Nail Tips, Wraps, and Overlay Applications
What the exam tests
This domain covers tip fit, blending, wrap materials, overlay structure, and stress-zone placement. The exam expects you to build a balanced enhancement without bonding product to skin and without creating lifting-prone edges or bubbles.
Core concepts
- Size a tip so sidewalls fit without pressure; the well should sit at the free edge, not on the cuticle.
- Blend the tip seam carefully to avoid a visible ledge; reduce thickness without filing the natural plate.
- Wraps use fabric or fiber with a resin system; saturate evenly and smooth out bubbles.
- An overlay adds strength over the natural nail; keep the apex at the stress zone and taper the edges.
- Leave a tiny margin at the cuticle and sidewalls so product does not touch living tissue.
- Finish by sealing the free edge and checking balance from the side.
Worked example
A tip lifts at one sidewall after two days. You examine the fit and find the tip was wider than the nail and touched the sidewall skin. The correction is to choose a narrower tip, adjust the sidewall curve, and leave a margin. The reasoning: product bonded to skin cannot flex with the nail and creates a lifting edge.
Traps
Forcing a wide tip to fit. Flooding resin over the cuticle. Trapping bubbles in a wrap. Filing the natural nail to hide a tip seam. Building a flat overlay with no apex.