Content Creation!

Creating content is without a doubt my favourite part of my job. It was something that I never put much thought into until the first lockdown, when I had more time and decided to put all my time and effort into my social media, which turned out to be one of the best things I ever did.

I had never really had the chance to put that kind of effort into my content and social media before so I wasn’t aware of the possibilities that could come of it.

My everyday work on clients usually consists of a classic French or maybe a bright red if they are feeling adventurous, so to actually have the time to be creative with my designs was so much fun. I surprised myself with some of the design concepts and content I came up. I discovered a whole other side to our industry and I fell in love with it! And the fact that I can make an income from doing something I love so much is amazing.

Content creating is something that people make look effortless, however, the work that goes into a 30 second reel is much more than it seems. Some of my videos have taken me a full day to create; from coming up with the design idea, then applying it (sometimes failing numerous times), then finally creating something I am happy with. Then I have to move on to the editing process; putting it all together in a video with music – some videos flow really well and come out perfect the first time, others need to be played around with. My working day sometimes starts at 5am and I can still be going at certain times of the evenings just to catch the right lighting which I actually look forward to, I think that’s when you know you are passionate about your job.
I might also throw a few paddy’s on my slightly off days when I feel like every design is going wrong and I’m suffering with a case of ‘Artist block’ but it always turns out ok in the end. I think I’m my own worst critic and some things aren’t always as bad as I see them. I try to get some honest opinions and feedback of my ideas before I submit them if I’m a bit unsure – which is usually from my mum and best friend (I think I drive them mad!).

Coming up with ideas can be the easiest or most difficult part of the whole process. Some days I am bursting with ideas and some days my mind goes blank. I always have something to hand to make a note of an idea as soon as it pops into my head before I forget, it’s not unusual for these ideas to pop up in the middle night.
My notes in my phone are full of them. I have albums full of inspirational screenshots, you would be amazed at some of the stuff you can get inspiration from when you put your mind to it. You don’t need to solely search nail designs to get ideas, I have had inspiration from wallpaper, books, clothing patterns, crystals and even cocktail cans! Be open minded, the nail art world is endless!

Without a doubt I love creating content, even if it sometimes takes a while. Seeing some of the stuff I have created and the end result all put together in a video and seeing people’s reactions to them once they have been uploaded is massively rewarding!

Content creator Kit list:

• Good daylight table lamp. I use the slimline daylight lamp from salons direct I also like to use a ring light for some videos too depending what time of day I’m filming.
• Large clean background. There’s some amazing backdrops you can buy, however, my favourite thing to use is a big tile; I have a couple in different shades. They are easy to keep clean and easy to store and you can get pretty much any style.
• Tripod. You definitely don’t need to spend a lot on one of these. My favourite one so far has been £10 from Amazon.
• Camera. I find it best to use my iPhone, I’m so used to it and it means I always have my projects with me for some editing while I’m on the move. I am currently using the IPhone 11 Pro Max (I like a big screen)
  The camera on the new iPhones are amazing and you can change the setting to 4K which makes your videos so clear!
• Magnetic nail art stand. You can get these so cheap from Amazon and they also come in some really cool colours – I have a load of these. I keep some just for filming so they are nice and clean and I have a load for practicing on, those not so clean!
• Blue tack. I use blue tack to stick the tips to the nail art stands while practicing however for the real video I like to use extra strong glue dots, they don’t stand out as much as blue tack. They sell them in most supermarkets.
• Nail tips. I bulk buy these from Amazon and they do so many shapes and lengths.

Top Tips

✔ Make sure all products used are cleaned, all polish bottles, glitter/ chrome pots!

✔ Background – keep tile clean especially after chromes and glitters, it sticks everywhere.

✔ Ensure the lens on your camera is cleaned every time before you start filming, you will be amazed at how a finger print or piece of dust can effect the quality of your video.

✔ Make sure tips are finished nicely and everything in the area is pristine and all the products that are in the picture are necessary.

✔ Music – ensure you have the rights to your music. Most video editing apps have plenty of free music for you to choose from, however, if you are wanting to use a certain song make sure you have purchased it from iTunes. Anything screen recorded and not paid for will be picked up when you post them by Instagram or Facebook/ TikTok and they will remove your content.