I started my nail journey back in 2014, training at the Creative Academy London with Anna Lee. She drummed in to us from the very beginning the importance of education and quite often, the lack of it in our industry.Every year, I try and get back to the academy to do at least one course to further my skills and keep up to date with the latest knowledge in the industry. One thing I have found on my journey, is my clients really don't know anything about their nails and how to properly care for them!
Every time I meet a new client, I really take my time to explain everything I'm doing since they have (mostly) been so used to improper practices such as cutting the "cuticles" with nips etc.After having this conversation with another new client who gets regular manicures and had never had a manicure without having her "cuticles" cut, I decided to make a dedicated post about the nail structure and the importance of not cutting the skin around it.
Now, as you can see in the picture, the cuticles are actually the dead skin on the nail plate. What you are actually having snipped off in some salons is your Eponychium. This is living skin, you don't want to cut this! If you go ahead and start chopping away, you are leaving the skin open to infection, it will then grow back faster and thicker as scar tissue resulting in an endless cycle of snipping and growing and possible infections (that's before you even consider the hygiene and how well the tools are cleaned!!).
As a CND graduate, I have been taught to perform a dry manicure, this involves using CND cuticle away, and pushing the cuticles off with a pusher. I reserve my nips for hangnails only! This should leave a nice clean finish with no excess skin, with good after care and the regular use of a cuticle oil, your Eponychiums should never be over growing for you to feel the need to cut them.