by geological/geographical location or nationality??

So much to learn . . . apparently?

 

[bimbogeri]

I've read this thread and other ones similar to it and have ended up more confused and stupid feeling, so I'm going to bite the bullet and stick my hand up..

Are you, or are you not, meant to blend tips like this:

Every time I read one of these threads I THINK people are saying that these kinds of tips (which are basically the exact shape/style as a white tip, only natural) don't need to be blended, just applied as per a white tip, with the stop point on the free edge and the nail shaped so that the well end matches the smile line.
Have I misconstrued here?
Only I have always blended these kind of tips, I assumed you still had to but they just had a reduced well area so there was less plastic to blend, but every time I've threads like these I've got the idea that they're just meant to be stuck, thinned/etched and then applied product on top, not blended.

Have I got totally the wrong idea? Am I right in blending them? I'd gone back to using full well tips cos I found it easier blending on a straight line rather than a curve, but know I think I was never meant to blend these at all.

Help???

 

[geeg]

I've read this thread and other ones similar to it and have ended up more confused and stupid feeling, so I'm going to bite the bullet and stick my hand up..

Are you, or are you not, meant to blend tips like this:

Every time I read one of these threads I THINK people are saying that these kinds of tips (which are basically the exact shape/style as a white tip, only natural) don't need to be blended, just applied as per a white tip, with the stop point on the free edge and the nail shaped so that the well end matches the smile line.
Have I misconstrued here?
Only I have always blended these kind of tips, I assumed you still had to but they just had a reduced well area so there was less plastic to blend, but every time I've threads like these I've got the idea that they're just meant to be stuck, thinned/etched and then applied product on top, not blended.

Have I got totally the wrong idea? Am I right in blending them? I'd gone back to using full well tips cos I found it easier blending on a straight line rather than a curve, but know I think I was never meant to blend these at all.

Help???

I think maybe you have misconstrued.

The natural nail free edge should be the exact same shape as the well end (or stop point) of the tip.

The rest of the well area is shortened so that it is the same shape as the smile line and sits on the smile line (just like a French tip).

Apply and thin out before applying product (or you can do the thinning before applying the tip to the nail .. whichever method you prefer).

Because the tip is now sitting directly on the smile line, you just follow it as a template for creating your white zone one with liquid and powder and no need to blend the well area completely away at all as it will be covered up.. HTH

 

[bimbogeri]

Thank you for clearing that up Geeg - what you just said is what I thought had been said on these threads, for some reason I have been blending these tips totally! (What I meant to say was 'the free edge shaped to match the stop point and the nail shortened so that the smile line of the tip matches the smile line of the natural nail' - told you I was having a doofus day can't even type what I mean!) No-one's every pointed out to me that you weren't meant to. I have always blended tips or sculpted (except sometimes using white tips on myself) because I knew that the product is stronger than the tip.
If you don't mind me asking, do you use these kind of tips yourself, or would you always blend a full well tip?
Are there clients for whom these tips are unsuitable, in the same way that you cannot use french tips on everyone, or are they a bit more forgiving that french tips?
Thanks xx

 

[geeg]

Well it is true and you must have observed it because nail shape is directly inherited from our parents. Therefore, the reason for the ethnic differences.

Ever noticed what gorgeous high arched long nail bed nails Jewish women have?
Arab women in general have gorgeous nails and strong thick nail plates.
Italian women have too.
British women tend to have a flatter nail plate and nails that are not as thick or glossy.
Where all the different nationalities are mixed ,things change but when you get a group that have stayed in one location for along time, you do get these general traits.

[/color][/b]

I have never in my almost 20 years of doing nails seen, heard, read, learned that nail plates vary by geological/geographical location or nationality??

So much to learn . . . apparently?

 

[geeg]

Thank you for clearing that up Geeg - what you just said is what I thought had been said on these threads, for some reason I have been blending these tips totally! No-one's every pointed out to me that you weren't meant to. I have always blended tips or sculpted (except sometimes using white tips on myself) because I knew that the product is stronger than the tip.
If you don't mind me asking, do you use these kind of tips yourself, or would you always blend a full well tip?
Are there clients for whom these tips are unsuitable, in the same way that you cannot use french tips on everyone, or are they a bit more forgiving that french tips?
Thanks xx

AS you know, French tips always exaggerate the shortness of a short nailplate .. so in this instance a natural coloured tip would give less of a contrast.
I use Eclipse tips on my nails, because they fit my nail arch best. I do reduce the well area first so that my free edge is enclosed and protected but the well is left only as long as my natural free edge (which normally is about 1mm if I am starting a new full set). I tend to thin the tip out after it has been applied rather than before.
I would not use this method for a nail biter or anyone with a natural free edge that was longer than the tip well... but for any one with a modicum of free edge it does save all the blending (which is a pain and unnecessary anyway when you use this method).

 

[bimbogeri]

I getcha now
Blimey, sitting in the car for an hour and a half this morning waiting for the RAC really did addle my brain.
You learn something new every day! No wonder I was finding it so fiddling to try and blend the curved shape. D'oh!