My nails were really bad before, fragile, soft and slicing all the time. But today I have very long, healthy & nice nails and sometimes I barely recognize them because they are so good, even though they have been so long now haha. I had lived my whole life with bad nails before :)
How to get beautiful nails at home
Now I thought I would give you tips to get long, healthy & beautiful nails, how I care for them to keep them beautiful, and also how I do French manicure because it is so nice on long nails and makes them look even longer than to have a color on the whole nail. I also offer some reviews on some nail products I have received press releases on.
Hope you like the post and shout out if you have any questions!
Here you see my nails naked in the before picture and then after a manicure á la Helena!
Make your nails grow strong and get long and healthy nails:
This tip is the only thing I can think of that has made me get long, healthy & beautiful nails, and that is nail oil! I never lubricated the cuticles before, then I started doing nail extensions and then there was so much nagging about nail oil as fragile nails can make the nail extension come off more easily - which it did on me kind of all the time.
Then I got into the routine of nail oil and when I then stopped with extension (which was over 2 years ago) I continued to lubricate the cuticles and since then my nails have been so much better!
Had someone told me how much difference nail oil makes to the quality of the nails, I probably would not have believed them, and I do not know if it applies only to me or if it applies to everyone, but for me nail oil at least made a HUGE difference :) And I has not made any other change so do not think it may be due to anything other than the oil.
How often should you lubricate your cuticles?
Many people say "I use nail oil" and when you ask how often it is like once a week. Better than nothing at all, but it is needed much more often if you want to see any difference in nail quality. My nail therapist told me 3 times / day, which I did in the beginning but no longer. But 1-2 times a day I lubricate anyway! Of course, you can completely forget any day, which is not a disaster when you get into the routine, and some days it will be more times. But at least once a day I would recommend.
I use most often Infinatura Cura Oil (adlink), I use the big bottle for all hair, skin and nails :)
How to get into the routine?
"God so hard I will never do that" many of you thought when you read "3 times a day" right? ;) Yes it is a lot, but the only difficult thing is to remember it because it is not directly difficult or time consuming. I always have nail oil on the desk, but you can put it anywhere you see it often. In the handbag, it rarely does me any good. Next to the toothpaste or next to the bed are also good places!
Please hand care products
Not drying out the nails more than necessary is also an important detail to keep in mind. Of course, you should paint your nails and play with different nail polishes, but a simple thing is to replace your nail polish remover with a remover without acetone! For example Nailmatic Essentials Care - Dissolvant / Lavender Nail Polish Remover (adlink) it smells of lavender, acetone free.
What you choose for hand soap is also good to think an extra turn around! Many people use fine, moisturizing products for the face and body, but the hands that you wash the most, you use a strong soap 20 times a day. This gives not only dry and chapped hands but also nails and cuticles. A tip on hand soap is Aesop - Reverence Aromatique Hand Wash 500 ml (adlink)
So, a mild and moisturizing hand soap and an acetone-free remover for the nail polish, you do the nails a big favor :)
Now for the manicure:
1. Polishing file
I use polishing file for the nails but really want to emphasize that you do not over-file! The nails often become striped (in structure), which is because the nail has hard fibers and around these the nail is much softer. So when the nails are striped, the soft has been worn and there is more of the hard left. If you then file away the hard as well, the nail will be very soft, and it will be quite the opposite of what we want to achieve. In addition, they can become too thin if you file a lot, and you do not want that either.
I file gently on the nail so that it becomes a little smoother and shinier, but is very light on the hand and does not file much at all. A little also makes a big difference. Then it is better to use varnish that fills in the irregularities that remain.
2. Nail cuticle remover
Oh what I love this product! A cream you put on the cuticles that softens so that you can easily remove old skin. As after a long hand bath fixed in 1 minute. Top! I like it from Makiash but see that they do not seem to sell it anymore, too bad! Trind Cuticle remover is also really good.
And corner - this on the cuticles on the toenails, so good now in the summer :)
3. Keratin balm
This is a product I started with recently, but already after 2 applications I feel a difference on the nails so I really want to recommend this! It is Trind Keratin Nail Restorer which is a conditioner you have on the nails, it is shiny when applied but when it dries it is not visible at all. It contains keratin and repairs damaged nails. I think my nails feel more moisturized and not as "brittle" as before :) Really thumbs up!
You can either apply it, let it dry and then apply any nail polish, or you can leave the nails unpainted and then you can paint on a new layer every day.
4. Base coat / Keratin protection
Together with the above conditioner, Trind recommends using nail polish Keratin Nail Protector also. I think this product is good if you do not have nail polish over, because it takes quite a long time to dry so you have to do more steps then you lose patience, and even though it says in the product description that you may have colored varnish over this so I think that the nail polish you apply later lasts much shorter. It kind of can be pulled off in a big chunk.
In other words, I use this for this tutorial but can really only recommend it if you do not have painted nails. It fills in irregularities, gives a nice shine to the nail and, as I said, even more care for worn nails.
So I use first Keratin restorer (conditioner), then this Keratin Protector and after that nail polish.
If you do not use this particular product, I would base with a regular base coat, preferably one that is a little extra leveling.
5. White tops
For my tops, I used the nail polish Essie Coconut Cove which is great for French manicure! The formula is very thin so it is easy to get even edges and in addition the white color is a little milder than chalk white which I think is nice too.
The reason I did French manicure in this post is precisely because it emphasizes that the nails are long. Sometimes when I have full-colored nails, I am shocked by how long the nails look when I remove them and you can see so clearly how much longer than the finger they are.
When I paint the tops, I do not use any templates at all, but run freehand. I think it's easier as the edge gets much nicer. The most important thing is not to have a too thick varnish because then it is very difficult! I paint sideways with the brush and make a line that is not completely straight but slightly bent. Then I'm not super happy that everyone is exactly the same in length, etc. because after a few days one has gone off a bit at the top and they are uneven again hehe.
6. Light nail polish on the entire nail
After that I apply a light, transparent nail polish as a top coat! I like to have a light varnish because it gives a milder effect, but if you like more contrast (it's great too!) You can have chalk white tops and just a transparent topcoat then.
The light color I have used is Essie Gel Couture Bridal Collection 2017 in the shade Dress is more. Just a thin layer, because it gives quite a lot of pigment if you make thicker or more layers.
Summary for long, healthy looking nails at home step by step:
Here you see all the steps in the manicure I described above! :)
Stylish and fresh, really nice nails!
Should I only recommend three things, I say 1. nail oil 2. cuticle remover and 3. a good undercoat or similar that fills in the stripes of the nail so that you get an even, fine and durable result without having to file the top of the nail so much.
Hope you got some useful tips on how to fix long, healthy & beautiful nails at home step by step. If you have any questions, just comment below! :)
Also read the post "Make acrylic nails on yourself".
Hug!
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