Get a Perfect Mani and Pedi
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }Get your finger and toenails ready for spring and summer by getting the perfect mani and pedi. You don't have to head to a salon and pay high prices for beautiful fingers and toes. The key to a great manicure and pedicure is focusing on whole hands and feet, not simply the nails. You'll want to remove dead skin and buff up nails to make your feet and hands look terrific.
Scrub Away
Before you do anything else, exfoliate the skin of your hands and feet. Smooth a buttery hand scrub over your fingers and palms to remove hard, dry skin. Use a minty foot scrub to slough off dead, dry skin on your heels and toes. You can also use a pumice stone on your heels and the rest of your feet. Exfoliate after bathing or showering, when the skin is still slightly damp, for best results.
Take Care of Cuticles
Cuticles are the pieces of skin at the base of the nail. You may be tempted to cut them off, but for the sake of your hands and feet, don't. Instead, coat them with a cuticle softening oil and use an orange stick to gently push them back. When you cut cuticles, they'll grow back thicker than before, plus you run the risk of hurting yourself. Apply the cuticle oil a few times a day to keep them soft and healthy.
Shape the Nails
Trim your nails on your fingers and toes with nail clippers or scissors. To prevent ingrown nails, don't cut the nails too short. They shouldn't be any shorter than the tip of your finger or toe. When cutting your toenails, clip straight across. A rounded nail is more likely to grow into the skin when it grows back.
Use a nail file to shape the tips of your finger and toenails. File in one direction only, as going back and forth over the top of the nail will make it ragged and uneven. Give your finger nails a rounded tip so that they look as though a professional did them. Smooth an uneven nail surface with a buffing pad.
Polish Your Nails
Before applying nail polish to your finger and toenails, wipe the nails clean with nail polish remover or rubbing alcohol. Top coat and nail polish will cling to clean nails better than dirty ones. Apply a base coat to each nail first. The base coat will give the polish something to hold onto and will prevent the nails from staining, especially if you use a dark color.
Apply two coats of colored nail polish and one coat of top coat to prevent chipping. Let each coat dry for three to five minutes before applying the next coat, so that your nails are less likely to smudge. Touch-up the nails with the topcoat every few days to make your mani and pedi last longer and reduce chipping.
Choosing Colors
Choose colors for your mani and pedi that match the season. For example, deep shades, such as dark purple, forest green and burgundy are great for fall and winter but too heavy for spring and summer. In the warmer seasons, go for lighter shades such as lavender, silver or pink.
