Though an airbrush gun can be an expensive purchase, it can quickly pay for itself in nail art add-ons that clients will love. Nail tech Ivy Carino of Steel Magnolias Salon in Brightwaters, N.Y., has been airbrushing for more than 16 years and endorses its use as a time saver and a way to get creative and intricate nail art designs easily onto clients’ nails.

If you’re thinking about using an airbrush gun at your salon, Carino provides some things to think about.

“The best thing I can tell new techs starting out is to do a lot of research about the different airbrush guns and paints available so you get the one that’s best for you. After that, the most important thing is to properly care for your airbrush and be sure to clean the gun after each use.

Always have extra nozzles on hand, and shop around for different stencils. There are millions of diff erent stencils out there, so the possibilities are really endless with airbrushing.”

1. The most popular designs Carino does are color fades.

2. Carino’s other popular designs are themes, like for holidays, sports, or other activities. This one was a simple playing card stencil and Carino says it was very easy to do.

3. “What’s great about airbrushing is you can combine different stencils together to create really interesting nails like these,” says Carino.