“THE GREATEST GIFT IS NOT BEING AFRAID TO QUESTION.”
– RUBY DEE, AFRICAN AMERICAN ACTRESS, WRITER & CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST
We all know that with knowledge comes power. We want to take some time to address some of the most important issues in nails according to you, our YN online community. Keep those questions coming and we’ll return to them regularly to drop the answers to your most burning questions.
HOW HAS THE PANDEMIC AFFECTED YOUNG NAILS?
It’s definitely impacted our business. Most of our company is working from home but we’re managing. It’s going to be very different once things come back. Our main concern will be how to deal with social distancing for the safety and protection of our team. As a business, I try to take a negative and make a positive. Right now, we’re limping along responding to orders. We have a very small team to manage. We were able to pivot into making essential products like hand sanitizer along with our standard practice alcohol-based sanitizing products like Swipe. I accept that we have no control over the pandemic and how we will be able to move forward from here. All I know is that we have to make changes. Things are going to be different, why fight it? Embrace the changes whatever they need to be like masks, gloves, or Plexiglas so nail services can be done with comfort and safety in mind.
SHOULD NAIL TECHS BE AFRAID OF CLIENTS DOING THEIR OWN NAILS AT HOME?
Be afraid of what their hands might look like when they come back to you. Boredom and breakups can breed bad decisions in beauty. As a pro, you’re just going to have to roll with it. You might want to remove everything for a fresh start. Never be afraid of losing clients to their own at home DIY nail treatments. The option to cheat on you with a trip to Sally’s Beauty has always been an option. Your long standing clients will want to return to you as soon as they can; either because they don't have time or the experience or the interest. Trust you and your business are going to be perfectly fine. There are enough clients to go around. We’ve talked about the different kinds of clients that come to the salon and the ones that will never be yours. We’re thinking about the ones that were already doing their own nails for fun pandemic. When this all clears up…they’ll be coming back. If anything your clients will understand and appreciate your work even more especially after trying to do it for themselves. It’s a lot of work and it takes a lot of training to do nails like the pro you are. They will thank you.
OH NO, LIFTING. HOW TO DEAL WITH IT FROM HOME?
We have a lot of support in our video and social media archives on how to handle lifting. Look for tricksby Steph or Tracey. This is a big deal because you need to battle any potential risk of unwanted infections. When there is doubt, just file it down. If you’re seeing a lot of lifting, keep filing it down to the point of removal. Go slowly until you hit the natural nail. Whatever you do, please don’t glue it down. You may trap water and where there is water there is bacteria which leads to infection. Ick. Lifting means it's time to go.
DOES CHANGE OF SEASONS AFFECT YOUR NAILS?
We notice the most breakage during the Summer and Late Spring. One of the reasons is the ritualistic Spring Cleaning. People are headed out and into more physical activities. This can be hard on nails. You’ll start to notice client after client coming in with breaks then glance at the calendar to see it’s April. Another thing to notice is how a seasonal change might affect your product and how it bonds. Switch your products up if you’re running into any problems. Think about using Core in the summer, it’s slower and Speed in the winter. Beyond the seasons, salon micro-climates hot or cold can also influence how your product performs. Make adjustments to keep the consistency right. Don’t skip steps in nail prep and cleansing, especially using Swipe before Protein Bond in any humid weather.
SHOULD YOU WEAR SHORTER NAILS COMING INTO THE SPRING OR SUMMER?
There are no hard rules for nail length, afterall people love nails as a form of personal expression. Yet the most popular length of nails based on demand is the active length. Sadly, stilettos and wakeboarding don’t go that well together. People’s lifestyles, especially in their Spring hobbies or the requirements of their professional lives like typing, determine the length they’re most comfortable living with.
HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH ACCIDENTALLY CUT YOUR CLIENT?
Accidents happen and it can get really awkward. Prepare your tools. Season your files and file bits. That can go a long way into preventing accidental knicks and cuts. If the inevitable happens, apologize, clean it with a disinfectant. Whatever you do, don’t let it get in your head and make it into a bigger deal than it is. It’s usually not that bad, so don't keep bringing it up over and over again during the service. The best piece of advice is not cut hangnails before you do your service. This is because if you cut them first and then hit it with a file during service, it will bleed. Just wait until the very end to take care of them instead. Do all your prep, and leave the hangnails until the very end.
**This is an adaptation from our YN Biz Talk playlist on YouTube, “BIZ TALK TOP NAIL Q&A #1”
05 June 2020