Doing Your Nails

"Doing" Your Nails--How to Give Yourself a Manicure

You will enjoy having nails that look well-cared-for. Nice-looking nails can be an accessory to any outfit. As you know, nail polish comes in about a million colors, glossy or metallic, with or without glitter. Nail polish can be a fun way to express your personality.

Storing nail polish in the fridge extends its shelf life. (When polish is exposed to heat, it thickens and gets hard to apply.) Be careful: Food and chemicals don't mix! To avoid contaminating Mom's favorite leftovers, store polish in a plastic container before chilling. When you're ready to do your nails, rub the bottle gently between your palms to warm it up. Don't shake it; shaking mixes air into the polish and causes bubbles.

Use a fine emery board to shape your nails. Working in one direction only, file from the sides to the center. See nail shapes below.

Give your fingertips a soaking in warm soapy water so the cuticles will soften up. Then dry your fingers.

Push cuticles down with an orange stick.

Buff the nails with a nail buffer, from the tip to the cuticle.

Rub some hand cream into your hands and nails. Make sure to removed it from your nails before you polish them. This will condition your nails.

When you polish your nails, use a base coat of clear, two to three coats of polish and a top coat of clear or "top coat" that you should apply every four days to keep your polish from chipping and lasting longer.

http://www.livestrong.com/article/13863-nails/