No trip to the beauty salon would be complete without a manicure. From fancy, French tips to crazy acrylic designs, women have been enjoying this form of pampering for as long as anyone can remember. But how did the concept of the manicure come about in the first place? The history of the manicure is an interesting one so let’s get a quick crash course you won’t find in a history book.

So how old do you think manicures are? A few decades? Not even close. A couple hundred years maybe? Nope. The concept of the manicure began over 5,000 years ago - talk about longevity! In India, women used henna in place of nail polish for their manicures. The practice quickly spread to other parts of the world. 4,000 years ago, the people of southern Babylonia turned to solid gold tools to achieve gorgeous nails - creating the whole process of the manicure. In China back in 3,000 BC, nail polish was developed and used to show a person’s social status, as well as the length of a person’s nails. The Dowager Empress of China always kept her fingernails extremely long. During the Ming dynasty, the favored shades of nail polish for the most elite were red and black. This practice of using nail polish colors to establish rank in society was also used in ancient Egypt. Cleopatra and Queen Nefertiti favored red nail polishes, with Cleopatra sporting deep red on her nails, while Queen Nefertiti opted for a ruby red shade.

The women weren’t the only ones who turned to manicures. In both Rome and Egypt, commanders in the military painted their nails to match the color they wore on their lips before heading into battle. Babylonian noblemen were the most likely to use the special solid gold manicure tools to keep their fingernails in shape.

The French manicure made its appearance around the 18^th century in Paris. Its signature white tips and natural pink base quickly found favor with women and became extremely popular during the 1920s and 1930s. With the 20^th century came the introduction of the acrylic manicure. Using artificial nails became a must for women who couldn’t grow long and healthy fingernails naturally.

As time went on, professionals in the beauty industry began to modify and perfect the manicure in order to provide their customers with the best results and treatment. Manicures usually consist of filing, polishing and painting the nails - for those dealing with artificial nails, a manicure can include the application of the nails, as well as painting the design or applying small faux jewels. Acrylic nail designs can range from simple and elegant to colorful and outrageous. This allows each woman to express herself individually.

For many years the paraffin treatment has also been used in manicures to relieve conditions that tend to target the hands such as muscle spasms, inflammation, and joint stiffness. This practice involves cleaning the hands and lightly massaging moisturizing lotion into the area and then dipping the hands into the melted paraffin wax. Once the wax starts to take hold of the hands, foil, plastic wrap or special gloves are placed over the hands to seal in the heat and moisture. After the paraffin has been allowed to cool for a few minutes, the paraffin wax will have penetrated deeply into the hands, leaving you with soft, smooth and incredibly pampered hands.

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