If you had to think of most popular and “To stay for long” fashion trends – Nail art and manicure will definitely top the list. It won’t be wrong to say that one is never fully dressed without a good manicure. With all the fancy and at times overboard nail trends; we should not forget the importance of nail care and hygiene. A good manicure is beyond just trendy colors of polish. Try enlisting all the activities you do in a day with your hands/ fingers and you will realize how we have replaced a majority of tools with our nails! Thus nails tend to harbor the bacteria and it is, therefore, crucial to maintaining nail hygiene to prevent infections.

A manicure consists of steps that concentrate on cleansing and moisturizing Nails, cuticles. While there a number of kits available in the market that promise perfect manicure experience, if investing in a special kit is not on your list, we have some natural ways to up your nail game.

1) Wash:

Wash your hands well, if you are doing it for someone else, sanitize your and clients hands before you start the procedure. Also if you have any polish on your nails, wipe it off with a good nail polish remover.

2) Trim:

Trim your nails to the desired length.

3) File:

Give your nails a shape of your choice.

4) Buff:

Using a buff board, buff the surface of your nails. DON’T OVERDO. This makes nail smooth for polish application and evens out if you have any nail ridges. You can skip this step if you have even nail surface.

5) Soak:

You can use lukewarm water and lemon juice mixture for a natural soak. Soak for 15-20minutes.

6) Cuticle softening:

Rub cuticle oil/cream/balm on cuticles. Have none? Use olive oil! Let stay for 5mins and Push the cuticles gently. Don’t damage the cuticle skin. It protects nail bed, any damage here and you make your nails more open to infection by damaging it. Notice some dead white skin stuck on nails when the cuticles are pushed? That’s what you got to scrape. Gently scrape it and wipe your nails.

7) Exfoliate:

Orange or lemon peels dried and powdered mixed with olive oil make up a gentle, skin-friendly exfoliant for your hands. You can store the powdered peels in an airtight container and use as scrub whenever required. Need a quick scrub? Sugar and olive oil serve the purpose well.

8) Moisturize:

having scrubbed the dead skin, pamper the skin with moisture. I prefer body shop hand creams here. One can also rub olive oil on hands.

9) Wrap: (optional)

Steam your hands post moisturizing. Dip a cloth piece in warm water and place it on your oiled hands. Let stay for 5-10 minutes and wipe off the remaining oil with the cloth.

10) apply base coat:

I prefer Maybelline color show nail enamel, Crystal clear. A base coat helps in protecting nails from losing their color to pigmented nail polishes and helps your color stay longer.

11) Nail color:

Apply nail color of your choice evenly. Two coats and it is done. Let your first coat dry very well before the second coat.

12) Top coat:

Top coats add a shine to your nails and make the color stay longer than usual.

Tip:

Keep a nail brush handy. Brush your nails before bed and moisturize your hands every night. Use rubber gloves when washing or cleaning. Exposing skin to detergents makes skin dry and nails brittle.