TECHS & SALONS

Sammy Macdonald Victoria Beckham Nails

Get to know the Scottish nail stylist who led nail looks for Victoria Beckham

By Helena Biggs | 8 January 2025

In Sammy Mac’s two decades in the nail industry, she’s won numerous awards, opened a thriving nail salon chain and led multiple teams backstage at Fashion Week events. So what’s left on the career tick list for this Scottish nail pro? “Leading the nail team for the 2024 Victoria Beckham…

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Unique salon décor: The Birmingham nail salon featuring a piano as its reception desk

By Lilly Delmage | 6 January 2025

Founder of Birmingham-based nail studio, Icey’s Beauty Lounge, Aysana Druga, shares the story behind the salon’s impressive entrance… In 2015, Aysana and her husband spotted a piano in the window of a charity shop. She recalls: “We had no idea where it was going to go at the time, so…

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Becki Menzies Burns Night Nail Tech

I’m a Scottish nail artist working in London. Here’s what I miss most…

By Guest Writer | 3 January 2025

“If anyone from outside Scotland asks me, I say I’m from Glasgow, but as Scottish folk will read this, I’m actually from Livingston,” smiles Becki Menzies. The nail pro lived in Scotland for 28 years before moving to East London in 2023, where she works within tattoo space, Soteria Studios.…

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Why nail technicians should enter the Scratch Stars Awards: tips from a nail competition maestro

By Lilly Delmage | 3 January 2025

Bespoke nail artist, Jiak Hing, who has won the Scratch Stars Gel Polish Stylist of the Year accolade for three consecutive years, shares insight into the competition, what to expect on the day and the benefits of entering.   Why did you decide to enter the Scratch Stars Awards? To…

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Introverted nail techs: how to grow your skills & clientele comfortably

By Lilly Delmage | 22 December 2024

Do you love the creative aspect of being a nail professional: perfecting enhancements and getting arty, but find it challenging to converse with clients and colleagues? You’re not alone. A need to recharge after client interactions or feeling most comfortable in quiet environments are signs of introversion. The word ‘introvert’…

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From DIY nails to owning a home salon: how one tech turned her passion into a business

By Lilly Delmage | 9 December 2024

Bedfordshire-based nail tech, Jodie Day of @talonsbyjodie, started her nail journey simply wanting to learn how to do her own nails, however she enjoyed the training so much that she decided to turn it into her career. Jodie began her training in 2021 while pregnant, seeking a creative outlet. She…

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Award-winning home salon owner: the 5 essential tips for success

By Lilly Delmage | 2 December 2024

Scratch Stars Home Nail Salon of the Year 2024 winner, Kirsty Brown of @paintbrushnails, shares her top tips for building a successful home salon… Having won the prestigious Scratch Stars accolade for her Stirling-based home salon, we asked Kirsty to share her top tips to inform and inspire nail techs…

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South Devon tech: At 30 I decided to train as a nail technician – and I’ve never looked back

By Lilly Delmage | 29 November 2024

Having undergone a career swap at the age of 30, Devon-based nail tech Bonni Higson, the owner of Bonni File’n’Style in Dawlish, shares her story… After having children, Bonni decided to train as a nail technician. She says: “I enrolled at South Devon College and qualified at NVQ level 2…

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Salon in the Spotlight: Lisa Sheehan – Nail Artist, Hereford

By Callie Iley | 22 September 2021

Aged 32, Lisa Sheehan decided to go back to college in the evenings to study for her level 2 and 3 qualifications in beauty theraoy, after working in childcare for 14 years. “I loved the idea of making people feel good about themselves and being able to pamper others, and…

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London educator takes learning to the next level with ITEC approved nail courses

By Emma Hobday | 18 September 2021

Scratch speaks to renowned nail tech and educator Anna Lee about her industry journey, bridging the ethnicity gap and launching Creative Academy London Anna began her journey in the nail industry in 2004, where she enrolled on a part-time nail course at her local course, for ‘something to do.’ Anna’s…

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NAIL TECH TALK: Ravi Uppal of Nails by Ravi

By Callie Iley | 18 September 2021

Scratch chats to Ravi Uppal of Nails by Ravi about nail trends and the importance of not comparing yourself to other techs… The Gel Bottle‘s Builder in a Bottle has to be my ultimate favourite product to use – it’s life changing! Before using it, I thought it was just…

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Salon in the Spotlight: Kulture, Fife

By Callie Iley | 15 September 2021

Selling her share of her previous salon to set up her own, Marie McFarlane and her husband fully converted a ground floor one bedroom flat into Kulture. “I was inspired to open my own salon as I have recently qualified in teaching, so will be running Kulture School of Beauty…

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Here’s how to make manis last if your client has excessively sweaty hands

By Emma Hobday | 13 September 2021

Excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis being the technical term) is surprisingly common and can affect the whole body or just certain areas, like the hands (palmar hyperhidrosis). It’s normal to sweat if you get hot or do exercise, but you may be sweating excessively if you’re sweating when your body does not…

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London hotspot Townhouse scoops Scratch Stars Nail Salon of the Year 20/21

By Emma Hobday | 12 September 2021

Juanita Huber-Millet, founder and creative director of Townhouse, never knew that she would go into nails as a child. “My background is a little eclectic – I grew up wanting to do nothing other than dance and I spent my teenage years in ballet school, training every minute I could…

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