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How to: DIY manicure

Master the Bio Sculpture perfect at-home mani – favourite of the artists in residence at Anya’s Colour Therapy Nail Bar, Harriet Westmoreland, Michelle Humphrey and Isabel May

8 March 2022

Anya's Colour Therapy Nail Bar

This month at Anya’s Village on Pont Street, celebrity nail artist Harriet Westmoreland will be among the talented artists in residence at Anya’s Colour Therapy Nail Bar, a pop-up nail bar promising long-lasting bespoke gel or polish manicures courtesy of Bio Sculpture, the vegan, cruelty-free industry favourite for nails. 

Otherwise known as the nail artist who reinvented the classic French manicure, Westmoreland’s minimalist approach to nails has made her a firm favourite for runways, red carpets and Instagram #nailfies. She counts Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Zendaya among her celebrity clientele and, here, she shares how to perfectly manicure your own nails at home.

Westmoreland joins other artists in residence Michelle Class (who counts Jennifer Lopez and Naomi Campbell among her clients), Michelle Humphrey (favourite of Adele and Rita Ora), and Instagram and YouTube sensation Isabel May at Anya’s Colour Therapy Nail Bar, where they are offering Bio Sculpture manicures until the end of March, at which time the below ‘how to’ guide will come in very handy indeed… 

You’ll need a few tools and essentials, all of which can be stored in Anya Hindmarch’s genius Nails Kit (£295), which has room for five bottles of nail polish.

 

Equipment

Nail polish remover or acetone

Cotton pads (or cotton wool)

Kitchen foil

A nail scraper

A coarse nail file

A fine-grained nail file

A cuticle pusher

Cuticle trimmers

Step 1

Start by removing any nail polish or gel colour on your nails. Never soak your nails and always start your nail care with dry hands. This is a golden rule.

Step 1

Step 2

Ordinary nail polish remover will work for regular nail polish but you’ll need 100% acetone to remove gel polish. To do this, begin by gently buffing the gel colour with a coarse file to break up the surface and allow the acetone to reach it. 

Step 2

Step 3

Cut up bits of the cotton pads and kitchen foil. Soak the cotton in a bit of acetone, then individually wrap around your nails with the foil. This can get a bit fiddly; try to be patient. 

Step 3

Step 4

After ten minutes, remove the cotton and foil and gently use a scraper tool to scrape the colour off. If it doesn’t come off easily, reapply the cotton and foil and try again in a few minutes.

Once all the colour is removed, gently buff your nails with a gentle buffer to restore a smooth surface.  

Step 4

Step 5

Apply Bio Sculpture Ethos cuticle remover (or your own cuticle remover) to the cuticle area and leave for two minutes.

Gently push your cuticles back using a cuticle pusher.

Step 5

Step 6

Remove the soft, loosened cuticles carefully with cuticle clippers. 

Step 6

Step 7

File your nails to the perfect shape using a fine-grit nail file (look for 220 grit), and never use a rough nail file on your natural nails. File your nail in a straight line perpendicular to your finger bone (at a 90° angle), then bring the file down to each side, filing just a soft corner. Try to file in one direction if you can; going back and forth can cause brittleness. 

Step 7

Step 8

Wash your hands thoroughly to remove any trace of oils or cuticle treatments. Wipe the nail with acetone again to prepare it for painting.

Step 8

Step 9

Apply one thin coat of base coat. Make sure you swipe the brush over the tip of the nail to seal the edge. I love Bio Sculpture Lavender Base, which has been formulated to enrich weak and damaged nails.

Step 9

Step 10

Apply two coats of your choice of nail colour. Again, I love Bio Sculpture polish for its incredible gloss and long-lasting finish.

Step 10

Step 11

Lastly, apply one coat of top coat for a long-lasting glass-like finish. I use Bio Sculpture Mirror top coat for the glossiest of finishes. 

 

If you’d rather leave your nails to the pros, you can book an appointment at Anya’s Colour Therapy Nail Bar until 31 March here.

 

PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARYSSA ERRATT
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