Health & Beauty

The French Manicure that wasn’t French

Your mother and probably your grandmother as well wore this particular nail painting style in their days. To spot a French manicure, it’s pretty easy, as you just need to see if the tips of nails are white and clearly divided from the rest. As a matter of fact, this manicure, on top of not being French-made at all, has saved a lot of money in the film and fashion industry. Here’s its history and a step-by-step guide on how to make a French manicure at home.

The complete history of the French Manicure

Once upon a time, an American was working on movie sets in the 70s. The movie industry was really starting to boom, and Hollywood was making waves across the states. However, there was a problem. Jeff Pink, who was managing the costumes and wardrobes on the movie sets, had a hard time keeping up with the high demand between different scenes.

And since nails had to fit with the costumes, changing them every time was becoming more and more painful. Directors and producers would often complain to Pink that it was taking way too long and that as a result, they were losing money.

Therefore, Pink had a great idea. Instead of using complicated patterns of colors for the nails of the actresses to match perfectly with one another, he would simply use white nail polish for nails’ tips. For the rest of the nails, however, he would use a simple flesh tone color which would go well with any skin color.

From there, it was amazing how much time Pink was saving during wardrobe changes. Directors and producers were pleased, as the new nail polish style was matching pretty much anything the actresses would put on.

Who’s the French Manicure Inventor?

Now, you must be wondering how an American, Jeff Pink, became the inventor of the French manicure, which is obviously not French-made? The answer is simple, really, because the name comes from the business trip Pink did in Paris.

That’s right, after creating his new line of nail polish products called the Natural Look Nail Kit, he thought it would be a home run to bring his kit into the French market. And a home run it sure was, as people in Paris that were working in the fashion industry at the time were immediately hooked to the new nail painting style that Pink had brought.

The Natural Look Nail Kit was such a big success in Paris, that when Jeff Pink went back to the United States, he started to call the new famous nail paint style the French Manicure. Since then, this way of painting nails has remained one of the most used nail styles in the world.

How much does it cost to get a French manicure in a nail salon?

In general, a typical nail manicure with one color would cost around $25. If you want French tips for your nails, as in, a French manicure, you would normally add $10 for that. So on average, expect around $35 for a French manicure. Of course, there are different quality levels out there, and a more renowned nail salon will set you back a little bit more than that, and vice versa.

What’s normally included with a nail salon French manicure?

Let’s say you want to get both your toes and fingers a beautiful French manicure, what’s normally included in a nail salon? Well, first, you will be invited to sit down in a comfy chair with a bowl in front to soak your feet in warm water. Next, you will get a foot scrub and a nice foot massage.

Thereafter, for the actual nails, the nail artist is going to thoroughly trim and clean your nails. Depending on the salon and your package deal, they are going to apply a base coat first, and then, they are going to apply the white polish on your fingernail tips. To finalize, a finish coat is applied.

And let’s not forget your hand fingernails, because they need love too! On the menu, a hand scrub, and of course, a hand massage. Relax and enjoy the moment, it’s worth every penny!

How to do a French Manicure at home the easiest way?

To do a French manicure at home, it’s quite simple, you will need the following items:

  • 2 little nail brushes,
  • acetone,
  • white nail polish,
  • base coat (optional),
  • and a top coat.

Now, follow the instruction below to get an easy French manicure for your nails at home that looks clean and beautiful:

  • First and foremost, it is important that you wash your nails and your hands properly. Make sure that everything is clean and ready to go.
  • Now, you will use white nail polish and paint a small line at the tip of your fingernails. It doesn’t matter if the white line is not perfect, because you will fix it after in the next step below.
  • Then, you will dip the second brush in the acetone and you will carefully remove a tiny bit of your white lines. Bit by bit, you will decide how thin you want them to be. As long as you keep them with a similar shape and size, they will look good. Also, it is recommended that you keep the white nail polish lines curvy. Not too much, but just enough so it goes well with the shape of your fingers.
  • As a final step, you will finally add the topcoat. It can be a glass top coat or a matte top coat which will look good for your French manicure top coat.

As an extra option, you can apply a base coat before painting your fingernail tips with white polish. Just make sure you give it enough time to dry before going to the next step.

And that’s it! Now you are a real manicure professional that will have a lot of fun, hopefully, with this little French manicure tutorial. What’s even better, is that you will be able to reuse your topcoat, white polish, and acetone many times in a row, which in turn will save you lots of money.