The party season is almost upon us and it is time to think about nails and makeup. Manicures can be really expensive and blow Christmas budgets, so it’s time to start doing them at home. You can get that, whether you want a French manicure or you’re looking for something more bright and colourful for your party. Here are the things every woman needs to get the perfect manicure.
Nail Cutters to Get the Perfect Cut
Before you start painting, you need to make sure your nails are ready. Cut them to a manageable length; you know the length that suits you.
Try to cut them in a straight line across to avoid ingrown nail problems. If you want rounded edges, you need the next item.
Nail Files for Shaping Your Nails
Get rid of the sharp edges and chips with a nail file. Metal ones are great for this stage as they work quicker and easier. Shape your nails in the way that you prefer.
Make sure all your nails are still manageable to avoid chipping anything. If you have a bad habit of catching your nails or chipping them, consider rounding the edges off.
Emery Boards for Prepping Your Nails
Have an emery board or two or three—they break easily! These are perfect for carrying around in your bag and you can take them on an aeroplane (if you need to), which you can’t do with a metal file.
The emery board is also perfect for prepping your nails. Use it on the face of your nails to roughen them. It helps the nail polish stick better.
Cuticle Devices
You can get small metal devices that push your cuticles back. This exposes more nail and will stop your cuticles getting in the way.
Make sure you do this for every nail. You will need to be quite forceful on some nails, depending on how your cuticles sit.
Mistake Eraser
Unfortunately this isn’t to go over bits of nail varnish that have gone wrong. The idea is to place it on your nails before you start on your manicure.
You can then remove it completely afterwards so it looks like you never made a mistake with your brush. Think of it as masking tape that you would place on skirting boards and light switches when painting a room.
Tip Liners
If you’re doing a French manicure, make sure you have some tip liners. These act a little like the Mistake Eraser, except they sit underneath the white tips of your nails once you’ve applied the base colour for your nails.
They make sure you have the perfect white line on the tips of your nails.
Time!
All women need time when it comes to doing their nails. This isn’t just getting the polish job right; it needs time to dry.
Don’t try to do your nails the hour before you go out when you still have tights to put on and makeup to do. It takes about 24 hours for nail polish to fully dry.