You can do your own professional looking French manicures at home. Just buy a French manicure set or put one together yourself. Putting together a French manicure kit by yourself can be a little cheaper than buying a pre-packaged one, plus, when you make your own, you can choose your own nail polish colors. Be on the lookout though, sometimes you can find good sets on sale at your local department store. If you do, buy one, because nail guides can get expensive. Keep in mind that when you buy a French manicure set, you're usually paying for unnecessary extras, like a case or a bag.
Most people want a manicure so that they can achieve a natural, clean look for your fingernails. Here are some suggestions about what should go into your French manicure set:
• opaque or sheer nude nail polish (the classic colors are a shiny and transparent pink or beige)
• nail clippers
• nail files
• nail polishers/buffers
• nail guides
• white nail color
• French manicure pen
If you want to go for the classic look, buy two nail colors; bright white and a sheer or pastel. The common choice is bright white with a sheer or pastel. However, if you're not afraid of attention, you can go for a bolder look and use a bright color and even reverse colors so the main part of the nail is white and the tips are colorful.
Push down your cuticles and buff and file your nail bed and tips. Once you have a smooth and shapely nail, stick down the nail guides, which are like stickers to use as a guide so that you get professional looking results. A nail guide is an essential part of your French manicure kit; ask anyone who's tried to paint a smooth curvy line on their nails without one. Paint the tip of your nail white or whatever color you have selected.
Once your nails are dry, you can remove the guides and then paint the rest of the nails with your sheer or opaque color. Beginners should choose a sheer color so that they can simply paint over the entire nail. It's easy to create your own perfect manicures at home once you have all the tools in a French manicure set.
You could also use a French manicure pen to create designs on your nails. One of the easiest ways to do this is on fake nails. If you do it this way, you don't have to draw designs using your opposite hand, which can be tricky.
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