The Salon Manicure
If you are considering treating yourself to a beauty salon manicure - and
why shouldn't you! - the following are the details of what you can expect to
receive from a professional manicurist. Your manicure might not follow this
procedure exactly, but it should be very similar. So there shouldn't be any
surprises. So just go and relax and enjoy it!
Here it is - how to give a manicure - in 12 luxurious steps:
1. Remove the old nail varnish by wiping with a piece of cotton wool soaked
in varnish remover. Once all the varnish has gone, rinse the fingers with clean
water.
2. File the nails into the correct shape and buff to remove any little imperfections
and rough edges.
3. Dampen the hands a little with water and apply a gentle exfoliator, using
a massaging action. Then rinse the hands thoroughly and dry.
4. Soak the hands in soapy water, using a moisturizing cream moisturizing
soap, not an astringent. Leave them in the water for about ten minutes.
5. Apply moisturizing cream to the cuticles.
6. Push back the cuticles using a hoof stick (usually a plastic stick with
a rubber tip, specially designed for moulding cuticles).
7. Gently massage the cuticles and the whole hand with moisturizing hand cream
until it is totally absorbed.
8. Remove excess dead skin around the cuticles and trim any hang-nails using
special very tiny, but sharp, nippers.
9. Buff the nails to remove all ridges, imperfections and any unevenness.
10. Apply a rich moisturizing cream to the hands, wrists and lower arms, using
a massaging action until the cream is thoroughly absorbed.
11. Then immerse the hands in a Vitamin E rich paraffin bath. This is used
to open the pores and let the heat and moisture be thoroughly absorbed. This
is done several times, with a short delay between each immersion, allowing
the wax to build up in several layers. Once sufficient wax has built up, the
hands are wrapped in some thin plastic film or plastic bags and placed into
insulating mitts made from towel. After approximately ten minutes the mits
and plastic are removed and the wax peeled away. The hands will be beautifully
soft.
12. Finally, nail varnish is applied in the form of a base coat, then two
layers of your color of choice, and a finishing protective top coat.
That's it. All over! Another perfect, luxuriating, relaxing and beautifying
manicure, making you feel good all over.