DIY Manicure

Step by Step Manicure Guide

Things that you'll need for your manicure:

1. A shallow bowl (Daiso)

2. Small hand towel (Daiso)

3. Hand and nail cream (Clarins)

4. Cuticle oil (O.P.I Avoplex)

5. Nail Strengthener (O.P.I Nail Envy for sensitive & peeling nails)

6. Nail buffer (O.P.I Brilliance)

7. Nail filer (O.P.I crystal filer)

8. Cuticle pusher (Sally Hansen)

9. Cuticle nippers (O.P.I)

DIY Manicure

Start off with clean nails (as you can see my cuticles and nails are dry/untrimmed).

Fill your bowl with warm water.

Soak your fingers in the warm water for about 5-10 minutes (this will help soften the cuticles).

After 5-10 minutes, dry your hands with the hand towel.

Using your cuticle pusher, start pushing the cuticles back (the Sally Hansen one that I am using is made out of plastic and in my opinion more gentle than using a wooden/metal cuticle pusher).

And work your way from one end to the other. 

 Once you have pushed all your cuticles back, they should look tacky and ready to cut off.

Using your cuticle nipper, start cutting your cuticles from one end of the nail to the other. By cutting your cuticles, this will expose more of the lunula (the white crescent shape at the bottom of the nail) therefore making your nails look longer and more appealing.

Once all your cuticles are cut, start buffing your nails with the rougher side of your buffer. This will help remove any excess cuticle and smooth out any imperfections on the nail.

Then take your nail filer and file it to the shape you prefer (here I am creating a rounded shape however you can also create a squarer shaped nail if you like). Start from one side of the nail to the other. Your filing strokes should be in one direction. 

Once your nails are filed, dip your fingers in to the water to remove all the excess nail trimmings. 

Your nails should look neater already.

Take your buffer again and this time use the smoother side to polish the nails. This should create a nice glossy shine to your nails. 

After you have polished your nails, take your cuticle oil..

..and apply some to your cuticles (make sure you get the very sides of your nails too).

Rub the oil into your cuticles.

And with the remaining cuticle oil, rub it all over your hands..

..or any particular dry areas.

Apply some hand and nail cream and rub thoroughly into hand and nails.

Lastly, take your nail strengthener and apply this to your nails however avoiding the cuticle area. You should apply two coats to start off with and then one coat daily for the next 5 days (paint it on as if it were nail polish and let it dry between each coat). This will help prevent your nails from peeling/breaking.

Make sure you apply this to the very ends of your nails as that is where they usually start peeling/breaking. 

Your nails should look cleaner and neater than before & ready to put nail polish on!

Basic Hygiene: Cleaning Makeup Brushes and Makeup Cases

Makeup tools are easy to get dirty from the constant transference of makeup to our fingertips/brushes, fingertips to our face, and then back on to our makeup products again with our greasy foundation covered fingertips. This accumulation of cosmetic dirt is almost unavoidable and without cleaning our tools, not only does our makeup products look unappealing but more importantly bacteria can be transferred to our skin which can potentially cause break outs. 

This is why it is important to clean our makeup tools (especially brushes) from time to time. Here I’ll be demonstrating some of the basic cleaning procedures I do to prevent these bacterial transferences and to maintain a hygienic and clean bathroom. 

Before I start doing any of my make up, I always use an antibacterial wipe or hand sanitizer such as Dettol. This will ensure that I have clean hands to start off with. 

1) Cleaning Makeup Cases:

Without cleaning your make up cases, your make up products could look like this (fingerprint and foundation marks everywhere) 

Before cleaned

After cleaned

You can clean your make up by using Isocol. Here I have transferred some of my Isocol into a spray bottle I bought from Daiso. All you have to do is spray some of the Isocol on to some tissue and start cleaning your products with it. 

2) Preventing Makeup Cases from Getting Dirty:

If you want to prevent your makeup cases from getting dirty easily, you can use Antibacterial wipes (bought from Big W). If you use Antibacterial wipes in between every application of makeup, it will help keep your hands clean and prevent them from transferring make up onto your products. 

You can also use these antibacterial wipes for cleaning those stubborn mascara/eyeliner stains off your eyelash curler.

3) Cleaning Makeup Brushes:

For a quick clean, I use Isocol or Antibacterial wipes. These products are really handy to use on your brushes every day as it is quick and simple but will still help sterilize the brushes and prevent bacteria from transferring on to your face in between each use.  

For a deep clean, I use Johnson's baby conditioning shampoo as it is quite gentle on the brushes. To help maintain softness to the brush, I use a hair conditioner. Here I am using Herbal Essences long term hair conditioner (any hair conditioner will do). I try to do the following deep cleaning procedure once a week.

Tools you'll need when cleaning your brushes: Shampoo, Conditioner, Mug, Soap bar holder, and Towel.

Wet brushes with water.

 

Squeeze out excess water.

Brushes should be damp.

Squeeze a small amount of shampoo into the cup (enough for all your brushes).

Dip brush into the shampoo.

Brush should be slightly dipped in shampoo (not soaked in it).

Using a soap bar holder, gently start rubbing the brush against it (the reason I use a soap bar holder is because the ridges help clean the brushes more thouroughly but be careful not to press in the brushes too hard). 

The shampoo should start to foam up.

Once you think the brush is clean enough, start to rinse the shampoo out with water.

When rinsing, rub against your palm for an extra clean and to ensure all the shampoo comes out.

Once there is no soapy residue left..

..squeeze out the excess water.

Once all brushes have been shampooed, you can start to condition them.

Squeeze sufficient amount of conditioner for the all your brushes on to your palm.

Slightly dip your brush into the conditioner.

Rub in the conditioner with your fingers.

Leave the conditioned brushes to rest for 15 minutes. This will allow the conditioner to soak in even more.

Rinse out the conditioner.

Dry the damp brushes with a towel.

Shape your brushes to it's original shape.

Repeat this procedure with the rest of your brushes.

and finally leave the brushes on a towel to dry (usually takes a day or two for the brushes to fully dry).