Manicuring and Pedicuring Procedures
The working sequence
Consultation and hand washing → inspect the hands and nails → shape → soften/soak as the service requires → cuticle care → massage → polish → clean up and sanitize the station. Sanitize your hands and the client's before you touch anything, and disinfect implements between clients.
Shaping and cuticle care
File natural nails from the corner toward the center in one direction with a fine-grit file (240 grit or finer). Sawing back and forth builds heat and splits the free edge. File dry natural nails - wet nails bend and tear.
The eponychium (the live cuticle tissue) is a seal, not a trim item. Push it back gently with a rubber tip or a disinfected metal pusher; do not cut living tissue. Trim only a torn hangnail. Cutting cuticles opens a portal for bacteria and is a leading cause of paronychia - on the exam, "cut the cuticles for a clean look" is always the wrong answer.
Pedicure specifics
Sanitize the basin before and after each client, use a liner when available, and circulate disinfectant through a whirlpool footbath for the manufacturer's stated time before letting it air dry. Soften callus, then reduce it gradually with a paddle - never shave skin, and never use a credo blade on a client with diabetes or circulatory problems. Refer ingrown, red, swollen, or draining toes.
Massage contraindications
Skip massage over open lesions, contagious skin conditions, or undiagnosed swelling, and get physician clearance for deep vein thrombosis, uncontrolled diabetes, or complicated pregnancy.
Rule of thumb
When in doubt, don't cut. Gentle is professional.
Worked example: A client asks you to "really clean up" her cuticles. You push them back gently, apply cuticle oil, and trim exactly one ragged hangnail - then explain why the rest stays.