Following my Full Skin Care Routine, here I am giving a detailed procedure to carry out an at home manicure and pedicure whenever your hands and feet need a pick-me up. Personally, I do a manicure once a week and a pedicure twice a week.
Manicure
1. Sanitize your hands with antiseptic gel/wipes/spray.
2. Remove your old nail polish and asses your nails to decide the shape and if they require a special treatment (ex. rub a slice of lemon to remove nail polish stains; immerse nails in olive oil for 10 minutes to strengthen them; etc...). It is best if you use an acetone-free nail polish remover since acetone tends to excessively dry the nails of their natural oils and hence weaken them.
3. File the nails in the desired shape. You can get an idea of different nail shapes from the picture below:
4. Immerse one hand in a bowl filled with warm water for 5 minutes. This will soften the hands on your skin and prepare them for the treatments to follow. You can add 3 drops of your favourite essential oil or bubble bath.
5. Dry your hand and repeat step 4 for the other hand. (There is no need to add more essential oil/bubble bath).
6. Push the cuticles back with an orange stick or wooden/stainless steel cuticle pusher. DO NOT CUT YOUR CUTICLES. They are there to protect the nails from bacterial and fungal infections.
7. Apply a hand/body scrub all over the palms and inner arms. Rinse off with warm water after 5 minutes.
8. Using your favourite hand cream or body lotion as a massage medium, massage your hands for 10 minutes to relax the muscles.
9. Wipe nails with some acetone-free nail polish remover to remove lotion residues since these will not permit the nail polish to adhere to the nail.
10. Apply one coat of base coat. There is a variety of base coats to suit all types of nail conditions, for example, ridge fillers, nail strengtheners and hardeners and clear base coats. Choose one which suits your nails the most.
11. Apply two coats of your desired nail varnish. Allow drying time in between coats.
12. If you are ready from painting your nails, doing nail art, etc..., apply one coat of a glossy, glittery or matte top coat (which ever you please) to protect your manicure and make it last longer.
13. Finish off by applying some cuticle oil to the cuticles and massage it until it is absorbed.
Pedicure
1. Perform steps 1 & 2 as for a manicure.
3. Immerse feet in a basin with warm water to soften them and the nails to make it easier to trim them. Take them out and dry them after about 5 minutes.
4. Trim the nails straight across to prevent ingrown toe-nails.
5. Do steps 6 - 13 as for a manicure but ***remember to use toe separators when applying polish to prevent smudging***
Also, you can use a foot rasp or pumice stone to remove hard skin after applying the scrub and before the body lotion. If you have treatment creams like for example a callus reducer, apply it before going to bed after washing your feet, put on a pair of old socks and sleep in them... by morning your feet will be baby-soft!
The right tools for the job!
Here is a list of the basic things you will need to do an at-home manicure and pedicure:
- Antiseptic spray/gel/wipes
- Nail files (not the steel ones as these are too harsh for natural nails)
- Acetone-free nail polish remover
- Bowl/basin
- Bubble bath/essential oils
- Cuticle pushers
- Hand scrub
- Hand cream
- Foot rasp/pumice stone
- Cotton discs/balls/buds
- Toe separators
- Base coat
- Nail polishes
- Top coat
- Cuticle oil
And here is a picture of some of my tools (nail art brushes and stamping image plates are also included as well as other gems and decorations):
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