5 different types of manicures you could totally DIY at home!
Are you running out of ideas when painting your nails? Or are you always going for classic shades and got bored of them all of a sudden?
Well, you should know that there is a plethora of ideas out there for you and your nails, with many types of manicure to either try or draw inspiration from.
In this article we would like you to learn about different types of manicure and a general idea of how to do them. We hope it will help with coming up with new ideas the next time you want to get a fresh polish on your nails!
1. Basic Manicure
If this is your first time, then it is better to keep it simple and sweet. A basic manicure is hassle-free, fast and simple (totally doable at home!) and is the best way to know what to expect in a manicure session. The idea is to give a well-deserved treatment to your nails.
If you want to do a simple manicure just as they do a the salon, first apply a lotion or cream and oil on your cuticles. Next, you need to get a bowl containing lukewarm water and soak your hands in it for about 5 to 10 minutes. After that, dry your hands and clean the cuticles with a trimmer and shape your nails using a nail file and nail scissors. At this point, you will need to apply a base coat to your nails, which will help your polish of choice last longer, followed by a shade of nail polish you like. You can apply more than one coat of nail polish, but make sure that you keep it light and wait about two minutes for the coat to dry before applying another. The nail paint is then sealed with a topcoat of clear nail polish.
2. French Manicure
It is chic, stylish, would never disappoint and nowadays the fashion-conscious nail-loving divas continuously experiment with this classic form of manicure. So, you will see a lot of varieties in terms of shades of colour, shapes and embellishments.
Once you get more acquainted with painting your nails, it will not be that hard. First, repeat the steps of the basic manicure; then, as for a French manicure it is better to have a perfectly clean nail, you can use a glossing buffer to exfoliate the nail plate, eliminating any flaws.
When it finally comes to painting the nails, you need to do so with a clear or beige or pale pink nail polish over the whole nail plate. Once it dries, the tip of the nail must be painted with white nail polish in a crescent shape. To do so you can avail of self-adhesive manicure guides or of a manicure pen for better results.
3. Reverse French Manicure
The reverse French manicure is a quirky version of the classic French manicure. Compared to its best-known sister, this mani has the crescent moon painted at the base of your nail, which is close to the cuticle.
First, make sure that your nails will be cleaned, trimmed, and shaped; soak your hands in lukewarm water for a few minutes. After that, clip the cuticles with the help of a nipper as the crescent moon shape will be painted near them. Once it is done, the nail is coated with nail paint: you can choose to make the nail lighter or darker than the moon. Finally, you can make everything look even more professional by applying a coat of clear gel nail polish.
4. American Manicure
The American manicure is similar to a French manicure, but with a very subtle difference. With this manicure the nails do not have the typical unnatural look of the French mani, but rather have a more blended and natural look.
Even the nail shape you get is different in this manicure, as it is recommended to just cut the nail rounding up its natural shape.
The initial steps are similar – your nails need to be cleaned and trimmed. Your nails are shaped and given a rounder form. After applying the base coat, you need to select an ivory shade to be applied on your nails. The nail colour is either airbrushed on your nails or simply applied with a brush applicator. To achieve this American-style manicure, we recommend using a matte topcoat that would give the nail a more natural, less gel-like look.
5. Brazilian manicure
Here is another manicure you can easily do at home. Usually, when the nail polish ends up anywhere but on your actual nails it is a clear sign of a manicure done wrong. However, this is not the case when it comes to the Brazilian manicure, where a messy paint job is actually the sign of a manicure done well.
In this case, the surrounding skin around the nails is purposely coated with a clear base coat and then the polish shade of choice, followed by removing the excess polish with a Q-tip and acetone-soaked cotton pads. “Why do we make this mess?”, you may be wondering. Well, Brazilian nail experts explain that this way of painting polish is done so that the polish sits under the cuticles and makes for a longer lasting mani. The other aspect that makes this manicure unique is how the cuticles are treated, as when doing a Brazilian manicure you would need to remove all of the cuticles’ outer layer during the prepping time, which is something that you want to try too.
So, what is the best manicure for you? Some of these can totally be done from the comfort of your home, with the right tools and products. It is time to experiment and play around with your hands and nails all the while treating them gently!
