Nail Care!
Here's a couple of mindful tips for keeping healthy fingernails:
1. Be diligent about keeping them clean.
No matter what kind of style you're rocking - natural, press on, acrylic, dip or gel - keeping them clean takes effort. This is especially the case after eating (for me, at least). Take the time in the evenings and the morning to brush around the cuticle and underneath the nail. We've started doing this more recently - not only is it better from a pure cleanliness and bacteria perspective - but good god, it looks better too. Unclean nails are not cute - whether they're "done up" or not.
And be mindful of this when you take off press-ons that you plan to reuse! A beautiful bowl of colorful press-ons on your bathroom counter is as cute as it is inviting. A bowl of press ons with dirt layering the inner bed - is ... not. Soak them in warm water, possibly with a little acetone free remove or dishwashing liquid before letting them sit out and dry and putting them away for later use.
2. Clip and file them regularly.
Much like your hair, your nails need regular trimming breaking and snagging. So be sure and keep them at an even length. If you're not a fan of clipping your nails, filing your nails is clearly an alternative. Make sure you file your nails in one direction. This will give you a good shape with a smooth tip and prevents premature breakage. Filing them back and forth actually weakens the nails and harms the nail bed. Go figure - after so many salon appointments where they do that, exactly!
3. Moisturize those nails!
Your nails have to stay healthy just as your hair and skin does! (That includes the cuticle.) Hopefully you're already lotioning down before bed (if not, that's another blog for another day >:0 ) - but adding in a nice oil to seal in that moisture on your hands before bed is a perfect and simple routine. Almond, avodado, coconut or even olive oil (!) are all fantastic choices. (I consider myself to be getting a little cuticle love every time I rub my salad down in my olive oil and apple cider vinegar mix.) Another possible shortcut - are you already rubbing a facial oil onto your face at night? While we're normally all about avoiding wasting too much face product on your hands - there's an exception for oils ... and moisturizers, ... and retinols. So go ahead and rub that excess into your cuticles.
4. Please, please (!), stop picking at your fingernails.
Stop picking at your cuticles and stop picking at your nail beds! Stop removing dip and gel without soaking them first. Yea, I get it. Sometimes it feels ... kind of good. We're weird! Clearly! But it's absolutely horrible for you nail bed and cuticles. Cuticle-wise - those cuts and bruises are opening you up to infection ... seriously. (Just watched a new story the other day about some woman landing an incurable disease after cutting her cuticle in a nail salon. Aahh!) Nail bed wise - you're weakening the outermost layer of your nails.
5. Take breaks between styles and applications.
As much as we love that you love all of our press ons, and likely all of the other styling options available, you've got to do it sparingly. Your nails need a break from over-manipulation in the same way that your hair or skin would. Remember, your different and beautifully stylized body parts can only be as beautiful as they are healthy! Take a break ever 4-5 weeks or so (we normally go about 2 months or so) to just let your nails "be." No press ons, no gel, dip or acrylic. Just a nice clear polish and hardener at best.
Hope these are helpful, and talk to you later!
xoxo