I'm always fascinated at the little home experiments nail technicians will do. Some of the greatest product ideas usually come from Nail Tech ingenuity.
At our company we offer two kits of color gel for creating a permanent polish look or works of art. In my line, Cinapro, we have the Pastel Kit and the Runway Collection Kit. Naturally, the best pigment mix comes from lab. However, a Nail Tech doesn't have to stop there. You can actually mix two or more of our colors together to make a new color. Custom colors can really set you apart from the competition. You can literally label the jar, "Mary" or "Lucy" after your client.
Taking customization one step further, Star Nail Gels can actually be mixed with....POLISH to create colors. The mix ratio is 60% Gel to 40% of your favorite polish color. Stir them up and apply like usual. If you want a lighter version of the same color, just mix less of the polish. With Clear gel you'll get more of a transparent color. With White gel you'll get an opaque color. Just be sure that you are using a 9watt UV lamp to cure your colors. Especially the opaque ones. The more pigment you add the harder it is for the UV rays to penetrate the thickness of the gel and cure it completely. A way to get around that is to do super thin coats (cure in between each coat) and do several coats to build it up.
Moving on to Acrylics. In the Cina line we offer a "Color Pigment and Mixing Kit". It's raw pigment you mix with your own acrylic powders to create custom blends of color acrylic. However, you can actually tint the monomer with your favorite polish. Just a few drops in your dappen dish of monomer will tint the liquid. Simply dip like normal and make an acrylic ball tinted through and through with the monomer. It's an alternative to those additive drops that tend to evaporate in the jar. Again, clear powder creates transparent (stained glass) effect, while white powder will create an opaque effect.
Building custom colors doesn't have to be just an artistic thing. Keep in mind not all powders or gels are so perfect for every given skin tone. Offering a custom blend to match your clients skin tone is definitely something you want to market to your clients. This will set you apart from the competition. Just be careful to keep your recipe in a safe place so that you can match your first batch in the future.
Have fun mixing!
Elaine
(writing from Valencia, CA today)