The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-03-27
Manicuring as Fine Art
With Secret Of Pretty Hands

finally she messages a lump of cold cream
into them. 1t softens and whitens them and
does her hands world of good In the
morning they are very soft. And after the
nails have been polished the hands are In
good shape for the day.
What is the proper color for the nails?'
was asked.
The color of the nails is a matter TO be
carefully considered, replied the manicure.
Nine women out of ten have nails that are
dishgured by white spots. which utterly
spoil the beauty of the hands. The nails
should be the color of a rose leaf and as
clear as seashell. Mother-o f-pearl. if it
the texture of the ideal nail. To keep away
the white spots is easy matter They
are caused by pressure upon the base or
the nail. If a metal instrument is used or
if a wooden scraper is employed, or If
there is anything rough applied TO the
base of the nail the result will be white
mark.
"A very good emolient for the nails is
made by taking equal parts OF mutton tai
low. olive oil and oil of sweet almonds.
This. when melted together, will make
very NIGEL cream, which should be beaten
with an egg-beater as 1t cools, and ii should
be kept in jar in which the fingers can
be immersed. 1t must be kept sacred for
this purpose, and nicely covered when not
| in use 1t can be scented with a few drops
of geranium, which gives it a very fragrant
and pleasing odor.
BEAUTY OF THE NAILS.
What really constitutes the beauty of
the finger nais?" the manicure was asked.
1.-The beauty of the nails she answered,
depends upon their shape and color and
their length. The longer the better is the
rule, but long nails break. Nails can be cut
in one of three ways. There is the pointed
nail. which is the nail of the society woman.
1t is the prettiest of all, but it must be kept
exact. and unless one can do this II is
better TO cut the nail rounding. The round
ing nail is the nail of the business woman,
and it is a pretty nail If 1T be kept well
shaped. All of the nails should be the same
length, and a high polish is again permits
sible.
There is the blunt nail, which is the
nail of the professional woman, the woman
who plays the piano and the woman VINO
must her finger tips. The trained nurse.
the woman physician and the woman type
writer are among the women whose nails
| Such nails are easy to care for, but the
| cuticle should be pink and perfect. other
| wise they will be very ugly. The very long
| nails are good but in that case the cuticle
| must not be pulled down too far. or the
| nails will have a clawlike look. A little
| study of the contour of the hand will de-
| be that of an almond, with the rounded
| part at the base tapering toward the tip"
Continuing her talk, the manicure said:
How should a woman best take care OF
her hands?"
ITO make the hands white is a distinct
| art. Women whose hands roughen, redden
| and chap must never go without gloves.
More than this, they must never go out
| directly after washing their hands. Still
| further they must never wash the hands
| directly In soap and water. A little pow
| dered oatmeal or bran should be added to
the water, and the hands should be soz-
| zled in this soft substance until they are
| not only cleansed, but whitened.
| When the hands are much soiled as is
| sometimes the case when one has been
| doing rough work. it is best not to wash
| the hands in water, but TO take vaseline to
| them. Vaseline rubbed upon the hands,
| front and back, palms and finger tips. will
| soften them wonderfully and absolutely
| remove the dirt and stains. When this has
| been done the hands can be soaped and
| washed. Hands that remain dark in color
| can be treated with cucumber juice and
| with a little diluted lemon juice. But as a
| matter of fact, the hands will grow white
| if oiled creamed and washed in oatmeal
| water and it is not necessary to do any
| thing further to them in the way of bleach
| ing.
1.-THE nails may be pinked with a little
| coloring substance" continued the speak
| err; lit is a custom followed by fastidious
| women everywhere There was once a
| hue and cry raised to the effect that the
| nails must not be polished. They were
| bleached and cleaned and then left to their
| own devices But the best groomed people
| have polished nails, which, viewed in the
bright light, CLEAN like ivory. Polished
nails not Objectionable, but rather a
! mark of beauty"