What am I doing wrong, disheartened

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Paulamaula

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2015
Messages
187
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13
Location
Ireland
Hi everyone,

I could just cry. Trained in Sept and things are still not going right. I did 3 clients 2 days ago, 3 out of 3 have chipped. What the hell am i doing wrong.

Trained with cnd but i stock both cnd and Gelish. Lamp is uv and new.


I do the following:
Prep
Scrubfresh
Ph bond
Foundation cure 1min
Dry wipe
Smoothing gel cure 2 min
Dry wipe
Colour coat x2 -each 2 mins
Top coat
Sticky layer off
Cuticle oil.

I am so dedicated and putting in so much time and effort but my confidence is just knocked every few days.

Please offer anything you can xx
 
Hi

What lamp do you have?

This is your routine for Gelish I take it and not Shellac?
 
What has chipped your shellac manis, Gelish manis or both? x
 
Hi

What lamp do you have?

This is your routine for Gelish I take it and not Shellac?
Yes this is my routine for Gelish. Cnd uv lamp.
 
Hi

What lamp do you have?

This is your routine for Gelish I take it and not Shellac?
Yes this is my routine for Gelish.
What has chipped your shellac manis, Gelish manis or both? x
Hi Sam, i really felt that cnd was giving no lasting time so i invested in Gelish. For the past month ive only been using gelish. Imagine not getting even 1 day. What on earth am i doing. Feel like throwing in the towel today. Aaarrrgh!!
 
Don't be disheartened, we've all got to start somewhere and if you haven't had brand specific training you are going to find it a little harder because it's slightly different application to shellac.
But Once we pin point what it is that's wrong you'll be fine!

First up:
Are you using CND cuticle away in your Gelish prep?

Are you capping the free edge?
Xx
 
Don't be disheartened, we've all got to start somewhere and if you haven't had brand specific training you are going to find it a little harder because it's slightly different application to shellac.
But Once we pin point what it is that's wrong you'll be fine!

First up:
Are you using CND cuticle away in your Gelish prep?

Are you capping the free edge?
Xx
Yes to both:( im wondering if maybe my layers are too think but im keeping as thin as i possibly can. Im struggling to figure out what else it could be.
 
Stop using cuticle away!!
It can cause lifting with Gelish.

I know some techs do use it and get along fine but stop using it and see if it makes a difference.

Keep your layers thin, even if you have to do an extra thin coat for good coverage it's better than doing coats that are too thick.
Xx
 
Is that Gelish or shellac smoothing gel?
 
Why are you assuming it's the products fault if you are having problems with 2 reputable brands? :)

You have done your CND training so are probably doing everything right, Gelish is applied ever so slightly differently but I don't think it's so different that you'll have problems.

What is the condition of your 3 clients nails? did they have weak, thin or peeling nails?

Do you have any photos of your application of gel polish? It may help :)
 
I'm still not fully qualified but why are you dry wiping between each coat? You need the sticky tacky layer for the other coats to adhere, you should only wipe sticky tacky layer when you have finished, I have never had problems with chipping, I use gelish and other various cheap brands, I hope this helps?
 
Why are you assuming it's the products fault if you are having problems with 2 reputable brands? :)

You have done your CND training so are probably doing everything right, Gelish is applied ever so slightly differently but I don't think it's so different that you'll have problems.

What is the condition of your 3 clients nails? did they have weak, thin or peeling nails?

Do you have any photos of your application of gel polish? It may help :)
Hi Noreen, i will get some pics today and upload them. Im not assuming its the products fault at all, im assumint its mine.
The ladies have a mixed bag of nails, 2 of them used to wear hard gel but they are using there solar oil now a few months and the condition is not too bad. The other lady never wears any product and her nails were pretty good too. I did her Sat at 12am and by Sun at 12 she had text to say 3 had come away. I asked her to come back as soon as she can so i can see them and i will post a pic.

Im trying hard to get this so right. I want to make this work.
 
Stop using cuticle away!!
It can cause lifting with Gelish.

I know some techs do use it and get along fine but stop using it and see if it makes a difference.

Keep your layers thin, even if you have to do an extra thin coat for good coverage it's better than doing coats that are too thick.
Xx
Thanks Sam, do you cap with every layer of product (ie smoothing, foundation etc) or just the colour coats?
 
Hi Noreen, i will get some pics today and upload them. Im not assuming its the products fault at all, im assumint its mine.
The ladies have a mixed bag of nails, 2 of them used to wear hard gel but they are using there solar oil now a few months and the condition is not too bad. The other lady never wears any product and her nails were pretty good too. I did her Sat at 12am and by Sun at 12 she had text to say 3 had come away. I asked her to come back as soon as she can so i can see them and i will post a pic.

Im trying hard to get this so right. I want to make this work.

Without seeing the photos I think it could be one of 2 things. Clients natural nails are not suitable for gel polish and/or you are over capping the free edge.

First red flag is that 2/3 clients used to wear hard gel extensions. Has it been more than 6 months since they had them on? If not their nails will have been weakened, gel polish is not suitable for thin weakened nails. Gel polish is so thin it requires the strength of the natural nail to keep it strong, if nails are thinned out from filing the surface then they will be over flexing and this will cause gel polish to lift (no matter what the brand).

Also in your CND training how were you taught to polish? Have you learnt the 5 step method of polishing. I have always done my polishing in 3 strokes but was recently shown the 5 step method on some CND training I did recently, I have to say even after 7 years of polishing nails it's made a difference to my shellac application, search it on YouTube if your not familiar with it. It caps the free edge first and then does the rest so it pulls any excess off the free edge so you are not left with excess product. If it's too thick you will not get a proper cure and this will be more likely to chip, likewise if it is bulbous it will catch and will be more likely to peel back. you can use the 5 point method for polishing with any product :) Capping with gel polish is for aesthetics only, the free edge is so sharp it naturally wears away after a few days anyway. there should be hardly any product along the free edge, just the bare minimum.
 
Without seeing the photos I think it could be one of 2 things. Clients natural nails are not suitable for gel polish and/or you are over capping the free edge.

First red flag is that 2/3 clients used to wear hard gel extensions. Has it been more than 6 months since they had them on? If not their nails will have been weakened, gel polish is not suitable for thin weakened nails. Gel polish is so thin it requires the strength of the natural nail to keep it strong, if nails are thinned out from filing the surface then they will be over flexing and this will cause gel polish to lift (no matter what the brand).

Also in your CND training how were you taught to polish? Have you learnt the 5 step method of polishing. I have always done my polishing in 3 strokes but was recently shown the 5 step method on some CND training I did recently, I have to say even after 7 years of polishing nails it's made a difference to my shellac application, search it on YouTube if your not familiar with it. It caps the free edge first and then does the rest so it pulls any excess off the free edge so you are not left with excess product. If it's too thick you will not get a proper cure and this will be more likely to chip, likewise if it is bulbous it will catch and will be more likely to peel back. you can use the 5 point method for polishing with any product :) Capping with gel polish is for aesthetics only, the free edge is so sharp it naturally wears away after a few days anyway. there should be hardly any product along the free edge, just the bare minimum.
Noreen thankyou for that. Our training was very indepth but the application part wasnt given so much time if im honest. It was mostly prep and a quick run over application. When you do your clients do you just cap the first colour coat? Do you cap base and top coat ? Im capping every layer which is obviously way too much i am now thinking.
 
I can understand why so much time went into prep as it is the most important part of the service. :)

When I used to polish in three strokes I would cap every layer but I did it by polishing the outer or inner third of the nail and when getting to the free edge I would flick it across the edge of the nail, because there was barely any product left on the brush at this stage it didn't leave a ridge of product.

With the new CND polishing method you take all excess off the brush , almost wipe it clean, cap free edge with base coat first, re dip brush into base coat to pick up more product start in the centre of the nail and pull down to free edge , lift the brush up and massage the brush from the centre back to the cuticle , press down on the bristles to splay the brush out like a fan and this will match your cuticle shape , once you've got close to cuticles drag the brush down to the free edge again , then do either side of the nail using the corner of the brush as a guide to get nice clean lines down the sidewalls. You only cap the colour coat once and you also cap the topcoat.

This method gives a great finish but it also makes it pretty fool proof to not have the shellac to thick in any part of the nail, it is a life saver for the likes of cream puff and fedora who are prone to wrinkling.

But again if your clients nails just aren't suitable for gel polish, no method of application will work for them, it's very hard to go from the strength of a hard gel enhancement to gel polish. Gel polish is for people with healthy nails who want a longer lasting coating than nail polish :)
 
Thanks Sam, do you cap with every layer of product (ie smoothing, foundation etc) or just the colour coats?
Yes I do cap every layer x
 
Hi everyone,

I could just cry. Trained in Sept and things are still not going right. I did 3 clients 2 days ago, 3 out of 3 have chipped. What the hell am i doing wrong.

Trained with cnd but i stock both cnd and Gelish. Lamp is uv and new.


I do the following:
Prep
Scrubfresh
Ph bond
Foundation cure 1min
Dry wipe
Smoothing gel cure 2 min
Dry wipe
Colour coat x2 -each 2 mins
Top coat
Sticky layer off
Cuticle oil.

I am so dedicated and putting in so much time and effort but my confidence is just knocked every few days.

Please offer anything you can xx
Hi, I've just been on a gelish translation course. The structure gel which I think you refer to as smoothing gel was advised to put this on top of the 2nd colour coat. I've never used it, I think it's only really used in severe cases not as a direct step in the process with every client.
 
Hi, I've just been on a gelish translation course. The structure gel which I think you refer to as smoothing gel was advised to put this on top of the 2nd colour coat. I've never used it, I think it's only really used in severe cases not as a direct step in the process with every client.

It can be used after foundation but before colour for ridges/ blemishes or after colour coats for added strength.
But you right it isn't part of the Gelish procedure only an added extra that's used where needed. Xx
 

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