Keratin, sulphur and the disulphide bonds that give nails their strength; minerals, vitamins and lipids. What makes a nail brittle, what causes a chemical burn, and how gel coatings and removers interact with the plate. You will be able to explain to a client why her nails are in the state they are in — and be right.

Splitting and brittle nails, transverse and longitudinal ridges, white and black spots, yellowing, pallor, linear pigmentation. Which of these you can work with, which need a doctor, and which are simply the result of somebody’s bad filing.

Scissors — blade shape and length, how to hold them. Pushers — the axe and the spatula, working with the C-curve. Nippers — the heel, the “bird” shape, surgical steel. Keratolytics: alkaline versus acid, pH and speed, urea-based products for allergy-prone hands.

Ceramic and carbide bits, 15–20 thousand rpm, and different hand positions for right- and left-handed masters. Then the diagnostic table I teach everyone: if it burns — soft bit, slow movements, narrow diameter, too much material. If it takes forever — clogged bit, blunt bit, slow movements, too much pressure. Once you know this, you stop guessing.

The square: file at 90° to the plate, and what happens at 110° or below 90°. Shape control across all ten fingers so they match.

Buffing at 180–220 grit, degreasing, dehydration, acid or acid-free primer — and when each is appropriate. Then the levelling technique: thin first layer, forming the volume, the extra drop, turning the finger down so gravity builds the apex for you.

Hook it, pull it, smooth it — and never press on the brush. The even line, the growth point, why you do not cover the corner zones. Then all six causes of lifting: wrong preparation, pterygium residue, dust, poor buffing, too much keratolytic, material flooding the side walls.

In my experience, yes — usually in the explanations rather than the steps. Masters with ten years of practice regularly tell me that the lifting section alone changed how they work.

Your cutting and piercing instruments — nippers, scissors, pusher — yes, for hygiene reasons. Products and consumables I provide.

Yes. From three masters upward I travel to you. Distance is rarely a problem — tell me where you are.

Yes, and it is often the fastest option. It costs the same as the course for three students.

Ukrainian, which Russian-speaking masters follow easily. Polish or English on request with an interpreter, paid separately.