{DIY} Eight Easy Steps To The Perfect At-Home Manicure

The one thing I’d much rather do myself than pay for, among others, is doing my nails. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a total treat to get a mani/pedi, but I seriously love polishing my nails. It’s my hobby. I do it when I watch TV, feel artsy, whenever. I even ask friends if they’d like me to do their nails. What I’ve learned in giving manis to my ladies is that a lot of females do not know how to properly give themselves a manicure. If you, too, have been living your life lacking nail polish skills,  you are in luck! Here are eight super-simple steps to the perfect, easy at-home manicure.

1. Starting with clean nails, soak hands in warm water for five minutes to soften cuticles. Add a little soap or a few drops of an essential oil to make it extra luxurious.
2. Lotion hands and push back cuticles.
3. Gently file nails, making sure to stroke in the same direction. Filing nails back and forth causes nails to split and break, so stick to filing one way.
4. Wipe lotion from nail bed using a cotton ball or tissue.

1. Apply base coat.
2. Apply one coat of  your nail color of choice.
3. Let nails dry before applying a second coat to avoid smudging, then repeat. The less strokes the better. Three swipes of polish per coat is the magic number.
4. Once dry, seal with top coat. This topcoat, Seche Vite is my personal favorite and my pro-nail friend Rose of Doorbella got me hooked on. She does nails at New York Fashion Week, so what she recommends is the real deal. A good topcoat is what sets a good manicure apart from one that looks, well, not quite as polished.

For this week’s manicure I’m wearing Mineral Fusion nail lacquer in Grotto. It’s one of my favorite shades right now, so highly recommend it.

Have any nail tips you’d like to share? Comment below!