* What you need

A howl of warm soapy water (do not use detergents). Nail clipper. Emery board. Nail polish remover. Cotton wool.

Nail buffer or a child's toothbrush. Cuticle cream or Vaseline.

Orange stick with its tip wrapped in cotton wool. Nail polish. Gather all the material you need together.

First clip your nails, if required. Then, using the emery board, file your nails, into a smooth oval shape. Avoid using metal files, they are bad for the nails.

Contrary to the usual practice of removing nail polish before filing, beauty experts have now determined that nails must be filed with old nail color still on them. This protects nails and keeps unsightly ragged ends at a minimum.

While filing, remember not to file into the corners — this promotes nail splitting and breakages.

Next, using a mild oily nail polish remover and a swab of cotton wool, remove every trace of nail color from your nails. Pay special attention to the corners where streaks of nail color can remain unless you are careful. For this, press the soaked cotton wool down firmly on the nail and keep it there for a second. This gives the nail polish remover time to work.

After removing all traces of the old nail color, rinse your hands in water. It is important to remove all traces of the remover. Use a soft nail brush and soapy water.

Then rinse your hands and nails in cold water and pat dry.

With the cuticle cream or Vaseline, massage the nails, paying special attention to the sides and corners.

After about five minutes, soak your hands in warm water again.

By now your cuticles will have softened. Push them back gently with the cotton wrapped orange stick.

Now comes the time to use nail color. Shake up the bottle of your favorite nail color and apply a very thin coat as the base. Don't stop at the tip of the nail, instead carry the brush over the tip so that the nail color paints the backs of the nails. Besides protecting tips, this also looks nicer.

Five minutes later when the first coat is dry, apply another coat. Give it another five minutes to dry. Now apply the third and final coat. Let it dry.

Nail color should be applied in three strokes. The first stroke up the centre from the cuticle to the nail tip, the second and third on either side.