Visalia-based nail tech Vera Burciaga had no difficulties transitioning her clients from traditional polish to long-lasting polish.

Visalia-based nail tech Vera Burciaga had no difficulties transitioning her clients from traditional polish to long-lasting polish. 

Long-lasting polishes may be a relatively new nail product category, but they’ve been fully embraced by nail tech Vera Burciaga’s entire client base — to the extent that she donated her stock of traditional polish to a charitable organization run by a client.

One advantage of faster-drying long-lasting polishes is that you can stamp immediately after picking up your image from the plate. Burciaga stamps after the second application of color. With gel-polish, she removes the tacky layer and buffs lightly before stamping.

One advantage of faster-drying long-lasting polishes is that you can stamp immediately after picking up your image from the plate. Burciaga stamps after the second application of color. With gel-polish, she removes the tacky layer and buffs lightly before stamping.

“I originally purchased Young Nails’ Caption line because I see a lot of clients who prefer polish — rather than gel-polish — on their nail enhancements,” says Burciaga, a tech at All About U Salon in Visalia, Calif. “I introduced the new line a little over a year ago and got all of my polish clients to give it a try. They were amazed at how fast it dried and that I could use it for stamping — they were in love with stamping!”

Returning clients were impressed to see their polish lasting for several weeks with little-to-no wear at the free edge, yet unlike with gel-polish, they could remove it easily. “My natural nail ladies were just as impressed,” she says. “They went from wearing their polish from seven to 10 days to 14-20 days.”

Very little arm-twisting was required to get her clients to give the new polish a try. “I told my natural nail ladies, ‘I bought a new line of Young Nails polishes. It’s a no-chip, long-wear, fast-drying polish. Do you mind if we give it a try this time and see how it compares to the current polishes?’ Of course, I got a skeptical look in return. So I offered to re-polish for free if they had any problems — which was never necessary.”

While not UV-cured, Burciaga uses the heat from her UV lamp to accelerate dry time. “If my clients want their toes polished to match their nails, I do their toes first, then the nail service,” she says. “By the time I’m done with their nails, their toes are dry and they can put on their socks and shoes and leave. You can’t do that with a traditional polish!”

For reprint and licensing requests for this article, Click here.