- Groom: Start by soaking your fingers in a bowl of warm water for two minutes to soften the cuticles. Using a wooden orange stick or your thumbnail, gently push your cuticles back. Pushing cuticles back gives nails a longer appearance and prepares the nail for polish without hurting your cuticle’s barrier function.
- Shape: Using a glass file, gently file nails to the desired shape and length. To protect your nails from softening, file in one direction instead of a back and forth motion following a three-step process. Start by filing from side to center on each side of the nail before finishing at the tip of the nail. Finish off by gently buffing the top of the nail to remove ridges and clean the nail.
- Treat: Massage Vitamin E oil into cuticles and hands. Vitamin E oil is nourishing and helps treat damage from acetone, gels and acrylics. Leave the oil on for a few minutes and then use a gentle nail polish remover to remove oil from the nails. Tip: To continue strengthening nails and cuticles, massage Vitamin E oil on nails before bed as often as you’d like.
- Polish: If you have a base coat, start by applying a thin layer to the nails to help polish last longer. Paint two to three coats of polish and finish with a layer of topcoat.