Vital 5 Minutes

Need for Speed?

Don't Rush! Correct Nail Preparation is a vital step. Carry out your preparation diligently and avoid potential problems. 

5 Steps 

To Heaven!

• Sanitise your hands and the clients hands.

• Tidy the cuticle area. 

• Remove the shine from the nail plate.

• Cleanse the nail plate.

• Allow the nail plate to dry.

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Nail Preparation

Nail preparation procedures are by far the most important stages of all nail services. They are particularly essential when applying nail enhancements and rebalancing existing sets. A good, professional technician will religiously prepare the nail and NEVER forget or skip nail preparation in exchange for speed. Preparing the nail only takes five minutes, those five minutes will aid adhesion and most importantly ensure that you have not put your client at risk of obtaining a nail infection. These 5 minutes are VITAL. 

Before we begin explaining the appropriate methods of nail preparation we would like to briefly cover your working area.

Prior to commencement of any service it is essential to prepare your working area and nail tools. Disinfect all hard surfaces: manicure tables etc. If you are using a terry towel and paper roll to protect surfaces, please ensure they are replaced and clean prior to each service. Your area needs to be free from bacteria and dust particles. It is good practice to sterilize all tools and to either change your files or sanitise them if they are sanitisable.

• You will need to sanitise both your hands and your clients with an antibacterial hand wash. There are many variations available: they range from sprays, gels and non-rinse formulas. The non-rinse formulas are quite popular at present. the benefits are convenience and speed, especially for the mobile technician.
  
  If the client is wearing nail polish - you should remove it at this stage.

	Checkpoint
	A good time ! This stage is an ideal opportunity to make a mental note of the condition of your clients nails and assess how and what you are going to do to treat (rectify) them.  ***

• Tidy the cuticle area. Apply a cuticle remover to soften the cuticles, dead skin cells and the surrounding skin. Using a disinfected cuticle pusher/knife, gently push the eponychium back and remove any existing dead skin cells from around the cuticle and side wall areas. The removal of the dead skin cells is imperative to obtain a well adhered and non lifting enhancement. Dead skin cells are porous and will retain moisture if left on the nail plate. This moisture will interfere with the bonding process of your overlay.

• For optimum adhesion we recommend the removal of the shine from the nail plate. Recommended is a white block or a 220-240 grit cushioned board. We don’t really recommend the use of a 100/180 grit file, this file is rather harsh and will almost certainly damage or thin the nail plate. When removing the shine buff in the direction of the growth of the natural nail plate: north to south. pay particular attention to the cuticle and side wall areas. These areas are usually harboring stubborn or trapped bacteria.

• Using a lint free pad or gauze pad absorbed with your “nail Prep”, thoroughly cleanse the nail plate and surrounding areas. Again pay particular attention to the cuticle and side wall areas, these areas are almost definitely harboring bacteria and oils. Your “Nail Prep” will sanitise and remove any excess oils, moisture and bacteria present and dehydrate the nail plate. The dehydration process is affective for approximately 20-30 minutes, once this time has elapsed the nail plate will start to re-hydrate itself.

• The natural nail plate is porous, when it is wet it will expand. You will need to allow the nail plate to dry-out and shrink back to its original size and shape prior to tipping and overlaying (this dying- out time is very minimal). As soon as you have prepped the nail, and by the time it takes to prepare your equipment for the next stage, the nail should be dry - its a matter of minutes. Do not touch the cleansed and dehydrated nail with your fingers, you will transfer your bodily oils to the prepared nail.
  
  Your client is now ready for the next stage of her service.

• Prior to start of your service. ( hand sanitiser)

• When preparing the nail for tip application. (remove shine and apply “Nail Prep”)

• After nail tip application and blending it is necessary to remove excess dust particles and to cleanse the nail with your “Nail Prep” solution, allow to dry before commencement of the overlay.

• Prior to any other overlay

• Between Interruptions: If you are mobile you will be subjected to numerous interruptions and distractions. The client may need to go to the toilet, telephone, door, assist a child and sometimes even perform the dreaded nappy change. Whatever the distraction, you must always apply your nail prep to all 10 nails again before commencing with the service.

This fact sheet has been prepared for use as a guideline only. You will find that guidelines differ from company to company and sometimes information compared from one to the other can be contradictive. Each company has their own set of recommendations.

These fact sheets may be used for your personal use only. Nail Solutions fact sheets may not be reproduced by any means and or distributed without the express permission of Nail Solutions Limited.