https://getnailly.com/blog Practical, honest guides to nails and nail artists — shapes, finishes, set types, care and booking — from Nailly, the nail design app for the US and Canada. en-us Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT https://getnailly.com/blog/red-flags-green-flags-nail-salon https://getnailly.com/blog/red-flags-green-flags-nail-salon Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking The signals you can actually read as a customer: sterilisation pouches, the MMA smell, pain culture, honest no's, maintenance talk, and the three questions that sort salons quickly. https://getnailly.com/blog/first-appointment-new-nail-artist-what-to-bring https://getnailly.com/blog/first-appointment-new-nail-artist-what-to-bring Mon, 20 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking What to bring to a first nail appointment — on your nails, on your phone and in your head: known nail state, a precise design, your history, three honest numbers and two questions. https://getnailly.com/blog/make-gel-set-last-past-week-three https://getnailly.com/blog/make-gel-set-last-past-week-three Sun, 19 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking The gel maintenance protocol as a timeline: what to do on day one, the ninety-second daily routine, gloves and leverage rules, midweek fixes, and the honest week-three decision. https://getnailly.com/blog/how-nail-artists-get-more-clients-without-posting-every-day https://getnailly.com/blog/how-nail-artists-get-more-clients-without-posting-every-day Sat, 18 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking The content treadmill is not the only way to fill a book. Retention math, the three-week refill window, chair-side referrals and waitlists — a calmer growth plan for nail techs. https://getnailly.com/blog/chrome-glazed-milky-matte-nail-finishes-explained https://getnailly.com/blog/chrome-glazed-milky-matte-nail-finishes-explained Thu, 16 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes The five nail finishes that define a set — glossy, chrome, glazed, milky and matte — how each is made, how it wears, and how to combine them without muddying the look. https://getnailly.com/blog/try-on-nail-designs-before-committing https://getnailly.com/blog/try-on-nail-designs-before-committing Tue, 14 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets Why nails are the only beauty purchase we still buy blind, and how trying a design on a photo of your own hand changes what you choose — with looks worth testing first. https://getnailly.com/blog/how-long-does-a-gel-set-really-last https://getnailly.com/blog/how-long-does-a-gel-set-really-last Sun, 12 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking The honest lifespan of gel manicures and gel extensions — what shortens it, what stretches it, and why the three-week refill window matters more than chip-resistance. https://getnailly.com/blog/glazed-donut-nails-how-to-ask-for-them https://getnailly.com/blog/glazed-donut-nails-how-to-ask-for-them Fri, 10 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes What glazed donut nails actually are (and are not), why the look took over, and the exact words to use so your tech knows you mean pearl-sheer, not chrome-silver. https://getnailly.com/blog/almond-vs-coffin-vs-square-nail-shapes https://getnailly.com/blog/almond-vs-coffin-vs-square-nail-shapes Wed, 08 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets How almond, coffin, square, oval, squoval, round, ballerina and stiletto shapes actually behave on different hands — strength, upkeep, and what flatters what. https://getnailly.com/blog/how-to-describe-a-nail-design-to-your-nail-tech https://getnailly.com/blog/how-to-describe-a-nail-design-to-your-nail-tech Mon, 06 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking Screenshots get lost in translation. Here is the language nail techs actually use — shape, length, base, finish, placement — and a simple script for a consultation that works. https://getnailly.com/blog/gel-acrylic-biab-press-ons-which-set-type https://getnailly.com/blog/gel-acrylic-biab-press-ons-which-set-type Sat, 04 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Care & booking Gel polish, builder gel (BIAB), acrylic and press-ons are different engineering, not different brands. Lifespans, removal, honest damage talk, and how to match the system to your month. https://getnailly.com/blog/speckle-dot-nail-art-first-design https://getnailly.com/blog/speckle-dot-nail-art-first-design Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes Dots have no edges to fail at. Why speckle and dot art is the friendliest entry into nail design — plus the three placement rules that make dots look designed, not dropped. https://getnailly.com/blog/seasonal-nail-sets-planning https://getnailly.com/blog/seasonal-nail-sets-planning Mon, 29 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes A year holds about seventeen sets. The count-back rule, the trial-run set, and how to plan your nails so the best ones land on your biggest days — not a random Tuesday. https://getnailly.com/blog/2026-nail-trends-cat-eye-aura-tortoise https://getnailly.com/blog/2026-nail-trends-cat-eye-aura-tortoise Thu, 25 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes What cat-eye, aura and tortoise-shell nails actually are, how each is made — magnets, airbrush, layered amber — and how to ask for them like you have done this before. https://getnailly.com/blog/nail-finishes-plain-english-guide https://getnailly.com/blog/nail-finishes-plain-english-guide Mon, 22 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Trends & finishes The no-guessing guide to nail finish vocabulary: what chrome, glazed, milky and matte each actually are, how to spot them, what each costs in upkeep, and how to order the one you mean. https://getnailly.com/blog/french-tip-variations-7-ways https://getnailly.com/blog/french-tip-variations-7-ways Thu, 18 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets The french tip is grammar, not a single manicure. Classic, micro, colour-swap, metallic line, deep curve, reverse and the frame — seven distinct ways to wear a tip. https://getnailly.com/blog/mixed-mani-every-finger-different https://getnailly.com/blog/mixed-mani-every-finger-different Mon, 15 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets A great mixed mani is one design with ten expressions, not ten designs. The six-step structure — constants, a shared thread, finger roles, and the art of subtracting. https://getnailly.com/blog/short-nail-designs-under-5mm https://getnailly.com/blog/short-nail-designs-under-5mm Thu, 11 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets Short nails are a design choice, not a downgrade. The finishes, micro french tips, dot art and accent strategies that thrive on a 5mm canvas — and what to leave to long nails. https://getnailly.com/blog/complete-nail-shape-guide https://getnailly.com/blog/complete-nail-shape-guide Mon, 08 Jun 2026 12:00:00 GMT Shapes & sets All eight nail shapes on one page — round, oval, almond, square, squoval, coffin, ballerina, stiletto — organised by what you want: longer-looking fingers, strength, canvas or drama.