You’ve gotten your client to try some pink and whites on her toes and now she’s coming in for a fill. What to do? Backfills for pink and white toes is a snap. It’s a great way to have additional sales without adding extra expense. Plus, you will have the satisfaction of turning your client’s distaste for her feet into pure love and amazement. “The other side of the reward is the client who says, ‘I have always hated my feet, thank you so much! I am going to buy a wardrobe of sandals right now!” says Michelle Cordes of the Nail Spa in Silverdale, Wash.

There are a few things to watch out for when doing backfills on pink and white toes. Cordes suggests getting all of the cuticles off the nail plate. She says that the toenails usually have a lot of skin and product will lift if you don’t use something like a pterygium stone or coarse file.

When backfilling with an electric file, Cordes advises extra caution. “My helpful tip when backfilling toes is to only drill a valley in the big toe and simply bevel off the white on the smaller toes,” she says. “Be very careful using a drill on toes. They are very tiny compared to fingernails.”

Athena Elliott, general manager of Boutique Day Spa & Salon in Houston, says that if you have regular clients who receive this service, you may not have to do any drill work. “Since I see my clients every four to six weeks, the regrowth that needs to be shortened is about the same. Thus, I don’t need to drill on those little toes.” However, when she needs to file off the free edge, she uses a tip blender to help speed up the process. Elliott also suggests keeping an extra brush and powder handy to avoid getting up and going for them, which will cost you time.

To keep your clients coming in for fills, Cordes suggests constantly promoting the service. “The first step is putting toes on yourself! Then make a little sign on your station that says ‘I do acrylic toenails. Full set special $XX!’ Then talk it up.” You can build a successful toe clientele out of the customers who already sit in your chair every two weeks for nail fills.

STEP 1: Start by sanitizing your client’s feet and removing all polish.

STEP 2: With a 100-grit file, etch toenails and make sure to get into all of the comers. Make sure to file smooth the cuticle area and nip off any loose product. Use the pterygium stone to remove excess skin on the toenails. Toes tend to have a lot of extra skin around the cuticles and it is more sensitive on the feet.

STEP 3: Dust the feet with a plastic manicure brush and prime all 10 toenails.

STEP 4: Us an electric file to drill out a smile line on the big toe. Drill the white down to the natural nail on the smaller toes. It is too difficult to get into the comers of the smaller toes; therefore, just drill the white down so you can rebuild it later. Then, re-prime all of the toenails one at a time.

STEP 5: Apply white acrylic to the free edge to create a smile line. Add a pink ball to the cuticle area to fill the nail in. On the smaller toes, reapply the white to the tip and create a smile line. Then apply a small pink ball to the cuticle area.

STEP 6: File the free edge and smooth out the acrylic on the toenails with a 180-grit file. Then, buff the toenails with cuticle or buffing oil and a clean finish buffer.

STEP 7: Complete the fill by wiping off the toenails and feet to remove dust and fillings. At this point, you can do a mini massage. Make sure to remove any lotion from the toenails before you polish.

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