I don’t do French Manicures. I love how they look all polished and pretty but they’re a pain in the proverbial backside for someone as OCD as me to get right.
Having said that, I spent a couple of hours attempting one whilst rotting my brain watching Living +1 the other day. It was in aid for a guest post on another site that never went ahead and rather than waste my hard work, here it is!
Apologies if it’s a bit “teaching your grandmother to suck eggs”, the brief was to share French Manicure tips and this is the best but least yawn-inducing one I know!
After many years, it’s time to accept that some things will remain forever out of reach. Those Boyzone tour tickets, a bit-part in Friends and that pair of Clarks Magic Steps. Up until a few years ago I’d have swapped all of ’em for the ability to give myself a pretty French Manicure!
I’d attempted it before with those fiddly sticker guides but they always wound up stuck to everything except my nails and if I did manage to attach one, it was wonky.
When I first discovered that professionals painted the tips ‘freehand’, I was filled with both a mixture of admiration and disappointment as I realised that I’d never own a steady-enough hand for that kind of artistry. But then I learned the secret…
Paint the ‘smile line’ (that’s the proper expression for the tip) with a white polish of your choice, trying to follow the natural line the best you can… then (and here’s the clever bit), cheat!
Take an old lip or eyeliner brush dipped in some nail polish remover and making tiny circular strokes, craft the perfect crescent! The remover will dissolve those tell-tale wobbles that give away your amateur skills! Who says cheats never prosper?
How’s your French Manicure skillz? Do you bother with them?
 French Manicure){kind=link}