It really is possible to get have perfect nails without a trip to the salon. You already have the ingredients, all you need to do is combine some of our tips and tricks to let your natural nails work for you!
Keeping your nails looking their best requires regular care – but it is a lot easier and requires less time than you think. Follow our simple at-home guide for envious nails, all year round.
Improve strength from the inside out
First off, if you’re struggling with brittle, dry nails that never seem to grow, it may be a sign your body isn’t getting enough of the essential minerals it needs through diet alone.
To improve the condition of your nails, introduce a daily Silicea supplement. Containing silica, Silicea products increase the strength of your nails, resulting in faster growth and resistance to chipping and damage.
Protect from damage
The Australian sun can certainly do some damage, so make sure you always wear SPF hand cream when outside. Be sure to also exfoliate your hands and fingers in summer and keep your hands hydrated.
If you’re a nail biter – resist the temptation. Although it can be hard to break habits, biting dramatically weakens your nails.
When using household cleaning or other harsh chemicals use gloves to protect your nails from drying out and peeling.
Moisturise
It is easy to heal dry or damaged cuticles on the go. Keep some moisturising hand cream in your handbag and use as required. Regular moisturising will prevent dryness and damage around your cuticles and nail beds. If your cuticles are particularly worse for wear, massage with a cuticle oil. This will also help stimulate nail growth.
Trim, buff and file
It is important to trim and file your nails to ensure they appear neat and don’t become unruly, but this doesn’t need to be often. You only need to trim your nails once every few weeks to ensure healthy growth and file once a week for maintenance. Filing too often can cause your nails to crack, bend or grow out of shape.
Soak your nails for a few minutes in warm water to soften them before trimming with clean manicure scissors. Trim slowly and cut off only small amounts at a time to avoid over trimming.
File your nails to a shape you prefer after trimming. When filing your nails, only drag the file in one direction across the nail. Sawing the file back and forth splinters the nail rather than smoothing it which can spread down the surface of the nail and ruin your nails.
Opt for a glass nail file over a traditional emery board. Glass nail files seal the keratin around the edges of your nails, preventing chipping and pealing. For a limited time marked boxes of 500ml Silicea Gel include a free Bohemian Glass Nail File of the finest quality made in Europe to help keep your nails in top condition.
Finishing touches
Try buffing natural nails for a healthy shine that won’t chip off. Make sure you don’t over-buff – too much buffing can cause friction, build up heat and weaken your nails.
Apply Vaseline on the skin surrounding your nail before you polish. The nail polish won’t adhere to this skin making the clean up fast and easy.
Polish using a base coat before applying a colour of your choice or for a natural look, stick to clear polish. To extend the life of your polish job apply a topcoat focusing on the tip of your nail.
Remove and reapply polish every one to two weeks or when it begins to chip using an alcohol-free remover to avoid damage.
To find out more about how Silicea products can boost the appearance of your natural nails, visit silicea.com.au for our full product range.