- 1). Clean any old nail polish off your nails. Soak a cotton ball in nail polish remover. Press the cotton ball on a polished nail. Hold the cotton ball in place for a few seconds to soften the polish. Wipe the cotton ball over the nail's surface to remove the polish.
- 2). Shape the tips of your nails with a nail file. Start on one side of the nail and move the file toward the nail's center. Do this repeatedly, moving the file only in the one direction, until the top edge of the nail is square and smooth. Repeat this on the opposite side of the nail, and then on each nail in turn.
- 3). Place both hands in warm soapy water. Let your hands soak for three to five minutes to soften and clean the cuticles and nails. Rinse in warm water and pat your hands and nails dry with a paper towel.
- 4). Push back the cuticle on each nail gently but firmly with the beveled end of an orange stick. Clean underneath each nail with the pointed tip of the stick.
- 5). Paint each nail of your left hand with a base-coat nail polish. Apply a thin layer to each nail using long even brush strokes. The base coat will keep the nails from yellowing and becoming brittle while allowing the extra layers of polish to go on smoothly. Give the base coat time to try.
- 6). Place a French manicure guide strip on each nail. Position each strip along the natural curve of the nail tip. Press down firmly along each strip's edge to secure it to the nail. Paint the tip of each nail with white nail polish. Brush on the polish, beginning at the edge of the guide strip and moving toward the tip of the nail. Allow your nails to dry completely.
- 7). Peel back the guide strip from each nail carefully. Discard the used strips. Apply a coat of sheer pink nail polish over the entire nail, including the white tips. Brush on the polish, beginning below the cuticle and stroking toward the tip. Allow the polish to dry.
- 8). Brush a layer of top-coat nail polish over each nail's surface. Use long, even strokes and be sure to coat the entire nail. Once your left hand is finished and dry, repeat the painting process on your right hand.
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