Liquid and powder nail enhancements

In this chapter, we are going to talk

about liquid and powder nail

enhancements.

In this chapter, we are going to talk

about all things liquid and nail

enhancements from why should you as a

cosmetologists learn about monomer

liquid and polymer nail enhancements.

Even if that's not something where you

want to focus to the chemistry behind it

and some of the supplies that you need.

In our industry, when we think of

acrylic, we think of nail enhancements.

But acrylic is used for so many more

things, including contact lenses,

cements that fix broken bones,

plexiglass windows, makeup, and other

cosmetic enhancements. We are going to

just study the acrylic family called

methacrylates

which is what our acrylic nails belong

to.

So let's get right into it with the

chemistry of liquid and powder nail

enhancements.

Our nail enhancements are made by mixing

something called a monomer liquid and a

polymer powder. Oftentimes the powder is

going to be in many different colors. We

might see it in white, pink, clear or

fashion colors. This is what bonds

together with our liquid monomer to

harden and create our enhancement.

Mono means one and my stands for units.

So monomer is one unit or molecule. Poly

means many and mer stands for unit. So

polymer is many units or molecules that

bond together to make a chain. This is

important to remember because these

terms are going to be said many times in

your career. Monomer liquid and polymer

powder are used in four ways. One on the

natural nail as an overlay. two over a

nail tip as a reinforcement,

three on a form to create a sculptured

nail enhancement or four to create 3D

nail art.

A natural hair brush is best for

applying these enhancements. This brush

is going to be immersed in monomer

liquid. The natural hair brister

bristles are going to absorb and hold

the liquid like a reservoir. The brush

is then touched in your dry polymer

powder. As the monomer liquid absorbs

the polymer powder, a bead, pearl, or

ball is formed.

This is then placed on the nail surface

and molded into a shape within the

brush.

Your liquid is usually one of three

monomer versions. Ethylmethylacrylate,

methmethylacrylate or odorless monomer

liquid. All three of these contain other

monomers as additives. Ethmethylacrylate

monomer or EMA and odorless monomer

liquid are the industry standards.

Methylmethylacrylate

or MMA is not the industry standard and

is illegal according to most state

boards.

The FDA bases this prohibition on the

large number of consumer pl complaints

in onolysis or the nails detaching from

the nail bed. MMA or

methylmethylacrylate

can also have um challenges with skin

irritants that can give skin reactions.

The polymer powder is also made from

ethylmethylry monomer

a methylmethylacryate or MMA

or it could be a mixture of both. MMA in

a polymer form is called

polymethylmethylacrylate.

The polymer powder made from both EMA

and PMMA is called a co-olymer. This is

your most common polymer powder type

used in the nail industry.

Polymerization occurs when monomers

create very long chains. This process

turns a liquid into a solid. It is also

referred to as curing or hardening.

Every manufacturer adds additives to

their liquid and powder to make the

products work and behave in a specific

different way. This could maybe make

them more durable or more stable or even

give them a longer shelf life. Catalysts

are additives designed to energize and

activate initiators and are added to

monomers to start or speed up the

chemical reaction. This is what is going

to make a

a powder a slow set or a monomer a fast

setting monomer or powder.

initiators in your polymer powder when

they are activated by a catalyst are

going to spring into action and cause

the molecules to permanently link

together. This initiator is called

benzol peroxide or BO. This is the same

ingredient that is used in

over-the-counter acne medicine except in

a nail enhancement. It's got a different

a different purpose. In the nail

enhancement, BO is used to start the

chain reaction that leads to the nail to

harden.

Another category that you're going to

have when it comes to nail enhancements

is odorless monomer, liquid, and polymer

powder. These don't necessarily have the

same chemistry as other monomer, liquid,

and polymer powders. They also aren't

100% odorless. oftentimes they are low

odored. These products rely on monomers

with little odor rather than ethyl

monomer. Although they are called

odorless, remember they are oftent times

just low odor. The odorless products

must be a dry mix ratio. So a dry mix

ratio means equal parts liquid and

powder in your bead. If they're too wet,

the client is often times going to get

skin irritabilities or sensitivities.

This ma mix ratio is also going to cause

your bead to be a little bit frosty. It

will also have something on it called

the inhibition layer. The inhibition

layer when filed off is going to roll

off of the nail.

So just for a brief check-in,

what products are used to make liquid

and powder nail enhancements?

What is the main ingredient of most

monomer liquids?

What are polymer powders made from?

Which process turns monomer liquid into

a polymer powder? And last, what is

considered an odorless monomer? These

are the things that we have just

covered.

Moving on, we are going to start talking

about the actual surface.

Like we stated before, you are going to

start with your monomer liquid. Monomer

liquid is combined with our polymer

powder to form the nail enhancement. The

amount of liquid and polymer powder used

to create your bead is going to be

called your mix ratio.

Bead mix ratio can either be dry, medium

or wet. If equal amounts of liquid and

powder are used to create the bead, it

is called a dry bead. Dry beads are

often times difficult to press into

place. If too much liquid is used, it is

called a wet bead. And halfway between

that is known as a medium bead. In

general, medium beads are going to be

our ideal mixing ratio.

The perfect bead is going to be round

and shiny when placed on the nail, and

it's going to settle, but it's not going

to run. It essentially is just going to

set. When using liquid monomer, you want

to ensure that you have proper

ventilation, and you need to follow your

state board.

If you wear gloves, that can prevent you

from getting a contact dermatitis or an

acquired sensitivity.

You want to keep your application and

the brush off of your guest's skin.

Like I said, if you can continue to put

the product on the skin, this is going

to cause a sensitivity.

Next in our SMA is going to be our

polymer powders. They are available in

various containers, sizes, and colors.

Traditional colors are going to be

white, pink, natural, and clear. They

can also include a wide range of colors

that mimic almost any nail polish color

that there is.

Your clients are willing to pay more for

customized services, so don't count out

having many different colors.

Nail primer is used on your natural nail

before applying a product. This is going

to prepare for liquid and powder

enhancements and it's going to help in

adhesion. There's two types of nail

primer that you can use, an acidbased or

a non-acidbased primer. You want to use

all nail primer products with caution

and follow your manufacturer's

instructions.

The nail industry's only available

primer previously was a methacrylic acid

primer. This promoted adhesion and the

primer's acid chemically etched the

nails surface. We've come a long way and

now we've created acidfree and non-acid

primers. These alternatives work as well

or better than your acidbased primer and

they're safer for your nail.

In order to apply your acidbased primer

and your acidfree primers, you want to

insert your brush into the nail primer.

Touch the brush tip to the edge of the

bottle's neck. This is going to release

excess product. And then with light

dotting action, you want to brush the

tip to your prepared natural nail. After

this, you don't want to touch the nail

again.

Before putting it back into your case,

you want to wipe it on a lint-free towel

to avoid any contamination.

Allow the primer to um dry thoroughly

before you reprime if that's what your

manufacturer asks for. Some

manufacturers ask for a wet prime and

some manufacturers ask for a dry prime.

Again, follow your manufacturer's

instructions.

Your nail abrasives or your nail files

are going to be the next step in setting

up your SMA. The term abrasive is used

to describe nail files and buffers. Even

though some abrasives have a fancier

name, essentially it's just the grit in

the file. A coarse grit file 100 grit or

lower is going to be strong enough to

thin enhancements. So, that is what

you're going to use when you're taking

off any lumps or bumps that you have in

your nail.

This can damage soft, freshly created

nail enhancements and create heavy

vibrations that can cause lifting.

Lifting is going to refer to artificial

nail products lifting off of the nail.

So, when I am using 100 grit or lower, I

want to make sure that I'm not being too

aggressive. A medium grit file or 150 to

180 is going to be your best for shaping

the initial nail perimeter, refining

your nail enhancements overall surface,

or smoothing the surface before buffing.

180 grit is usually strong enough to

enshape your entire nail enhancement.

A fine grit like 240 or higher is for

refining, finish filing, and shaping

your natural nails edges. Buffers also

come in grits from 100 and 400. These

buffers are going to remove scratches

that might be on the nail because as

soon as you put a top coat on that nail,

if you have any scratches left, they are

going to appear.

A shiner is a buffer that's usually

three-sided with a 400, 1,000, and 4,000

grits. The remember, the higher the

grit, the more buffing it is going to

be.

Next, we are going to use nail tips and

forms. We're going to use nail tips and

forms to extend the length of our

client's natural nail. The nail tips are

performed plastic nail extensions that

are attached to the nail with an

adhesive to create length before

overlaying with liquid and powder. You

place a nail form under the natural nail

edge and use as a foundation and guide

to sculpt the liquid and powder beyond

your fingertip.

Your dapping dish is a small glass or

plastic container that is going to hold

a minimal amount of product for one

service use. Remember, we don't double

dip to prevent crosscontamination.

So, we only want to put the amount of

product into our dapping dish that we

are going to use. During a liquid and

powder service, each time the brush is

dipped into the monomer dapping dish, it

is contaminated with small amounts of

polymer powder. Never pour the unused

monomer into the container to use again

for risk of contaminating everything.

Next, we move into our nail brush. The

best liquid and powder enhancements

nail brush is a natural hair brush

composed of Kolinsky or red sable or

sable blend. These brushes are oval,

round or square, and they come in many

sizes. The most commonly used brush for

monomer liquid and powder is a number

eight or 10 oval brush. There also are

synthetic brushes. They do not pick up

enough monomer liquid and don't release

enough liquid properly. So, we want to

choose the most comfortable brush.

In some states, you can also use an

electric file. You may want to use the

electric file or e file for shaping,

shortening, or filing a liquid and nail

nail enhancement.

But before you do this, you need to be

sure that you have the proper training.

To properly store your monomer liquid

products, you want to separate them from

your polymer powders and make sure

they're in covered containers in a cool,

dark area. You do not want to store

these near heat. Some states require

that you re that you store them in a

locked cabinet. So, make sure that you

know what your state board asks. When

the service is done, you need to discard

your used materials. You don't again

ever want to save used monomer or powder

um that has been removed from its

original container. You soak up your

monomer in a towelette.

Best practices is to wrap it in tin foil

and dispose of it in the trash.

Monomer liquid and polymer powder can be

used in many ways to create unique nail

art. Designs can be simple or

extravagant. Three-dimensional nail art

or 3D nail art is any nail art that

protrudes from the nail. Inlay designs

are designed inside a nail enhancement

created by sandwiching the nail art

between two product nails while the nail

enhancement is formed.

Nail enhancements can either be filled

or backfilled, which is a two to three

week maintenance service to fill in new

growth areas with new products. This

also rebalances the nails shape,

performs needed repairs, and restores

the enhancement's original beauty. You

might see products lifting around the

cuticle and sidewalls, and there's many

reasons for this. It's usually because

of poor natural nail preparation,

letting the liquid and powder touch the

skin, or leaving the product too thick

at your cuticle area. If you can see it

now, you can see it later. This means if

you do not remove all the lifted areas,

you're going to see them through the

product and they're going to end up

lifting and that could result in the

nails coming off or um mildew.

Removing liquid and powder nail

enhancements is simple. You soak the

product off the natural nail with

acetone or the manufacturer's suggested

removal solution. You do not purchase

industrial acetone at the hardware

store. These products are not made for

humans. You remove the nail enhancement

by pouring acetone or product remover

into a glass bowl deep enough to cover

1/2 of an inch higher than the client's

enhancement. Cover the bowl with a clean

terry cloth to keep the removal solution

from evaporating and lower the o the

hand into the product. During this

soaking product, do not leave your

client unattended.

You can scrape away product with a

wooden pusher as it softens. Avoid

removing and replacing enhancements from

the acetone or product remover

excessively as they will quickly

reharden.

Again, like we said, liquid and powder

nail enhancements might not be your cup

of tea, but you never know when you're

going to need it.