Part 1
My first competition
I’ve been a nail technician for almost 6 years. I thought I would never compete in a competition as my skills would never be enough.
I was just an ‘everyday’, simple and not at all confident 😂 nail tech, so it was just something I thought I would never do.
I wanted to be good in my field and I felt I needed to expand my knowledge....so I have actively learnt new skills. I think in this industry you can never stop 😂
Something has changed though. I started dreaming about it. My fellow colleagues started participating in different competitions and showed me what they have achieved. I didn’t feel jealousy.
Georgina Takacs was my core. She made me want more. She was the one winning competitions and creating things I thought I could never do. Greatest friend ever and I cannot be thankful enough to her for setting an example and kicking my backside😂
...I felt something different...I think it was sadness and shame. I was ashamed of myself for being a coward and sad, because I did nothing to change that.
I made promises to myself and everyone around me regarding this and
I actually started writing this blog before I knew what the results were, so I could fill this with the excitement I have had 😉. I have no idea if I can get to the top or not and it is scary. But let me go back a bit……….
So I saw a competition advertised by a nail tech I’m following on Instagram and something clicked. I had dreams of the nails I wanted to create. Some say : ‘If you can dream it, you can make it’ So I did.
I started with my first...Number one -The Fairy. Sculpted the nail first and then filed it to shape. I had to research how to do figures and I must have spent days looking for the right information. I had to order a few more things to get the results I wanted, so I had to start on my second project whilst I was waiting for the other bits to arrive.
Number 2 - The Yin-Yang
I wanted to represent the sadness and the hope inside me. I felt that Lockdown was finally getting to me and the depression I had years ago was starting to crawl back into my heart. So I did what I know best... created something representing it. This way I was able to show, but did not have to talk about it. I had fallen in love with a shape another nail technician had created and I wanted to do something like it. 5 nails measured, drawn and sculpted.
My daughter fell ill during this time, so she was home with me. If you are a parent, you know what this means...sleepless nights and one heartbreakingly poorly baby. So whenever the fever had taken her over and the medication helped her sleep, I was back on the nails, but I had lost serious time.
The tiny flowers I wanted to do would take me ages, but I did not want to back down. I must have done around 50 or more 😂, but they made me happy. It can be quite relaxing, putting those tiny petals on one after the other and once it is finally done you look at and appreciate it for a few seconds and then get on with the next one.
When all the things I ordered had arrived I was able to go back to my Fairy nails, so I put the Yin-Yang aside to figure out how I will reflect the colours I had used for my flowers.
I have used at least 3 tubes of my acryl gel to create my “little” fairy. I’ve made its base, but I have changed my mind regarding the position I want her to be on the nail, so I had to make adjustments. She has taken me a few days for sure. I still could have done more, but I was cutting close to my deadline. Little I knew then 🙈 but I put The Fairy aside again and went back to my Yin-Yang.
I had a revelation! There is only one way I could reflect that many colours...by creating a marble look. So I tried and it worked perfectly. All I needed was a bit of sparkle and I was done. One entry finished...now to go back and finish that fairy.
I came to realise that the simple nail I had built just wasn’t good enough, so I had to figure out something else. Only a few days to go and I was really cutting it close, but I just couldn’t stop. I had to put my heart and soul into it and when I was finally done I felt like it was meant to be. Second entry was completed once every single detail was on. Now I only had the last one to do!
I was already super exhausted. I worked on my entries until 2am every single day, as during the day I had to do things with my daughter. I’m not going to lie and you might think I’m a bad mother, but I’ve worked so hard and got so close to my dream that I have not spent as much time with my daughter as I should have. I was selfish. And I will feel even worse if it was all for nothing.
When you are getting ready for a competition the whole world stops around you. The switch is off. You just want to do it. You leave the dishes, you spend less time with your family and friends and you might not even cook. Yes, this could happen. There is just not enough time in the day.
I took a little bit of a detour there 😂 so my last set was my own...Number 3 - Bridal Nails on five nails. I was planning to do an extreme shape called Marilyn, but I was so tired it didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to, so it became a Ballerina shape. I was trying nail art on it, but it wasn’t happening. I thought I’m going to stop. It won’t work. I went downstairs and took a break. As it was around 2.30am I couldn’t talk to anyone to help me. I went back upstairs into my room and sat down in my chair, took a deep breath and started thinking...’Is this how this will end?! Or you are going to pull yourself together and make something of yourself ?! You need to try...if you don’t even try, how can you win?!’
So I did it. It wasn’t was I was planning, but I have put everything into the last set I had in me.
Was it enough? Well we will find out soon enough. Be ready for part 2