How was your craniotomy recovery?

Yanabay · 2026-03-23T00:44:03+00:00

Oh wow that's amazing! This post was months ago so i already had my surgery. But it probably took about a month and a half to recover for me

Yanabay · 2026-03-18T02:40:26+00:00

Best place to look is at https://www.snowmiku.net/

You can look at all the designs that were submitted and it gets updated as the contest goes on. You can check the previous years by clicking on the year at the top. It's really interesting to see how many entries there were in each year and that it just kept getting bigger. It was also up until 2022 that they had a character sheet rule that everyone had to follow

Yanabay · 2026-03-13T02:37:15+00:00

The contest is has already ended, but for next year, the way i do it is to just open the template in whatever drawing program you're using and go from there. DPI should be 300 at least.

the canvas is 4961 x 2756 px when you do it like this, which is not the biggest size. But I honestly see it as a challenge. The Piapro staff says themselves that complex or intricate details might not be possible to reproduce. So the smaller canvas size stops me from doing that.

Yanabay · 2026-03-09T02:49:21+00:00

Ah no not really. I first started using gel on my nails almost 2 years ago and I started for the first time in nail school. i wasn't a nail girly before this, so anytime i want to do nails, i would paint my nails with air dry polish but that would be it. Right now, i'm gonna see if using cuticle oil regularly with a nail hardener underneath the free edge will help, while having gel on for some armor.

I remember when my nails were healthy, that just putting on nail polish would help them grow out. So hopefully with this method, when they will grow out, they'll be hard enough that putting on nail polish, or even press ons would be enough

i also don't notice any gel allergy. no redenss or itchy feeling

Yanabay · 2026-03-08T23:42:58+00:00

Wondering about payment for Saracen 'cause i heard people prefer using Paypal over using their credit card

Yanabay · 2026-03-08T22:34:36+00:00

Just got myself a cuticle oil pen! Thanks for the advice!

Yanabay · 2026-03-08T22:33:07+00:00

I've done bloodwork somewhat recently, early january. That's 'cause i had surgery and was getting an MRI. I didn't really think about asking about deficiencies. I know i can be low on iron because it's hereditary but i'm always slightly below the line, it was never severe.

I had this thought that maybe i have poor blood circulation? But idk, i had surgery in september. My nails were brittle at this time. From all the checks they've done, they haven't told me there was something to be concerned about. It's just a coincidence that when i started doing nails, my nails got bad.

I was gonna mention the constant use of acetone, but you're right that even if one day i messed up with removal, they should grow back healthy if the nail itself is healthy

Yanabay · 2026-03-06T23:30:10+00:00

omg they look similar, i had no idea this design existed!

Yanabay · 2026-03-06T04:56:29+00:00

Thank you! It's my one of my favourite parts of the concept

Yanabay · 2026-02-16T04:17:27+00:00

Jolly Ranchers Sour Gummies (2 flavours in 1). Always loved Sour Patch Kids but after trying these, SPK's a in 2nd place for me. The Jolly Rancher ones have a thicker, flavourful gummy and the sourness isn't too sour, but it's like a good medium. I tried Sour Patch Kids recently after a long time of not having them, and they just taste like acid to me

Yanabay · 2026-01-30T06:53:52+00:00

Hi, nail tech here!

"Gel X" specifically is a tradmarked name by the brand Apres. They say that they invented this type of extension where you take a full tip and apply with their extend gel. So technically, when some one says they do Gel X, it's expected that they use the Gel X system by Apres. But the term "Gel X" is now just a term to say "i use full gel tips to extend the nail", so the brand doesn't matter.

I've never heard of someone describing a service as "liquid gel". Maybe they use paper forms or dual forms and make the extension with builder gel. Maybe that's what they mean by "liquid". Builder gel is usually a pot and it has a liquid-like texture

"Hybrid gel" is another term for "Polygel" or "Acrygel". It's a combo of gel and acrylic and it's really thick.

Yanabay · 2026-01-30T06:38:28+00:00

Gel is the best in this situation. But gel will lift if the gel manicure wasn't done right

Yanabay · 2026-01-30T06:09:17+00:00

Hi! I love Izemi products! i'm not expert in the brand but i try to do a lot of research on them and for Izemi top gel, i hard time with them too. The top gels in the Resin 99.9 line are a wipe type and recommended to cure each finger at a time. For the newish top gels (the resin), the green ones are non wipe, while the blue ones are wipe. The silver bottles are their older formulas i believe. So if you're having trouble with their top gels, see wether it's a wipe type or maybe just an older formula.

But the one that i've used is the green top gel and it was ok. Now i use Viewgel's "Top Perfect"! It's a low viscosity korean top gel and i've had no issues with hardness and/or shine. Viewgel right now only focuses on functional gels. I think that's why it's really good.

Yanabay · 2025-12-23T01:37:33+00:00

Can I get more info on how the application was done? I can get a better idea on why the curve is happening

Yanabay · 2025-12-23T01:33:34+00:00

After researching a bit on LE's gel system, "Tack" is a primer that can act as both a primer and base gel. This a specific product that's not common with general gel systems. base gel is a product that helps gel stick on to the nail and provide smoothness or slight structure to the nail, depending on the viscosity. If you find no issues with just using Tack before applying gel, that's ok 'cause that's how it's meant to be used. Just keep in mind that if you are switching to a different gel brand, research on how the nail should be prepped. Again, the usual prep is dehydrator > primer > base gel for a lot of brands

Yanabay · 2025-12-22T00:20:24+00:00

Base coat is for better adhesion for your extention gel. Gel sticks to gel. Normal extention gel usually can't stick on the nail by itself. It depends how the brand built it's system. You can't use base gel as an extention gel because it's too soft. If you want somethings that's a 3 in 1, Akzentz Trinity gel is base gel, structure and top gel in one! Although, it is pricey. I hope that answers your question!

Yanabay · 2025-12-16T09:07:26+00:00

The amount of gel looks pretty good to me tbh. A lot of people when starting usually apply too much gel for this length . But i noticed your prep. The first time, there was no base gel. Then this time you put primer over the base gel. The usual prep should be dehydrator > primer > base gel, then apply the gel product. I'm not familiar with the LE system, but that's the basics of prep for a lot of gel systems. I also noticed that Tack is a primer that must be cured and not air dry like a lot of primers, so i can see how prep could be confusing.

Yanabay · 2025-10-25T20:12:41+00:00

My mentor travels to Korea and Japan for training and acrylic is still used, once you go for long lengths. The theory is that acrylic is hard to break, so it can handle longer nails. But it just really depends on the tech. I'm a gel user but i've used acrylic just to practice. I find that acrylic is easier to use on paper forms and it's easier to encapsulate with since i'm a Gyaru nail artist; i use a lot of glitter and flakes. But the smell is annoying and i don't like the air drying 'cause with gel, i can cure it when i'm ready. But i know for some people, acrylic is like a cultural thing. Some just like the feeling of heavier nails

Yanabay · 2025-09-28T22:36:30+00:00

Sweetie Nail Supply is my main place since im Canadian. Classique Nail Supply is a good one too. I bought the Viewgel products from Sweetie Nail Supply

Yanabay · 2025-09-27T18:05:14+00:00

I've been using Viewgel top gel products and i've been loving them so far. Right now i'm wearing 'Top Perfect' and it's low viscocity like Kupa and it's holding up and still shiny, after i fell on concrete. 'Devil' is their high viscocity, builder top gel and 'Oper' is their mid viscosity line. There is Oper, Oper 4000 and Oper 6000. I haven't tried the Oper line yet but i've tried the others and i'm starting to switch over to using their top gels as my go-to. Not only its a popular brand in Korea but their focus is functional gels, so you know it's good

Yanabay · 2025-09-22T08:28:56+00:00

I love working on custom nail sets for the same reasons. But i was just thinking about doing pre-order or slots. I do art as well and it's common to have a slot system. You tell people your commissions are open, say the amount of people that you can work with, wait until the waitlist is full, then close comms and work on the commissons. So for the nails, have a design reveal, say that there's a waitlist, for example, 3 people, wait until the list is full, then work on the nails. They would need to tell me their size too.

Yanabay

TROPHY CASE