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Salon in the Spotlight: Kulture, Fife

By Callie Iley | 15 September 2021

Selling her share of her previous salon to set up her own, Marie McFarlane and her husband fully converted a ground floor one bedroom flat into Kulture. “I was inspired to open my own salon as I have recently qualified in teaching, so will be running Kulture School of Beauty…

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Here’s how to make manis last if your client has excessively sweaty hands

By Emma Hobday | 13 September 2021

Excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis being the technical term) is surprisingly common and can affect the whole body or just certain areas, like the hands (palmar hyperhidrosis). It’s normal to sweat if you get hot or do exercise, but you may be sweating excessively if you’re sweating when your body does not…

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London hotspot Townhouse scoops Scratch Stars Nail Salon of the Year 20/21

By Emma Hobday | 12 September 2021

Juanita Huber-Millet, founder and creative director of Townhouse, never knew that she would go into nails as a child. “My background is a little eclectic – I grew up wanting to do nothing other than dance and I spent my teenage years in ballet school, training every minute I could…

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Salon in the Spotlight: Stacey’s Gel Nails, Meriden, West Midlands

By Callie Iley | 8 September 2021

Stacey Cox worked in banking for 15 years, but was seeking more flexibility around her family. The lockdown gave Stacey the push she needed to start her new nail business. “My studio was built in November, and we opened May,” she explains. “My husband Mark played a big role in…

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Behind the Brand: Find out more about Magnetic Nail Design

By Chloe Randall | 7 September 2021

Scratch finds out more about Magnetic Nail Design, the nail brand owned by a Dutch nail stylist… The story so far…  Magnetic Nail Design was launched by Dutch nail stylist Mey Liang. She has grown her career from a salon owner to becoming a leading wholesaler of nail products in the…

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4 ways to empower your nail business’ employees

By Guest Writer | 7 September 2021

Lucy Pastorelli, founder of Lucy Pastorelli Tools, shares how she empowers her team… 1. Create inclusion. Everyone has an opinion, and we always make sure that we listen to each member of staff – whether they’ve been employed at LP for five weeks or five years. Each point of view…

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How to create an ombré nail style

By Katie Barnes | 7 September 2021

The ombré look is a popular nail style choice, particularly when created using with pink and white shades to replace a traditional French finish. Perfecting it can be a bit challenging however, especially when you’re under the watchful eyes of your clients and time restraints of the appointment. There are…

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Covid-19: How I’ve tackled staffing issues since reopening my salons

By Guest Writer | 7 September 2021

Thanh Vu, managing director of four Dream Nails salons, reflects on the challenges – and opportunities – that have been presented to her businesses since reopening after lockdown…  Since reopening, the most challenging aspect for our boutique salon business has been staffing issues. We adhere to strict Covid-19 precautions for…

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Meet the family-run nail brand with care & colour at its heart

By Emma Hobday | 6 September 2021

Abby Jay Barton has a love for the beauty industry in her blood. Her mother owned a nail and beauty salon when Abby was a child, and so from a young age the future owner of Cally Cosmetics was immersed in the sector that she would eventually dive into. Her…

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Here’s how 3 techs have tackled tricky nail & beauty clients

By Emma Hobday | 5 September 2021

Scratch speaks to three devoted nail techs, Samantha Courage, Carly Wright, and Annmarie Jones, about their challenging experiences with clients, and their top tips for how to avoid these situations in the future… Samantha’s story Samantha Courage of Samantha Courage Beauty had a new client who booked in for a…

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NAIL TECH TALK: Meet Nikol Nikolova, Scratch Stars Mobile Nailist of the Year 20/21

By Callie Iley | 4 September 2021

Scratch chats to Nikol Nikolova of Triple N Mobile Salon about launching her own educational platform for nail techs and her excitement at winning the Scratch Stars Award for Mobile Nailist of the Year 20/21… I’ve done my own nails since I was little. My mom owned a salon and…

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6 nail trends that never go out of style

By Emma Hobday | 2 September 2021

Every year – and, let’s face it, every month – we’ll see a new nail design trending (hello pick n mix nail art, year of 2021) but some nail designs are always ‘in’, regardless of the month, season, or year. Here’s our pick of nail styles that you can count…

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Behind the Brand: Meet the boss of Nail & Beauty Excellence

By Chloe Randall | 1 September 2021

Founder of Nail and Beauty Excellence, Jade Barber is a multi award-winning nail technician who has been working in the industry for eight years. With over 50 trophies under her belt, she has competed in both online and live competitions and has also been an international judge. In 2019, Jade…

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Salon in the Spotlight: Nails By Kirsty, Rochester

By Callie Iley | 1 September 2021

Before having her children, Kirsty Lamb was working as a mobile tech – but then made the move to open a home salon to fit her job around family life. “Being mobile was without a doubt hard work, but I knew if I wanted a career in nails, I had…

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TECH TALK: Meet Lucy Jefferis, the nail tech with a talent for hand drawn decals

By Emma Hobday | 31 August 2021

Lucy Jefferis launched nail decal company Miss Lucy UK in early 2020, determined to excel in the industry she loved despite mental health battles making client appointments challenging. “I was unable to continue working within the beauty industry as I suffered with OCD, which spiralled out of control,” Lucy reveals.…

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