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TIPS OF THE WEEK 
by Vicki Peters
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TIP OF THE WEEK #3 with Vicki Peters

DISCLAIMER
Any products mentioned in the "Tip Of The Week by Vicki Peters" is not an 
endorsement of any kind. 

There will be no tip of the week next week - sorry everyone - I will be doing 
photo shoots for Nailpro so I will be in LA for a few days and then I will be 
going to the Long Beach Show. Next tip of the week will be sent 
approximately Feb 3 or so. Remember I would love your suggestions on future 
tips of the week.

Vicki



NATURAL NAIL BITS
Most of us use an electric file for refining the cuticle area, backfills and 
shortening acrylic nails with a carbide or diamond bit. According to the 
AEFM, The Association Of Electric File Manufacturers, (which I am the 
director for) these bits along with the paper sanding bands should never be 
used on natural nails. The reason we tend to get rings of fire, which are 
the grooves at the cuticle area, is because these bits are too harsh for the 
natural nail and when using a barrel shaped diamond or carbide bit or 
sanding band at the wrong angle it is very easy to do.


However I will contradict myself a bit here and recommend Lysa Comfort's 
(from EZ Flow) prepper bit. It is a very gentle diamond round edged bullet 
that should be experienced with caution. So make sure you get proper 
instructions on how to safely use it. 

*******
This tip of the week is about natural nail bits, which come in green, black 
and yellow colors. They are actually very soft like a pencil eraser and wear 
down quickly with use. These bits come from the jewelry industry that use 
them for buffing jewelry. If you wear 
The tips of the bits down and need to refresh the shape take the bit when it 
is in the electric on a low speed and hold down on a regular file 100 grit 
file and press to re-shape the tip flat. These bits need a flat edge like a 
barrel to be effective and get into the cuticle area. 

The Green color is the coarsest, black medium and yellow fine. They come 
either a flat topped barrel or a cone with a pointed tip. Aseptico 
(800/426-5913) sells the cones and Medicool (800/433-2469) sells the flat 
tipped barrels and are the only two companies that sell these bits to the 
nail industry. Both are equal in quality and price.

I have used these natural nail bits for several years to remove the ptergyium 
and prep the natural nail for a full set. You can also use them to prep the 
nails for a high shine during a manicure. We will talk about that later on. 

For the ptergyium:
Step 1. Start by filing and shaping the natural nail for the full set or 
manicure. Make sure the client has washed her hands with warm water which 
will make the cuticles softer. 
Step 2. Use your cuticle pusher as you normally would, pushing the cuticle 
back gently exposing any ptergyium. 
Step 3. One a very low speed - I use about 3,000 rpms, gently place the bit 
on the nail plate at the cuticle area. Use the flat edge of the tip just 
like I tell you NOT to do with a metal bit. Your going to do 2 things here: 
1. Press down on the nail at the cuticle area to remove the ptergyium, while 
2., you push the cuticle back. These natural nail bits are very soft and 
will not hurt the nails or cuticle if you do this gently. Too much pressure 
or speed will damage the nail and heat up, however not enough pressure will 
get you no where - so find a perfect medium.

These bits need to be used carefully, I cannot stress this enough. By gently 
pushing up on the cuticle and pressing down on the nail you will get a very 
clean cuticle with one swipe of the bit. This is perfect for those hard to 
get up cuticles or when you need that extra help getting a very clean nail 
plate and cuticle area.

Use the same bit flat to the nail to take the shine off a virgin nail in your 
prep work.
Be sure not to press too hard because pressure causes friction and friction 
causes heat. 

You can also use these bits to high shine natural nails, but again remember 
about too much pressure causing discomfort to the client. I suggest that you 
use the black - medium grit bit first, the green coarse bit may be coarser 
than the surface of the natural nail. Remove the dust in between graduating 
your bits to softer grits so your not buffing in the higher grit left behind. 


High shine bits available from most all of the electric file companies vary 
from chamois buffers to goats hair buffers used to buff in the buffing cream 
to synthetic bits. They are all very inexpensive to purchase and all can be 
washed. 

SANITATION
All of the natural nail and buffing bits are NOT sanitizable, however they 
are washable. Purchase several of each style bit so you are using only one 
per client before washing them. Take them home, rinse out the dust and 
buffing cream and throw them is the dishwasher. The dishwater's water may 
only get up to 120 degrees, however the drying process is much hotter. Just 
remember use only 1 bit per client to stay sanitary. Emersing them into your 
disinfection solution will not work and contaminate the solution. 

I am a big fan of the natural nail bit for cleaning the cuticle area up 
especially the challenging ones


Vicki Peters 
"When you stop learning your career ends and your job begins"
Visit my new web site: http://vickipeters.com 

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