How to do the Perfect Manicure

This is a how to on nails, it will tell you how to do the perfect manicure and even the perfect french manicure! I do this myself :). It'll make even short nails - like mine - look fantastic!

1. Remove all nail varnish.
2. Soak hands in a bowl of warm water with a couple of drops of lemon juice in for 5 minutes or so. (The lemon juice will remove stains)
3. Push cuticles back with a cuticle stick or the nail on another finger.
4. Rub hand and nail cream into your hands and nails (making sure you rub it into the cuticles) or you can just use hand/body lotion it works just as well.
5. File your nails (cut them too if you want - I always do, I can't deal with long nails) - a squoval is the most flattering nail shape.
6. If you have a nail buffer and polisher then buff and polish your nails.
7. Apply base coat. (For french manicures this will be the light pink shade, for just a normal manicure this is just clear nail varnish) Let it dry for a couple of minutes atleast.
8. Apply middle coat. (For normal manicures this will be your colour, for french manicures this will be the white tips - just get a little bit of white on the brush and carefully paint the tip of your nails - it takes alot of practice to get it right!) Allow to dry for around 5 minutes as this coat is the most important and you don't want it smudging.
9. Apply top coat. Just a clear coat, and allow to dry for a couple of minutes. (Some nail varnish may dry quicker but just to be safe you may want to not touch things with your hands until they're rock-hard-dry)

Tips:

• If you can't paint nails very well without nail varnish going all over your fingers (this happens when using my left hand to paint my right hand!) wrap a bit of sticky tape around the nail half of your finger after step 6 then take off when your nails are dry.
• File, buff and polish in one direction so your nails don't crack.

xx