Long Time No Speak

Sorry that I have been a big quiet on the blog for a while. I have been really busy with ill children and most recently ill me. Have had a terrible sickness bug that seems to not want to leave my household and it really hit us all hard. I am hopefully getting towards the end of it although I haven't been able to get my appetite back fully, but I have my Manicure and Pedicure Diploma course tomorrow with Emma Hawkes from Taunton Nail Training Academy so I need to fight through it.

I also realised that I forgot to show you all what Anniversary Gift Part 2 was, so here it is...

It would also be rude not to show you my new OPI Manicure and Pedicure range which I will be testing on my sister who is my model on my course tomorrow. I'm very excited about these products as OPI is always amazing quality and the smell coming from the bottles even though I haven't opened them is lush! They had better be good as they are the most expensive range that I looked at. I wanted to start as I meant to go on and believe that it's really important not to scrimp on products as you almost always get what you pay for.

I have Tropical Citrus Soak, Tropical Citrus scrub, Tropical Citrus Mas and Tropical Citrus Massage. When I bought these a while ago I also treated myself to a new bottle of Avoplex Cuticle Oil, which also smells and feels delicious.

I will update you when I'm done, but for now I'm off the learn every possible anatomical part of the hands and feet. Wish me luck as I'll need it, especially for the exam.

Professional Beauty Show Countdown

I'm super-excited, only 7 days until the Professional Beauty 2012 exhibition at the Excel in London! My blog posts have declined a bit (sorry about that) because I have been busy trawling the website to find out which exhibitors are going to be attending, and have then been writing buying lists for all of the goodies that I need/want.


I have been speaking to Emma Hawkes at Taunton Nail Training recently about the next training courses that I would like to do. My main priority is the Manicure and Pedicure Diploma, so I need a starter kit for both. There are so many products out there and my first instinct was to stick with what I know and buy OPI, however I am going to keep and open mind and test out the other ranges on offer before I commit.


The next service that I wanted to offer was Minx nail wraps, however after speaking to Emma she has almost convinced me that Trendy nail wraps are the way to go as they have such an amazing selection. Again, I'm sure that there are plenty of brands out there, and should try before I buy. I have almost decided again OPI Nail Apps as the website says that they should last for 2-3 days if applied properly, whereas Minx can last 3 weeks or more!

I cannot believe that I have managed to resist buying this beautiful OPI Professional Case from Lena White, especially as I really, really need one. I have done a bit of online research into alternatives, and to be honest there doesn't seem to be much competition as some of the general beauty cases aren't really fit for purpose and look a bit naff, but again, I'm prepared to wait to make sure.


                                                 


One purchase that I'm definitely going to make a beeline for is the new Holland Collection by OPI. Reason? I'm part Dutch and squealed with delight when I saw this advertised. The names are amazing and the colours are really on trend, and the OPI stand is set to be one of the biggest there!!!! Yay.

Note to self: avoid the Fake It! stand as Chantelle Houghton is going to be signing autographs...yawn. But Amy Childs is going to be there and I love TOWIE so I am definitely getting tickets for her seminar (that's if there are any left).

OPI Axxium Gel Nail Extensions

I decided that it was time to get some more practice in with gel nail extensions as I have to get the knack of working with the OPI Axxium sculpture gel. My natural nails have been growing really well, but I have felt that they are dry and bendy, so I wanted to give them a little added length and strength to help them along.


 Ever since I started training, I found that I was a bit heavy handed with the sculpture gel and brush and as a result, it ended up a bit uneven. One of the main services that I will be offering as a nail technician will be extensions, so I am determined to get perfect as soon as I can. 


I started to practice on tips attached to my freaky fake hand and eventually I felt confident enough to have a go on my myself, and here is the result of my first solo attempt (without the supervision of my tutor Emma from Taunton Nail Training).

Shame about the flash on this one, but you get the idea.

I actually feel happier with the right hand which I was surprised with as I am very much a right hander, but maybe the extra concentration paid off after all.

The pictures above were taken 5 days after I carried out the treatment, and they are still staying strong, however I have learnt the following:

• I need to working on practicing my filing and shaping of the extension as some are more oval than others.
• I need to make sure that all nails are the same length as a couple are a little longer than others.
• Until I build up my experience I need to level the finish a little better and they aren't as even as I would like them to be, although they certainly aren't bad for a first attempt.
• I have to practice the 'rock on' tip gluing method a bit more as the ring finger on my left hand has an air bubble, which shows under the gel and could compromise the finish and staying power of that nail.

As always, let me know if you have any improvement suggestions as I want to get really good at this, and constructive feedback is vital.


L xxx

Introduction

My Nail Wonderlust...


Welcome to my blog...I'm a self confessed nail fanatic and newly qualified gel nail technician using the fabulous OPI Axxium products.


I love to write, have so many creative nail ideas, and love to test and experiment, so I thought that it was definately time to start a blog to share my passion with other nail beauty lovers. 

My wedding day nails 2011

I wasn't always interested in nails; in fact if you had told me this time last year that I would have been a qualified nail technician then I probably would have looked at you blankly. The reason for this is that I have been a nail biter ever since I was 4 years old, and in the past I had suffered from an Essential Benign Tremor (EBT) which at times of stress, was severe to say the least. I have had a handful (excuse the pun) of gel/acrylic nail sets in the past, but these have been for special occasions, and due to my nail biting, have been picked and bitten off within 10 days. This remained the case until the night before my wedding...


I had an inkling that my husband had booked me a nail treat prior to the wedding as it was on my to do list, but our best man said that everywhere within a 10 mile radius was completely booked out for the 3 days before the wedding. Lo and behold, after returning from the venue to do a last minute check, a nail technician was waiting for me and my bridal party in my kitchen. She said that my husband to be had said that he had paid for us all to have whatever we wanted, which I was mighty impressed with, as this lady used possibly the most expensive system and I knew that she didn't come cheap!


I opted for the safe french finish, with extensions as my nails were quite short at that time. I wanted a classic look, and I certainly wasn't disappointed. They not only looked great, but no electric files were used (I had been scarred by a previous traumatising incident in a Chinese nail bar in a Florida Mall 12 years prior) and they lasted a really long time. By the time they were removed, my nails have actually picked up a good amount of growth. I decided to have some coral coloured gels added next which would then look great for my honeymoon in New York, and these lasted equally as well. They allowed me to grow my natural nails longer, however a week after the overlays were removed the temptation was too much - I has a split in one nail and that was that - within 24 hours all of my hard work had been bitten off again.


I was fascinated at the process of application and removal, and had a great respect at how skillful this lady was, however I never thought that it was something that I could be good at because of my EBT which used to be so severe that I couldn't write, type or hold a drink. The other salons that I had been to had left me feeling disappointed and cheated out of between £35 and £55 and as a result I had no real interest in nails. 


After finding out that gel nails didn't have to be a farce, could last beyond a week and could actually be good for natural nails, I started to think about it as a possibility.


One of my traits is that I really love a challenge, and there have been many skills that I never thought that I would be able to do, and I have just gone for it (e.g. cross stitch, knitting, driving a JCB).  


One day I saw an advert for one-to-one gel nail training with a local training provider. As with my other challenges I decided to take a more positive approach and I enrolled. It wasn't cheap and the OPI products are excellent quality, so they are expensive, but it made me even more determined to be a success. I also started to think about the long term possibilities that it could bring me and my family. I currently work full time, and have 3 gorgeous young children; I dream of the day that I can afford to spend more time with them, whilst also feeling like a professional success. Overall I would love to run my own successful full time nail business. 


Last Monday I passed the practical and the theory exam and so here I am - a qualified OPI gel nail technician. Here is my very first overlay that I created alone. Now it's not perfect, but I have to say, I'm pretty damn proud.

So this is only the start of my journey, and I am very interested to hear feedback (both positive and negative) on my ideas, reviews and treatments. After a trial period of gel nail treatments on friends, I do intend to run this as a business, so please contact me if you are interested.


L xxx