Practical guides for colorists, stylists and nail techs: hair color, developer, bond repair, salon supplies, nail care and inventory.
Acrylic liquid (monomer) mixed with powder makes an acrylic enhancement. Two monomers come up again and again: EMA (ethyl methacrylate), the main monomer in most acrylic liquids today, and MMA (methyl methacrylate), a cheaper monomer that is prohibited in California salons. This guide compares the two, summarizes California and federal …
Gel nail allergy has become a common occupational skin problem for nail techs in many countries. The usual culprit is HEMA and other methacrylates in gel that hasn’t cured yet, getting onto the skin during a service. Once someone is sensitized, it’s usually for life: some techs have had to …
Nail techs wear gloves most of the day: to keep acetone, acrylic liquid and disinfectants off their skin, and to keep each service clean. The three common disposable gloves are latex (natural rubber), nitrile (synthetic rubber) and vinyl (PVC). This guide compares them using what U.S. safety agencies, the California …
Pedicure clients often ask to have their calluses “shaved off.” In California, nail techs can’t do that: the rules allow smoothing a callus, not removing it, and razor-edged callus tools aren’t even allowed on the premises. This guide covers what the regulations and the Board’s own materials say about calluses, …
Paraffin dips are an easy add-on for manicures and pedicures: warm wax softens hands and feet, and clients love how it feels. Done carelessly, though, paraffin can burn skin, and a bath that is shared all day can get dirty. This guide covers safe temperatures, which clients should skip paraffin, …
Every colorist knows the client whose temples still show through after a full permanent service. Resistant gray hair is slower to take color than the rest of the head, so a formula that covers the crown can leave the hairline see-through. The fix is rarely a stronger developer. It is …
Most Kenra styling products carry a number: Volume Mist 2, Perfect Medium Spray 13, Volume Spray 25, Ultra Freeze Spray 30. Those Kenra hairspray numbers are a hold scale, and once you know how it works you can pick the right can in seconds, whether you are setting a blowout, …
When color looks flat, a blowout falls by lunch and the roots feel coated an hour after a wash, the cause is usually buildup, and the fix is a clarifying shampoo. This guide for stylists and colorists covers what a clarifying shampoo removes, how it differs from chelating shampoo, how …
California’s pedicure spa rules are specific. The type of basin decides which steps you follow, how often and what goes in the log, and each chair that falls short can count as a separate violation. This guide turns the California pedicure spa cleaning requirements in Title 16 of the California …
Moroccanoil Treatment comes in three versions that look nearly identical on the shelf: the Original, Light and the Treatment Mist (Ultra-Light). Pick the wrong one and fine hair can end up heavy, while thick or curly hair may not get enough slip. This guide settles the Moroccanoil Treatment Original vs …
