Beauty
THE SUFFERING CALLED FAKE NAILS
And where I am finally free from it. Or not.
Hands are your business card and I am quite aware of that as a beauty editor. So, for the past few years, I went to the nail salon every month to get my nails done with a drop of acrylic and a fresh gellac to provide. Call it luxury, but god, how I loved having the most perfect nails, never having to worry about snags, brittle edges, or chipping polish, because it was all fixed.
But I stopped. It became an addiction that I couldn't shake off and it cost me quite a bit of money, so I had to quit. On top of that, I missed painting my nails with all those lovely polishes next to me. Besides, I am going on a trip to New Zealand soon where nail salons are not exactly on every corner and also not found in glaciers, rainforests, and fjords. So, I went pretty much cold turkey on the withdrawal process.
And now here I am. Typing without beautiful polish, without strong nails, but with brittle specimens that tear further with every glance. It's terrible. I prefer to avoid beauty appointments, during meetings I sit with my hands under the table (on my lap, I mean, on my lap), because I haven't found any gloves that can hide them. They need some time to get back to their old level, so hopefully, I will soon have those strong, smooth, and shiny nails from before. A little longer is also fine, but I won't set the bar too high right away.
So I googled. For tips to get the best nails in the country. And the prettiest. That scarce hour at the nail salon is already given to all the below, because god, what a day job you have here. But all for a good cause. If you have more tips on how I can get rid of my addiction but still have the most beautiful nails: please email me. Then I have to get my hands moving to take action and do something with the tips, and hopefully, I will soon have the most beautiful nails. In the meantime, I will focus on the following.
1. Filing
That's the basics. You're not used to snags, so you automatically pull them off quickly. A shame, because the nail only becomes uglier from it. And shorter. Filing It works best with a glass file, as it also makes your nail stronger. File the nail into a slightly rectangular shape, as this makes your nails appear longer optically.
2. Nail bed
The longer your nail bed is, the longer your nails appear. You can do this by gently pushing the edge under your nail down a bit. It's nice when you start working with polish, as you can paint them more beautifully.
3. Nail hardener
This ensures that your nails become a lot stronger from the inside and can recover. It's often a transparent polish, so it looks well-groomed right away.
4. The right nail polish
So I thought after removing my acrylic nails that I could wear any polish from then on. I enthusiastically started painting, but I only had to look at the color and it was already coming off my nail. Therefore, I have become quite picky in choosing the right polish. A gellac that lasts long, dries quickly, and feels sturdy. Oh, and that allows your nail to breathe a bit. I ended up with Sally Hansen Miracle Gel and OPI Infinite Shine. Both are now my favorites, as they upgrade the nails a bit and last longer than an hour, without pieces forming that you can peel off. Also a point: you don't always have to wear nail polish. Then your nails can breathe, allowing them to strengthen.
5. The polish
With light colors on your nails make them look longer than dark ones. Also, you shouldn't paint your entire nail in a color. They look narrower and longer if you leave a tiny stripe on both sides.
6. Vitamin B
Vitamin B is very important for the growth and maintenance of tissue. Sounds very exciting, but what I'm talking about is hair, skin, and nails. You can do this by quickly taking vitamin pills, but vitamin B is also found in fresh fruit, vegetables, and eggs. Beauty starts from within, they always say, and it really works.
7. Maintenance
You have to keep maintaining it, otherwise, it will never stay in good condition. Massage your cuticles every day with oil and a dab of hand cream. Then everything stays supple and doesn't dry out by far.
