My husband is a cabinet-maker, so he made my desk with an integrated dust remover. After every customer I clean my table with a disinfectant and paper towels. Most of the glitter particles fall into the dust box under the desk. After two days I remove and clean this box. - PEGGY JAKOB-KISSNER, Nagelatelier Exquisit, Ostheim, Germany
I use a brush that hairdressers use to get the hair off your neck. I also do hair, but it works very well to get the nail dust off my nail station. - TOMMIE PERKINS, Nails & Hair by Tommie, Turkey, Texas
I keep my table and surrounding area clean with OPI’s Spa Complete. It’s a one-step disinfectant, cleaner, sanitizer, fungicide, and hospital-grade virucide. It can be diluted for every surface in the salon, from spa tubs to implement soakers. I spray it on my table and then wipe it with an OPI Expert Touch Table Towel. This keeps the towels I use on my table in good shape and helps keep the laundering down. - NORMA SPROLES, The Signature Salon Inc. Hendersonville, N.C.
I have a Luraco vacuum attachment to my e-fi le, and that helps a lot. The little purple thing is my e-file and the white thing attached to it is the vacuum part. As I file it sucks the dust away and it doesn’t make much noise. - DARLA HAUGHT, BloomingNails Walsenburg, Colo.
I put two towels on the nail table: one for the customer’s arm rest, and the second overlapping the first. After the work is done — it doesn’t matter what the nail service is — I take the two towels off and put them in the wash so my table always looks clean and new. - NHA PHAM, Oriental Nail and Hair Salon, Syracuse, N.Y.
I keep product on my work surface to a bare minimum so I can quickly and easily disinfect my work station in between each client while still keeping all the things I need within reach. I do a lot of traditional gel and soak-off gel applications, including glitter gels and nail art, and it can get a bit messy and sticky if you don’t utilize lint-free nail wipes and table towels. -
I place a few lint-free table towels over my station while I work for two reasons. One, when you are using gel there is nothing worse than picking up lint from a terry towel. And two, when I finish my filing I can roll the messy dust right up in that disposable towel and have a dust-free surface while I am polishing or applying product. Oh, and did I mention how plush the towels feel to the client? I also use them to remove mask treatments by wetting them with warm water. I hear of many nail technicians using paper towels because they are cheaper, but I feel they don’t save you any money because you will replace your brushes more often. I use mostly Kolinsky brushes for my gel and acrylic applications, and I’ve found that paper towels are very harsh on brushes. - LYNN ACKERSON-WARREN, Clinton, Ill.
I use Scott’s blue shop towels that we cut into 4” x 4” squares to clean my brushes. I found out about them on online nail tech message boards. Along with the Work Top Air Cleaner I have custom installed in my glass desk top, I can keep the dust from acrylic and gels under control. For keeping glitter down I use a plain white sheet of paper to catch it and then funnel it back into the container to save the excess glitter. - ANGEL SMITH, Angel’s Touch Nail & Skin Spa, Duxbury, Mass.
We are in a very dusty profession and keeping my workstation clean is a must. I will say it is hard to keep up with the dust but you just have to make it a priority and part of your routine. I think clients appreciate when we take the time to do these little things and I don’t think they mind the little extra time it takes to do them.
I always use a new terrycloth towel for every client and keep an OPI Expert Touch Lint-Free Table Towel down on top of my terrycloth towel. Using a table towel helps to collect any dust, paint, or glitter, and all I have to do is fold the lint-free towel over and throw it away. - CHRISTY GRAHAM, My Nail Corner @ Image Makers, West Chester, Ohio