12.4 Polishing

Polishing is the fourth part of the outline's basic manicure/pedicure item and the last step of the service. Every earlier step can be ruined here: oil left on the plate lifts the color, a thick coat wrinkles, and a smudge sends the client home unhappy. The sequence and strokes below are standard nail-technology instruction. Pennsylvania does not set a brand, a coat count, or a drying time.

Prepare the plate

Polish has to bond to clean, dry keratin. After massage, remove oil and lotion from the plate with a clean piece of cotton and remover or the product the system names, and brush off any filing or buffing dust. Oil on the surrounding skin is fine. Oil on the plate is not. On a pedicure, place toe separators or a strip of clean paper towel between the toes before the first coat.

The standard coat sequence

Apply each coat thin. A thick coat pools at the sidewalls, wrinkles, and stays soft underneath long after the surface feels dry. Let each coat set briefly before the next.

Cap the free edge on each coat by stroking the brush lightly across the tip of the nail. That seal wraps the edge, which is where water and wear start chipping.

How to apply a coat

1. Mix the polish by rolling the bottle between your palms. Shaking it traps air bubbles that end up on the nail.
2. Remove the brush and wipe one side on the inside of the bottle neck so the bead on the other side is the right size for one nail.
3. Place the brush on the center of the plate a short distance from the cuticle area, press lightly so the bristles fan, and stroke down the center to the free edge.
4. Return to the base and stroke down one side, then the other, following the sidewall.
5. Leave a hairline margin at the cuticle and at the sidewalls. Polish on the skin looks messy, lifts with the skin, and is hard to remove.

Close each bottle between nails so solvent does not evaporate and thicken the polish. Keep the bottle neck clean so the cap seals. When polish becomes thick and stringy, add polish thinner. Do not add acetone or polish remover, which breaks down the formula.

Cleanup and drying

Clean any polish on the skin with an orangewood stick wrapped in cotton and dipped in remover, or with a small brush made for cleanup. The cotton-wrapped stick is single-use and goes into the covered waste container. A cleanup brush is used only if it can be cleaned between clients.

Lacquer dries as its solvents evaporate. It can feel dry to the touch within minutes and still be soft underneath, so warn the client about pressure, hot water, and pulling on tight shoes. Quick-dry drops or sprays speed the surface set. Gel polish is different: it does not air-dry and must be cured under the matched lamp, which is taught with gels.

Polish styles

The coat sequence does not change with the style. A French manicure still starts with a base coat and ends with a top coat over the white tip.

Products and safety

Polish, base coat, and top coat contain flammable solvents. Keep bottles closed, upright, and away from heat, sunlight, and flame, and store them with the other flammable products. Nail hardeners may be applied in place of or under a base coat, as the label directs. FDA notes that formaldehyde in some nail hardeners and polishes bonds with keratin to harden the nail, but frequent use can make nails brittle and more likely to break or peel, and it can cause skin irritation or allergic reactions. Read the label, keep product off the skin, and stop if the client reports a reaction.

Scenario: bubbles and a thick bottle

A client chooses a red that has sat on the shelf for months. The polish is thick and stringy, and a coworker suggests shaking it hard and adding remover. Instead, add polish thinner, then roll the bottle between your palms. Clean the plate of oil, apply a base coat, two thin color coats with a center stroke and two side strokes, and cap the free edge each time. Finish with a top coat, clean the cuticle line with a single-use cotton-wrapped stick, and remind the client that the color is still soft underneath.