Power & Polish with O.P.I

Elevate your business & embrace new techniques with advice from the Scratch Stars award-winning OPI team

Lucy Price-Marshall OPI educator Scratch Stars Natural Nail Specialist of the Year 2023 & 2024 finalist @lucyrosenails

Onycholysis can be identified by thickening, yellowing or unevenness at the free edge.

Manual prep on natural nails using a cuticle tool from Katie Barnes Tool Range.

“As nail professionals, we should not make a medical diagnosis, but should be able to identify when something is wrong.”

Identifying and treating common nail conditions and service concerns are valuable skills that will support your career.

Knowledge of restrictive and preventative contraindications will help you to perform professional and safe services, which will reap trust from clients and repeat custom.

Your clients may present with various nail conditions and seek advice to treat their concerns. Some of these concerns, such as onychomycosis (a fungal infection), may need to be referred for medical attention. As nail professionals, we should not make a medical diagnosis, but should be able to identify when something is wrong. This is why allowing time for a thorough consultation and observation of your client’s nails is a fundamental part of their treatment. If you notice that a client’s nail is changing condition, leading to pseudomonas or product breakdown for example, it is important to troubleshoot the cause and symptoms.

NailKnowledge (www.nailknowledge.org) is a great resource for improving and updating anatomy and physiology understanding, to help you build confidence when treating different nail types. Continual learning ensures that you are making the correct and safe recommendations to clients. Research anything that you are unsure about and look for answers from reputable companies.

Pseudomonas is a common nail condition: a type of bacterium that can look yellow or brown in infancy. In time, it will get greener, until it can look almost black in colour. It is essential to remove enhancements and troubleshoot the service; for example, your client may have left too long between maintenance appointments and the enhancements may have lifted, causing infection to breed. In this case, the nail enhancements must be removed, and you must dispose of the consumables and files used. Tools should be sterilised and the nail should be left free of product until the green mark grows up the nail plate.

Another common nail concern is onycholysis: separation of the nail plate from the nail bed.

This can happen painlessly and for a number of reasons, such as trauma, infection, injury or allergy. It can be identified by visible shortening of the nail bed and a deeper free edge that is often yellow in colour, and can get worse if not treated. I use OPI Nail Envy and Repair Mode to help restore natural nails to good health.

Fungal infections can only be treated medically – not by nail technicians. For any other causes, nail technicians should remove excess length and enhancements and leave nails free from product until the nail is fully re-attached. Clients with suspected allergies should seek medical attention and testing prior to further nail services.

I recommend and retail OPI’s Pro Spa Nail & Cuticle Oil and Hand, Nail & Cuticle Cream to clients, so they can help maintain their nails at home and reduce the risk of product breakdown.

Nail systems for various nail types

If your client seeks length and strength, a liquid & powder or hard gel enhancement may be the best choice. I recommend hard gel to clients with oily or flexible nails. If the client wishes to grow their nails with a little help, a soft builder gel will provide protection for nail growth, while some clients may need more strength with a reinforced free edge for weak and flexible nails.

If stress cracks are present when your client returns for maintenance, you need to be able to adapt the service and provide them with advice regarding the length or system to ensure they have a safe, long-lasting manicure. Prep thoroughly and use a full system in line with the manufacturer’s guidelines, in order to maximise results and minimise the risk of developing nail conditions or service concerns.

From Lucy and the team at OPI x