To belnd or not to blend that is the question?

[collins]

When I was training I was taught to cut out the contact area and then to blend the tip gently into the nail. When I'm doing P & W I don't blend and use this as a guide for the smile line. After watching the NSI training DVD and watching some techs at the Excell show I noticed that when applying just the pink L & P or Gel for a natural look nail ( not french ) they didn't blend the tip , leaving a visable line. I have to say it did look rather natural and this avoided blending the tip into nail, which could only be good.

What do you do? do you belnd your natural tips or leave them?

 

[naturalnails]

I dont under stand how you can leave an unblended tip and place clear gel or L&P over this and there not to be a visible line - maybe I am missing something LOL. Unless you are using well-less tips

It is even more important when not doing French, that you blend the tip in so there is no visible line.

 

[Just Jo]

I have not been taught to blend so not sure how to do it anyway but NSI training does not blend tips ... I have mainly done p/w or pink over natural and have had no probs.

Jo xx

 

[Jaffacake]

I havent tried with acrylic, but i never blend if using balance gels, if its pink or white you cant see it anyway, and if its just pink, i use a natural coloured tip and stick it to the natural smile line and go over the whole lot with 'blush' and they do look really natural, just like your normal smile line would.

 

[emmalouisa]

i dont understand i know u can cut the well out for french tips but wont u see a line if u dont blend???

 

[bimbogeri]

I can see that if you used a well-less tip, or removed the well with tip tailors then it would be ok to see the line because it would form your smile line for you.

However, I thought that part of the point of blending the tip was not just to remove the visible line, but to remove the ridge, so I can't quite understand how you can get away with no blending at all.

That said, I'm an as-yet untrained newbie, so not exactly a voice of wisdom :o

 

[geeg]

I always blend a tip ... whether it is natural and placed on the smile line or French and placed on the smile line or whether I adhere the whole tip. To my mind the look is very false and 'hard' if you do not blend and thin out the tip.

I like perfection not just what is easy. I always reduce the thickness of any tip so I have more room for the product on top of it. This creates stronger enhancements as the strength is in the product and not in the tip itself, more like a sculpted nail. The tip only acts as a guide for me and the less I have of it the better it is.

 

[Sarah Lou]

I was allways taught to blend in the tips. The greater area of natural nail that is exposed to any overlay, the stronger the extension. The only tips I do not blend is white, but then I hardly use them anyway cos you allways end up rebalancing them with white acrylic anyway.

 

[Saffirez]

I always blend tips, even if I am putting a coloured gel over the top - just for a smoother finish. I hate blending tips though :evil:

 

[RAQUEL]

I cut out the well... think it looks great... saves me time which can only be good... whenever my tips on myself are blended they snap off- how can you be sure 100% that when blending you never make contact with the natural nail... I can be 100% sure if i dont blend...sorry guys im anti- blending.....

 

[geeg]

I cut out the well... think it looks great... saves me time which can only be good... whenever my tips on myself are blended they snap off- how can you be sure 100% that when blending you never make contact with the natural nail... I can be 100% sure if i dont blend...sorry guys im anti- blending.....

By the time I have cut out the well of the tip and pre tailored it, I could have adhered the tip whole and blended it!!! I do not think (for Me) it saves any time at all. The time it takes me to blend is no longer than the time it takes to cut out the well etc.

I am 100% sure I never make any contact with the natural nail .... there is never a mark or a scratch on the nail plate after blending a tip ... it is called skill!! Sorry, I am not trying to sound big headed, but I have tried to make an art of blending over the years and I have. If no blending works for you then fine, but there is no need for a blended tip to snap off any more easily than a non blended tip if the product is applied correctly and the stress point placed where it should be.

 

[Nailsinlondon1]

By the time I have cut out the well of the tip and pre tailored it, I could have adhered the tip whole and blended it!!! I do not think (for Me) it saves any time at all. The time it takes me to blend is no longer than the time it takes to cut out the well etc.

I am 100% sure I never make any contact with the natural nail .... there is never a mark or a scratch on the nail plate after blending a tip ... it is called skill!! Sorry, I am not trying to sound big headed, but I have tried to make an art of blending over the years and I have. If no blending works for you then fine, but there is no need for a blended tip to snap off any more easily than a non blended tip if the product is applied correctly and the stress point placed where it should be.

There are times when tip blending is a must have skill..like Geeg said .......

But there are also times when you need to blend a tip as cutting or filing out the contact area would not be an option.................
Odd shaped nails, nails that have their side going into a point............ so you will need the whole well area in order to correct this.....sidewall correction......... and then blend the tip, so it looks invisible lol...........
JM2PW

 

[DEBSY]

My mums thumbs (ooooh that rhymes!) are like that ruth,,sidewalls don't exist at free edge they end about a third the way down the nail (from cuticle end) so i have to tip them,but am always unsure cos i don't want to blend the whole tip cos they need the strength in the sidewalls,so i just blend in the centre then it looks daft! she always wears polish so does'nt really matter but what if i got a client that was the same and wanted the natural look??? did that make sense,it is late and i'm tired :lol:

 

[Nailsinlondon1]

Hi ya Debs,
You blend the tip as you normaly would, the tip is there to provide a scaffolding type of base, so you do not have uncured product sitting on skin...........
So try blending it like you would any other tip, but keeping the sidewalls intact..........
You could also try some Flawless pink, this will hide any imperfections....

From this:

to this

HTH

 

[Teena_B]

I have not been taught to blend so not sure how to do it anyway but NSI training does not blend tips ... I have mainly done p/w or pink over natural and have had no probs.

Jo xx

When I did my NSI conversion I was shown to blend the tip! Confusing, eh?

 

[Just Jo]

Definately coz like I say I wouldnt know how to blend a tip we were taught that with NSI tips they didnt need blending, dont know any other way

Jo xx

 

[sortedcres]

I cut the will out of the tips, it's much faster an theres less to blend when doing a full set of natural nails.
With Ezflow french tips there is minimal blending required as the flexible body of the tips and the deep smile line offer a perfect, tappered fit.

 

[mum]

In my opinion blending a tip is the second essential skill to learn t do perfectly (after immaculate preparation).
I believe every tech should be able to blend any tip on any nail (with and without a problem) perfectly and without any damage to the nail plate. If tips are applied and not blended that is from choice not lack of skill.
There are many situations when not blending is the wrong option so lack of this skill would result in a nail that is not as good as it should be.

There that is my little soap box for a Monday morning

Marian

 

[Lily]

Hiya,

If i use tips i always blend (unless french), but then i blend a little over the french for it not to be too thick,

I personaly sculpt whenever possible and at a last resort use tips, i never really seem to use french tips unless a client wants them on for a wedding or a special occasion and then they are going to have them soaked off for work etc.

But as Marian and Geeg have both said it is a skill and it can be done 100% without contact on the natural nail plate, if done correctly.

Amanda

 

[Glorsclaws]

I have to say I dislike blending but,... I wont let it beat me!
By that I mean that I havent quite got my skills to the level Geeg is talking about so this is where my timming goes off :twisted: cos Im always trying to be too careful!
Also, even on the occasions when Ive used French tips I couldnt resist taking the file to them to reduce the 'bulk'.
Do peeps who dont blend also not reduce the bulk of the tip??? ... just curious!