Is nail art becoming lost within the wealth of acrylic and gel colours now available to us today? Are overcomplicated design nails what we need to bring in additional income? I started my love affair with colour through nail art, painting on everything and anything I used nails as mini canvases which brought me an enjoyable income and helped me perfect my skills for design.
It is normal, when we first start out in this industry, to use nail art when we want to bring a lift to our tips, adding colour and something different to our craft which allows us a natural release to our creativity. As a new technician we learn a lot about how we should apply acrylic, create the perfect smile line and file the nails in to the correct shape, but nothing brings us more pleasure then adding a bit of tint and sparkle to the nails. Just a few moments of fun with your striping brush and a bright colour will help us remember why we try so hard to perfect our skills. There are some that say nail art is over rated and shouldn’t play a part within the industry, but it is not the industry which is important. It is your clients and what they want, that will pay your rent and put food on the table. Think about how your clients perceive you, and what your business can offer them. By showing them a range of decorated tips, you show your clients a range of skills, letting them have a choice gives them power to decide you’re the best tech for them. We ultimately want to help these clients remember us as a nail professional with an edge over the competition. This of course can be done with a range of different gels and acrylics in a rainbow of colours ready for use to use in neat little pots and tubes. But we don’t want to disregard nail art and hand painted designs, what you must always remember, is that the simple solutions is sometimes the most effective.
Perhaps we should start thinking of nail art not as a creative medium but instead as a marketing tool, which will increase profitability to your business. With a little swipe of paint we can change the look of a nail which costs us next to nothing. Imagine for example you have just rebalanced Mrs Smith with pearly white tips and a blush pink to make her nail beds healthy, now you turn to her and say, “would you like me to enhance your nails to match your outfit for that wedding, this weekend”? “oh” she replies “what did you have in mind”? “ well with a thin brush I will run a small stripe of gold and copper along your smile line, this will go perfectly with your dress, and after the wedding you can remove this if you like, giving you the best of two looks”! “well, now that sounds like a grand idea” Mrs Smith smiles and looks at your shiny new nails “how much will it cost me”? “oh not much at all” you reply, “it is very simple” and as you start to get the paints out you tell her it will only take a few moment and cost just an extra £5.
Strips, circles, flicks and flowers, little snow men and holly bunches, hearts and kisses or just a simple pattern over the tips, whatever you do think about incorporating the nails your clients are already wearing within your nail art. Making the most of their shape and style, and bring the best out of them with colour and design. For example; dotting different size spots in three shades of the same colour over one corner of the nail is fun for your younger clients. Using block colours and highlighting them with paler shades will add depth to your art. Whatever takes your fancy, don’t be afraid to offer it to the Mrs Smith’s of today. You need to do all you can to help your business survive, and by offering a quick and cost effective service with a high profit margin, then you can be one step closer to staying open.
By adding nail art to your menu of services, and making it common practice throughout the day, you will develop your skills, learning how to draw your inspiration from things around you. In time your designs will develop into true masterpieces which you should then think about
showing other nail professionals. Utilizing the competition circuit will not only help you grow as a technician, the rewards also extend to your business. With trophy’s littering your shelves and certificates against the walls, your clients can have faith they are paying for a winner. Word soon spreads and your abilities will be sort after, your confidence will be boosted.
Don’t dismiss nails art as something too simple, boring or un inspiring, it might just be that added extra which turns your business around, inspiring you to develop your craft and moving you in a new, exciting and colourful direction.
It is normal, when we first start out in this industry, to use nail art when we want to bring a lift to our tips, adding colour and something different to our craft which allows us a natural release to our creativity. As a new technician we learn a lot about how we should apply acrylic, create the perfect smile line and file the nails in to the correct shape, but nothing brings us more pleasure then adding a bit of tint and sparkle to the nails. Just a few moments of fun with your striping brush and a bright colour will help us remember why we try so hard to perfect our skills. There are some that say nail art is over rated and shouldn’t play a part within the industry, but it is not the industry which is important. It is your clients and what they want, that will pay your rent and put food on the table. Think about how your clients perceive you, and what your business can offer them. By showing them a range of decorated tips, you show your clients a range of skills, letting them have a choice gives them power to decide you’re the best tech for them. We ultimately want to help these clients remember us as a nail professional with an edge over the competition. This of course can be done with a range of different gels and acrylics in a rainbow of colours ready for use to use in neat little pots and tubes. But we don’t want to disregard nail art and hand painted designs, what you must always remember, is that the simple solutions is sometimes the most effective.
Perhaps we should start thinking of nail art not as a creative medium but instead as a marketing tool, which will increase profitability to your business. With a little swipe of paint we can change the look of a nail which costs us next to nothing. Imagine for example you have just rebalanced Mrs Smith with pearly white tips and a blush pink to make her nail beds healthy, now you turn to her and say, “would you like me to enhance your nails to match your outfit for that wedding, this weekend”? “oh” she replies “what did you have in mind”? “ well with a thin brush I will run a small stripe of gold and copper along your smile line, this will go perfectly with your dress, and after the wedding you can remove this if you like, giving you the best of two looks”! “well, now that sounds like a grand idea” Mrs Smith smiles and looks at your shiny new nails “how much will it cost me”? “oh not much at all” you reply, “it is very simple” and as you start to get the paints out you tell her it will only take a few moment and cost just an extra £5.
Strips, circles, flicks and flowers, little snow men and holly bunches, hearts and kisses or just a simple pattern over the tips, whatever you do think about incorporating the nails your clients are already wearing within your nail art. Making the most of their shape and style, and bring the best out of them with colour and design. For example; dotting different size spots in three shades of the same colour over one corner of the nail is fun for your younger clients. Using block colours and highlighting them with paler shades will add depth to your art. Whatever takes your fancy, don’t be afraid to offer it to the Mrs Smith’s of today. You need to do all you can to help your business survive, and by offering a quick and cost effective service with a high profit margin, then you can be one step closer to staying open.By adding nail art to your menu of services, and making it common practice throughout the day, you will develop your skills, learning how to draw your inspiration from things around you. In time your designs will develop into true masterpieces which you should then think about
showing other nail professionals. Utilizing the competition circuit will not only help you grow as a technician, the rewards also extend to your business. With trophy’s littering your shelves and certificates against the walls, your clients can have faith they are paying for a winner. Word soon spreads and your abilities will be sort after, your confidence will be boosted.Don’t dismiss nails art as something too simple, boring or un inspiring, it might just be that added extra which turns your business around, inspiring you to develop your craft and moving you in a new, exciting and colourful direction.
This article, written by Sam Biddle was featured in an article published in SCRATCH magazine March 2009, titled NAIL ART IN THE NOUGHTIES.
