NAIL TECH TALK: Georgina Duffy of When Beauty Calls By Georgina
By Rebecca Hitchon | 02 February 2022 | Feature, Tech Talk
Scratch chats to Georgina Duffy of When Beauty Calls By Georgina about her love for nails and her top nail art and industry tips…
What inspired you to enter the nail world?
I have always enjoyed getting creative and having my nails done, but I thought that hairdressing was my lifelong passion. After qualifying as a hairdresser, I gave beauty a go – because why not? And how wrong I was to think my passion was hairdressing! I quickly got stuck in and found my feet with nails; it felt like this is what I was meant to do, and here I am nine years later.
What do you love about working in the nail industry?
I love that every day is different; each nail is a new canvas. I’m very open and honest about my mental health and anxiety, and doing nails is like therapy to me. When people smile at their nails and tell me how much that set means to them, I just love that. I have also grown very close to my clients and enjoy hearing their updates.
What inspires your designs?
Everything: patterns, clothing, adverts – you name it! On social media I follow some incredibly talented nail techs, as well as different nail related hashtags, and I am always inspired by what I see.
Nail art is a particular specialism of yours. What are your top tips for mastering nail art techniques?
Practice, practice, practice, and then practice some more! Submerge yourself in Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube, watch tutorials and take time to play about with designs and techniques. Find your style, what you enjoy doing and what you do well. Your skills are what will bring people to you, so find your thing and own it. Invest in good tools and brushes and take part in workshops to stay up-to-date, too.
What has been your favourite design to create?
This is so hard so I’ve whittled it down to five designs. My Disney villain and Lion King sets are definitely up there. They were created over a few days during one lockdown. I’ve never had a client request anything like this so it’s completely different to my usual work.
I really love the hand-painted chocolate set I created as I enjoyed making it 3D. There’s also a poison set, which was for Halloween, and on the opposite end of the scale, a milky marble set for one of my client’s wedding nails. This was so simple yet so stunning, and marbling is one of my favourite techniques.
What are the proudest moments of your career?
My proudest moments are appearing in Scratch magazine for the first time in July 2021 and being an influencer for NAILMAIL. I still pinch myself now; it makes me emotional to think that someone else believes in me. I am grateful for how far I have come with my work, especially after rebuilding my business three times due to lockdowns.
What advice would you give to techs starting out in the industry?
Social media is a minefield and we are just drops in a huge ocean, but try and stay unique to yourself. As a wise person once said, ‘no one is you, and that is your superpower.’ Also, don’t be disheartened if something doesn’t work out exactly how you wanted it to. Try again and believe in yourself and your work.
What are your goals for the future?
To do work on my house to make room for a salon, and I hope that I can continue working with brands I love.