The 4 Things Every Manicurist Wants You To Know
Jo is a former Adore Beauty staffer and qualified dermal therapist with over decade of experience in the beauty industry.
She co-hosted our award-winning podcast Beauty IQ Uncensored for 4 years, interviewing names like Caroline Hirons, Katie Jane Hughes and Chris Appleton to name a few.
There's something about having your nails perfectly manicured that makes you feel like you have your life together - in fact, my manicurist is one of the most trusted people in my life. Sounds dramatic, but everyone knows the feeling of choosing the wrong colour in a haste and being stuck with it for weeks. Nails are a serious business.
We know getting shellac to last 4 weeks is quite a feat, so I asked esteemed nail technician, Clara Hwang for her tips on getting the most out of your professional manicure (as well as the sh*t we do that manicurists find annoying).
Clara has 15 years experience as a licensed nail technician, and has done the nails of celebrities like Katy Perry, Serena Willliams and Lily Allen, so she's kind of a big deal.
We get it, it’s winter, it’s dry and you don’t want us to judge you for your flaking dry cuticles you’ve been picking at all season. We encourage moisturising your hands and using cuticle oil treatments, but doing it just before your nail appointment actually puts a lot of unnecessary oils and moisture on your nails that we then have to strip off anyway in order to prep your nails for your gel session. Clients often come in with heavily moisturised, oily fingers which then becomes a liability when you decide to touch your already prepped nail bed resulting in service
breakdown such as premature lifting or chipping of the nails.
Use A Cuticle Oil Or Treatment (And Lots Of It)
Here’s where we would encourage you to use cuticle oils regularly to promote nail strength and flexibility. Moisturized nails and cuticles means less picking and peeling around your cuticles (ouch). Targeted cuticle oils treatments are very different to a regular body or hand moisturizer because is it designed to sink into the delicate skin area ensuring high absorption, locking the moisture in for longer. The best time of the day to be applying your cuticle treatment as well
as your hand cream would be just before bedtime. That way, it stays on your skin the whole night and you wont forget and wash it off like you would during the day. Burt’s Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle smells amazing and comes in a convenient pan (yay no leakage or spilling!)
