The second step is soaking your fingernails in a warm water bath; this softens the cuticles. Soften the cuticle in order for you to be able to trim off any loose skin around the path of the nail. If you decide to trim the edges of the nail without softening the cuticle first, better watch out because it is highly possible that you end up with wounds around your nails.

Start cleaning the cuticles by pushing the skin gently backwards with an orangewood stick; use some cuticle remover to completely remove any other excess that is left. Cuticle removal takes some time to finish properly; do not rush and eliminate the occurrence of cuts and the like; exert some effort and see how it makes a difference with the final outcome of your French nails. Be careful when managing cuticle build up by allotting time and effort on the task at hand.

Rub your fingernails with hand cream and let the cream seep in; it would probably take a couple of minutes, then wipe off any cream residue; a piece of tissue will work fine. The hand cream, when applied, protects the treated cuticles by acting as a seal for the fingernails; the hand cream also helps the fingernails retain adequate moisture. When this step has been accomplished, now is when you decide in relation to what nail polishes you will be using.

Polish can now be applied to you French nails; start with a clear basecoat allowing each fingernail to dry very well afterwards. Applying a basecoat is essential in this process because it is responsible for the foundation of the final outcome. A good tip when applying polish is to have some patience and let each coat dry well enough before another one is painted on to avoid clumping afterwards.

When the basecoat has been allowed to dry, a thin layer of polish can now be applied over the base; a polish with a pale hue is often the color of choice here; one which matches the color of the nail. As what was done with the basecoat, apply the neutral polish in layers; about two to three thin layers will do perfectly; again, allow each coat to dry first before painting on another one. The last part of working with polish is to paint a straight line on the end of the fingernail to get the look of French nails.

Paint the tips to achieve that French manicured look; apply coats of white, beige, or any other opaque shade polish to the tips of the fingernails in contrast with the pale foundation. Similar to the former applications of polish, let each coat dry completely before applying the second or third layers of polish to achieve a better overall look. Usually, French nails are done by painting a strip of white polish straight across the nail but you can opt to go with the natural curve of the nails when you apply the coats so as to make your nails appear longer.

Finalize the polish work with a clear coat applied on top of all the previous layers. You can make the surrounding edges of the nails neat with an orangewood stick and a cotton ball doused with some nail polish remover. It will now take a longer wait before you can start using your hands, about an hour or so; to achieve wonderful nails be sure not to ignore this crucial step in the overall process.

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