- 1). Examine your fingernails until you see the small, thin ring of white or clear-colored skin that is your cuticle emerging up from your finger at the base of each nail. Dip a cotton swab into nail polish remover. Remove any nail polish from your nails with the cotton swab. Avoid getting nail polish remover on your cuticles as this could only further dry them out.
- 2). Wrap the tip of an orangewood stick in a cotton facial cleansing pad. Dip the stick in nail polish remover and wedge it between your fingernails and the skin on the left and right sides of the nails to remove all traces of polish from the cracks and crevices of your hands.
- 3). Wash your hands thoroughly in warm, soapy water to remove all of the nail polish remover from them. Dry your hands with a soft cotton towel.
- 4). Decide how long you want your fingernails to be. Choose a manageable length such as 1/4- to 1/2-inch beyond your finger tips or whatever length you believe won’t interfere with your daily work and responsibilities. Use an emery board to file down your nails to this length. Hold the emery board flat against the tip of your finger nail. File toward the center of each nail tip. Move the board in one direction only.
- 5). Continue filing your nail tips until they are round like crescent moons. Apply 1/2 teaspoon or three drops of cuticle serum to each cuticle on your hands.
- 6). Soak your fingertips in a small bowl filled with warm soapy water for 10 minutes to soften rough cuticles and loosen dirt and filing dust from beneath the cuticles.
- 7). Dry your fingertips on a soft cotton towel. Brush your fingertips gently with a soft bristled nail brush to remove dead skin from your cuticles and fingertips. Rub a pumice stone around the edges of your nails where the skin on your fingertips meets the right and left sides of your nails to soften any remaining rough spots.
- 8). Push your now-soft cuticles down towards your skin gently with a cotton-wrapped orangewood stick. Run the stick beneath each nail to remove any dirt from the undersides of your fingernails.
- 9). Use a buffing stick to add shine to each clean nail. Move the buffing stick in one direction across each nail. Let your nails rest unpainted overnight If desired, then paint each nail with polish the next day.
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