DIY French Manicure at Home

French manicure has been the classic choice of many women of all ages and probably the no1 style that remains in fashion regardless of the season nail trends that come and go. In this article, find out how to do DIY french manicure at home for short nails, with ordinary tips plus more tips

How to do french manicure at home Without Strips

What is french manicure?

The classic french manicure refers to usually white nail tips and a nude almost transparent color on top for added gloss and protection. It is the most natural looking nail design as it mimics the look of healthy nails, just in a more polished and sophisticated way. Because of its versatility, french manicure looks great on almost any skin tone and you don’t need to wonder which clothes to wear when having a french manicure. It really pairs up with everything.

DIY french manicure at home

French manicure is best done at a salon, but with the right tools and a bit of practice, you can achieve similar results at home at a fraction of a cost. The basic items you will need for a french manicure include:

A double ended nail file (one side for shaping the bed of the nails and adding gloss and one side–the coarser side for shaping the tips and the length of the nails).
A base coat in transparent or semi-transparent nude color
A white nail polish with full opaque coverage
A top coat
A wooden stick/cuticle pusher
Nail remover
Cotton tips

Steps:

Step No 1: Trim and shape your nails to the desired length. Make sure that they all look nice and even in length.

Step No 2: Use the smooth nail file side to buff the bed of your nails lightly to reveal their natural shine. Be careful not to overdo it or you will thin out your nails.

Step No 3: Apply the base coat to your nails and let it dry completely.

Step No 4: Apply carefully the white tip color to the top third of your nails. For easier application, make a curvy line first (like a thin smile) and then fill the rest of the tip with the white color. You can optionally use french manicure stickers for more precision or even ordinary tape if you don’t have any stickers. Just make sure in case you are using stickers or tape that the base coat or color is completely dry or you will mess up your manicure. Repeat the same process with each nail. Let dry.

Step No 5: Apply 1-2 layers of topcoat. Let dry

Optionally: add small nail decals or stones/beats or a glitter line over the lines of the french manicure or over the white part for more definition and more unique, creative result.

French Manicure without Strips Tutorial

How to do french manicure on short Nails

french manicure short nails diy — Short nails

The process for doing a french manicure in shorts nails differs from the main french manicure technique as here you won’t have enough space and thickness to paint extra wide tips. Here is the main french manicure technique for short nails:

First of all, remove any oily or nail polish residue from your nails with a cotton pad dipped in acetone nail polish remover.
Apply a thin layer of base coat and let it dry.
Take your white nail polish (your tip color) and transfer a small amount in a flat surface e.g plastic lid, to use directly with a tool or brush.
Take a nail art dotting tool or extra thin round nail brush, dip in the white nail polish, and make a thin french tip white line over each nail. Use a cotton swab or a rounded thick nail brush saturated in a bit of acetone to make your line more clear and even. Let it dry.
Finish with a layer of transparent top coat.

Watch the video to see the instructions in action:

How to do french manicure DIY with ordinary tape

The steps for doing a french manicure with ordinary tape are roughly the same as using stickers and french guides. However, instead of the sticker you will use an ordinary tape, just below the tip of your nails. Keep in mind that because the tape is straight, it will be almost impossible to get a curvy line with it so use it only to make straight french tips.

Other ways to do french manicure tips

Besides the above method, you can make french manicure tips with the following methods:

Using a thin nail art pen

Here you are going to use a thin nail art pen dipped in white nail polish (or its own white paint if it comes with it) to section your tip base line. The easiest way to do this is by a quick sweeping motion from one side across the other. Then fill in the french tip with small vertical strokes until you have a nice, even white tip.

Using a band aid

This is similar to using a french tip sticker. The only difference is that you won’t place the band aid sticker vertically, you will place the rounded edge of the band aid just below the base of your french tip. This will give you a semi-straight/semi-curvy french tip. However, since using one bandaid for each of your nails isn’t cheap or practical, use the same bandaid 2-3 times or use this technique in case of emergency, when one french tip has possible been ruined.

The rolling finger motion

This technique has been recommended by VIP nail artist experts like Deborah Lippman as well as various nail bloggers. Here you can get a perfect line each time (or at least a good line more easily) by rolling your fingers instead of turning the brush. You simply dip a flat nail brush in the white nail polish, shake off the excess, and begin applying to your nails from one side, rolling your finger at an 45 angle till the line reaches the other side. The brush must remain still.

Extra tips: For correcting any mistakes in your french tips easily, the most precise way is to use a nail corrector pen with an extra thin brush. Opi Refillable Nail Corrector pen is a great option. If you don’t or can’t get one, simply dip a cotton swab in acetone to clear up any unevenness and messy lines.

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Originally posted 2020-12-31 02:49:53.