What is the Russian Manicure trend? How to get the look at home

The recent addition to comforting nail manicures is the Russian manicure- a dry or e-file manicure that takes between two to five hours owing to the intricacy of the cuticle work involved.

With #russianmanicure exploding on TikTok, the manicure gets its name from the clean nail look favored by Russian nail technicians. With this classic manicure, the cuticle is filed down with an electric filer so that the nail polish can spread all the way to the nail bed.

The nail technician chooses a base coat depending on the nail’s length and level of strength. Russian manicure also includes the application of a high-quality gel nail polish starting under the cuticle using a thin brush. This helps the manicure last for a month or longer.

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Here's how to nail the Russian Manicure at home

Russian manicures are slightly different from traditional ones and can be created at home too.

Tools required for a Russian Manicure:

• Prime or base for the nails

• A cuticle oil
• Regular, gel or permanent nail polish
• Diamond burs
• E-file

This manicure is mostly curated by experts and entails a detailed step-by-step process. Each step takes approximately fifteen to twenty minutes.

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1) Clean the nail bed: This step differs from a traditional manicure wherein the fingers are soaked in warm water to loosen the dead skin cells on the cuticles.

Usually, a nail technician uses an electric drill to clean the nail bed and one can do the same taking necessary precautions. This step removes any old nail polish and cleans the surface for new gel.

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2) Cuticle removal: One requires an electric nail bit instead of the usual push-back tools that aid a traditional manicure to achieve a Russian manicure. Using an electric drill bit removes the dead skin cells.

Additionally, one can use cuticle scissors to remove loose or dead skin if the electric nail bit is unavailable.

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3) Polishing the nail bed and creating a shape: One can use the electric filing tool to polish the nail bed and prepare it for the base coat. Remember to give the nails the desired shape during the third step.

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4) Base coat application: Prior to applying a colored top coat, apply the base coat - a special one used only for these manicures.

This base coat is available and selected as per the nails' strength and length, such as the LYUNAIL Professional Rubber Base Gel Nail Polish Coat ($15 on Amazon).

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5) Gel coat application: The last step in this manicure is applying a gel coat using an artist's brush. Usually, the nail technician applies top-quality gel nail polish for a luxurious and clean nail look.

Seal the gel with a top coat for better and long-lasting results. Toxic gels and acrylic nails are a strict NO for these manicures as this manicure focuses on nail health.

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When done right, Russian manicures are long-lasting and beneficial to nail health as well. In most cases, one doesn’t need a nail touch-up until five weeks after the first manicure appointment.