How to Do a Salon-style French Pedicure

Women pay hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of dollars a year on salon-style treatments whether they be facials or manis and pedis. It's nice to get pampered once in a while, but if you're pressed for cash, you can do these treatments yourself. One of the most daunting treatments for women is the French pedicure. It's a meticulous process that appears very difficult to do, but in fact it's much easier than it looks. Once you get the hang of it, you may never go to the salon for a French pedicure ever again.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cuticle pusher
• Scotch tape
• White nail polish
• Clear nail polish

1. Soak your feet in a warm water bath to soften cuticles. Trim your nails slightly, and push back the cuticles with a cuticle pusher. Pat your feet dry. Cut out 10 pieces of inch-long strips of scotch tape.

2. 

   Stick the pieces of tape onto your toenails about 1/4 inch below the tips of the nails. Press down on the tape to secure firmly onto your nails. This will help you make a perfectly straight white line when applying the nail polish.

3. Apply a coat of white polish onto the ends of the toes not covered by the tape. One or two coats should be more than enough. Don't worry about getting polish on the scotch tape; it's there to keep the rest of your nail from getting the white polish on it.

4. Wait for the white nail polish to dry. For best results, wait at least 5 minutes. It's important for the polish to dry completely before removing the tape.

5. 

   Gently and slowly remove the strips of tape from your toenails. Peel them off sideways to keep the nail polish from getting ruined.

6. 

   Apply two coats of the clear nail polish onto your entire nail and onto the white line from the previous steps. Wait about 3-5 minutes to allow it to dry. Put on your cutest sandals and hit the town!

Tips & Warnings

• Instead of using white nail polish, feel free to experiment with different colors for a funky French pedicure.
• If you make a mistake, use Q-tips dipped in nail polish remover to remove excess polish.