Major Assignment 4 [MA4]

Once you have reviewed the content and video tutorials in Lesson 5.11 – Lesson 5.15, and completed all Practical Activities, it is time to submit your fourth assignment. You are required to complete a full set of natural gel tips, a full set of natural acrylic tips, as well as a full set of French acrylic tips, on models of your choosing and in line with the techniques and processes demonstrated in the previous three lessons.

You must achieve a pass/competent mark in this assessment to progress onto the remaining assignments. If you are assessed as ‘not yet competent’, you will be provided with feedback and guidance and asked to resubmit your assignment. You may attempt this assignment as many times as is required to achieve a pass/competent mark.

Major Assignment Outline

Your major assignment requires you to submit the following items:

1. Part one: evidence of a full set of natural gel tips (using a shape of your choosing), including correct nail preparation techniques. To achieve a natural finish, apply a gel base and top coat to your shaped gel enhancements, as demonstrated in the video tutorial contained in lesson 5.13 Full Set Natural Tips (Gel).
2. Part two: evidence of a full set of natural acrylic tips (using a shape of your choosing), including correct nail preparation techniques. To achieve a natural finish, apply a gel base and top coat to your shaped gel enhancements, as demonstrated in the video tutorial contained in lesson 5.14 Full Set Natural Tips (Acrylic).
3. Part three: evidence of a full set of French acrylic tips (using a shape of your choosing), including correct nail preparation techniques. To achieve a natural finish, apply a gel base and top coat to your shaped acrylic enhancements, as demonstrated in the video tutorial contained in lesson 5.15 Full Set French Tips (Acrylic).

You are required to firstly demonstrate sound natural nail preparation. You are then require to select and glue appropriate sized tips to the nails before trimming and shaping them, and then apply acrylic or gel builder product. You will then need to shape the structure with a nail file to achieve a smooth tapering of product from the apex to the nail tip and cuticles (including appropriate thickness in these areas), as well as a symmetrical C-curve. You will then need to finish your set with gel products, in accordance with the instructions above.

Assessment criteria

You will be assessed against each of the below criteria for each part of your assignment:

1. Evidence of correct nail preparation.
2. Evidence of correct tip selection.
3. Aesthetically pleasing, symmetrical nail shape.
4. Evidence of product control (crisp, clean lines 1-2mm from cuticles with no signs of product leaching).
5. Correct formation and placement of the apex in relation to length of the artificial nail.
6. Smooth tapering of product from the apex to the nail tip and cuticles, and appropriate thickness in these areas.
7. Correct formation of the C-curve.
8. Evidence of even coverage of gel products (gel base and top coats).

Submitting your assignment

To submit this assessment, complete the assignment submission form below. Part of this submission is the upload of photos of your work. You are required to upload ten (10) images for each of your three sets, in line with the below examples:

Example images:

Please ensure there is sufficient lighting (natural light if possible) to clearly show your work in your images.

Good luck!