Don’t you just hate it when you try your best to achieve one of the trendiest nail designs of the year, only to have your nails breaking? When it comes to beautiful nails, the choice of shape, color, and art should come after the nails’ health. Unhealthy nails are the ones that break often, are brittle, get yellow, feel dry, look dull, and exfoliate, and so on. Therefore, in order to show off that amazing manicure of yours, you first have to learn how to have healthy nails. Luckily for everybody, we are here today to offer you X tips and tricks to try out in order to strengthen your nails and have them grow perfectly!
1. Alleviate brittleness with a salt bath
If your nails are brittle, add four spoons of sea salt in a bowl of warm water and give them a good soak for 15 minutes. Then dry your hands gently with a towel and apply a cuticles softener on them. Follow this treatment at least once a week to avoid your nails getting brittle and breakable.
2. Keep them healthy and strong with coconut oil
Every time you wash your hands or use sanitizers, your nails and cuticles get drier. Use a moisturizer daily for your hand, in general, to properly care for your skin. If you want to give your nails a boost of health, use coconut oil for nails as a moisturizer. As we all know, coconut oil is nature’s miracle for moisturized, glowing, and healthy skin, hair, and nails.
3. Take some Biotin
We have covered the topic of biotin for hair care, but we already know this vitamin complex represents the foundation of healthy hair, nails, and skin. You can take biotin as a supplement in a pill shape, or, better yet, you can enjoy its full benefits by including it in your diet. Make some adjustments and try to have more servings of boiled eggs, sardines, bananas, mushrooms, nuts and nut butter, grapes, whole grains, cauliflower, and more. Biotin has tremendous benefits for your nails and you should pay attention to welcoming it more in your life.
4. Brighten up your nails with rose water
If your nails look dull and lifeless, rub them with a mix of rose water, glycerin and 3% hydrogen peroxide. Use a cotton ball drenched in the concoction and rub your nails gently at least once a week. Rose water and essential rosehip oil work miracles on your skin and nails. They have anti-inflammatory and anti-fungal properties, they boost natural glow, come with UV protection, they nourish, and they protect against bacteria. Moreover, the glycerin in this mix moisturizes and hydrates the nails and cuticles, while the hydrogen peroxide is a true-and-tested remedy for nail fungi.
5. File your nails correctly
Many women complain about their nails splitting or breaking, but few know that filing contributes to this state of things. Avoid filing your nails in a back-and-forth motion, but rather go in the same direction repeatedly. While you also feel tempted to file your nails after a long hot bath, avoid this. Wet, soft nails break and exfoliate easier. Dry your hands properly and wait a few minutes before getting your manicure after the bath. Experts also recommend you avoid metal filers.
6. Care for your cuticles
Many think that you need to cut cuticles, but this actually exposes the nail’s root to environmental elements, fungi, and bacteria. Instead, gently push back your cuticles with the proper cuticle tool at a 45-degree angle. Do your best to avoid damaging the cuticles, because they will lead to the weakening of the entire nail. It does not matter if you push your cuticles once a week or once a month. You have to use cuticles oil (coconut oil preferably) twice a day to keep your nail roots nourished and your cuticles moisturized.
7. Use gloves as often as you can
By this, we mean you should wear gloves indoors and outdoors. If you engage often in cooking, dishwashing, and house cleaning, moisturize your hands thoroughly with a hands and nails cream or oil, then put a pair of housework gloves to protect your skin and nails from water and harsh cleaning chemicals and substances. In winter, before you go out, remember that hands suffer tremendously due to cold weather (nails included). Use a hand moisturizer and put your winter fluffy gloves on before you leave the house.
8. Mind your manicure products
Specialists recommend us to avoid acetone as nail polish remover because it dries the nails and makes them vulnerable to breaking. Moreover, experts also insist on you using a basecoat that protects your nails from discoloration and nourishes them with the proper ingredients. Choose your basecoats depending on your needs. Lastly, make sure you do not use harsh and highly chemical nail polishes. They contain somewhat harsh substances that dry and affect your nails in the long run.
9. Apply topcoat
A thin layer of topcoat will protect your nails from chipping, besides offering long-lasting protection to your nail art. There are plenty of ways to make nail polish last longer, and the topcoat is one of them. Moreover, when your nails are dry enough to touch, apply cuticle oil or coconut/jojoba oil. A further oil treatment will further prevent nail polish smudging and will moisturize your cuticles.
Gathering up our brushes…
Now that we learned a few tips and tricks on how to have healthy nails, give us your feedback! What is your personal nail hacks that work and you would like to recommend our community?
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