It is important to know your nail tech. Licensing, knowledge, experience, safety and cleanliness are all important in providing the best nail care for your individual needs.
Lets start with Licensing.
A Nail technician must be licensed no matter where he/she is performing their services. Their license must be openly displayed and presented upon request. You, as a potential customer, should ask to see your nail technicians license. If they cannot present a valid, current license, you should look elsewhere for a nail technician. It is recommended that you ask for a photo ID to ensure that the license is actually that of the person who is performing your services. There are salons who "train" friends and family members to do nails and use one license for the entire salon personnel. This is not only illegal, it is unethical and unsafe for you as a customer. If the photo ID does not match the name on the license, you should find a licensed technician who is legal and compliant with the law.
Licensing is one step the state provided to ensure your technician knows how to perform the services safely and understands how to use the chemicals and products within their scope of work.
Licensing, however, is only the first step. Knowledge and experience are vital.
Lets talk about knowledge and experience.
Knowledge is power and nothing beats experience. Your technician will gain the bulk of basic knowledge from school in earning his/her license, however, applying that knowledge daily, gaining experience, hands on in a salon setting, performing service daily on a diversified clientele will provide a stronger education and a deeper understanding of his/her role as your service provider. A nail technician will also make use of all the continuing education classes that are available to all in the beauty industry. Utilizing a nail technician or nail artist who has 10+ years of experience and values continuing education & classes to learn new skills and products upgrades will benefit you as a customer. You may pay a bit more when you are serviced by an experienced technician but the peace of mind knowing that you are being serviced by someone who is experienced, educated with current skills, knowledgeable about products and services and provides you with a clean, sanitary and healthy environment to relax and receive your service is valuable beyond measure.
Lets talk about cleanliness, sanitation and safety.
The nail salon can be a scary place if your tech is not clean. It can look pretty with decorations and design, but germs, viruses, fungus and bacteria can lurk in pretty places. Be aware of your technicians actions and surroundings. Watch her procedures and ask her what she does to ensure she is cleansing, disinfecting, sanitizing and sterilizing any non-disposable tools and/or implements that she is using on you. It is really important for your own health and safety that you have a technician that understands the importance of following correct procedures of cleansing, disinfecting, sanitizing, and sterilizing the appropriate areas and tools within his/her salon work space.
Cleansing, Disinfecting, Sanitizing & Sterilizing? There are 4 ways to clean?
Yes. Each are different and important. We will discuss the difference and their importance in our next blog post!
Til then.... Make every moment count!
Tracy Heiser is Grand Master Nail Technician, a Master Artist and a Certified Educator with over 30 years of experience in the Nail & Beauty Industry.
