Nailcare Tips

Usually, this space is dedicated to haircare, but they say change is good and that variety is the spice of life. For that reason, I decided to write about nail care this week. Many people who know me think of me as a hairstylist, but my very first job in the beauty industry was as a nail technician. I've included some tricks I've learned from doing nails, and most of them can be applied to natural nails as well as artificial nails.

The first thing I learned about nails was to never file the nail in a back and forth type movement. Instead of going from side to side, it is recommended that you file from the corner to center in only one direction. Back and forth filing can cause the nail to break, and it builds up alot of friction, which can cause a burning sensation.

Besides filing, regularly buffing the surface of the nail is recommended. Three-way buffers are an indespensible item. They can usually be found in three colors, black and white on the front, and gray on the back. The black section, which has the greater degree of grit, is used to remove ridges from the natural nail surface. The white section buffs out scratches and smoothes the nail, and the gray section shines the nail. I know many people think buffing and filing is for the ladies, but it is very beneficial to men as well. I once gave a manicure to a plumber, and he swears that it makes his job alot easier, having nails that are short and smooth. Properly groomed nails don't only look attractive, but they are also functional. If you have a job that requires the use of your hands, like a typist or even an auto mechanic, it is a good idea to have well-groomed nails. One of my hobbies is playing the guitar, and I always keep a nail file handy because it's really hard to play guitar with longer nails or nails with rough edges. In fact, a large majority of male manicure clients are guitarists.

Applying nail polish is another area that seems to give people trouble. Many women complain that they get air bubbles in their polish. This can be avoided by rolling the bottle of polish back and forth in the palms of your hands to mix it, instead of shaking the bottle up and down. You also need base coat and top coat in addition to the nail polish itself. Nail techs paint nails by applying one coat of base coat, followed by two coats of nail polish, then one layer of top coat. That's four coats total. nail techs also apply polish in three strokes; one down the center, and one on each side. Instead of

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