1. Be sure to eat healthy. Choose foods that are as close to natural as possible. Be sure to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables.
2. Be sure to drink at least 6 glasses of water a day to keep your skin moisturized both inside and out.
3. Be sure to get the sleep your body needs; recommended 6-8 hours per night.
4. Wear sunscreen to avoid over-exposing your skin to the elements. A little sunshine is necessary but "today's suntan is tomorrow's aging skin".
5. Try to avoid harsh detergents and extreme temperatures. Be sure to wash with mild cleansers. "As a normal skin function, sweat and sebaceous glands routinely rid the body of toxins and wastes."
6. Be sure to protect your hands with professional moisturizing creams. Suggested: Repechage Sea Spa Creme with Anti-Oxidants. Treat your hands to regular TLC! Visit the salon for a Sea Spa Anti-Aging Hand Treatment with Manicure!
7. Make it a nightly ritual to rub a rich hand cream into your hands and nails; massaging around the cuticles to help nourish and stimulate growth. Advised: cover your hands with an old pair of cotton gloves and leave on overnight; allowing the heat of your hands to work the cream into a "hot-oil" style treatment.
8. Exercise your hands! Because of today's repetitive tasks, be sure to take time out to wiggle and stretch your fingers, wrists, hands and arms. This will help maintain normal range of movement.
TEN STEPS TO MAINTAINING HEALTHY NAILS!
1. Be sure to apply hand cream after washing your hands. Soaps make nails and skin very dry, leading to brittle and peeling nails.
2. Using sweat almond oil, combined with a little salt and rubbed into the nails and cuticles helps to strengthen weak or broken nails. It also provides nourishment to dry and flaking cuticles. Recommended: Solar Manicure by Creative Nail Design!
3. Be sure to treat your cuticles very gently. They protect the growth centre of the nail so you should never tear the skin or cut the cuticles.
4. Try to break the habit of nail biting. This can damage the nail and the cuticle, leading to a deformed nail shape or uneven nail growth. Biting nails can also transfer harmful organisms to the nail which can then lead to infection or even increase your chance of catching a cold or flu. (See Tips for Nail Biters to learn how to break the habit!)
5. To encourage nail growth, massage the base of your nails whenever you can. This can be done while applying Solar Oil by Creative Nail Design on your cuticles!
6. Be sure to avoid clipping to shorten your nails. This can bend or split them. Try instead to use an emery board to file down the nails. Hold the emery board at a 45-degree angle under the free edge of the nail to prevent future peeling and splitting.
7. After you've removed your nail polish, wait until your nails are completely dry before you start to file, shape or shorten the nails. If the nails are not dry, you may split them.
8. Try and use a Non-Acetone polish remover only and try to use remover as infrequently as possible. Most specialists suggest using remover no more than once a week as most will dry the nails out. Never scrape or pick off your nail polish.
9. Have regular manicures every 7-14 days. Apply a topcoat almost daily to ensure protection on the tips of the nails; reapply your nail polish as often as needed to maintain a well-groomed appearance. Recommended: Supershiney, Air Dry or Speedey by Creative Nail Design! Invest in a bottle of Base Coat to help your nail polish last longer. It also helps to prevent bright or dark colours from staining your nails. Recommended: Stickey by Creative Nail Design!
10. Nail Polish can be a good nail protector. Be sure to apply 2-3 thin coats as opposed to one thick one. Be sure to not apply the polish right to the edge of your nails (cuticle area). It is also neater to leave thin strip down each side of the nail. It make the nails look slimmer. Try a 3 stroke application: apply the first stroke of polish along the centre of the nail, then apply the polish along the sides in two strokes for a neat finish.
TIPS FOR NAIL BITERS!
Chronic nail biting damages the tissue surrounding the nails and deforms the nail plate. This results in unattractive nails as well as the introduction of bacteria that can lead to illness and permanent nail deformities. Regular manicures can help a nail biter become more conscientious of his/her nails and encourage them to stop biting! Here are some other tips that may help!
1. Try to devote 10 minutes every day to caring for your nails. As they start to look nicer, you may be inclined to want to stop biting.
2. Try an anti-biting lotion for the nails. Once you have stopped biting for a couple of weeks, your longer nails may provide you with the incentive to keep up the good work!
3. Just because your nails are short does not mean you cannot wear nail polish. Even short nails look better with a couple coats of a clear or pale polish.
4. Consider wearing nail enhancements! This will allow your nails to grow underneath. Even the most determined of nail biters will have difficulty gnawing their way through them! A few months might be all you need to break the biting habit! **Ask about the enhancement options available to you!** When done by a Professional Nail Technician, nail enhancements are safe and beautiful!
5. Be sure to carry an emery board with you at all times to ensure that you avoid biting straggly edges.
Before & After Nail Bitten Nails!
Don't Get Duped by Non-Certified Nail Salons!
This set of nails was done by a Non-Certified, nail salon claiming to be doing Gel Nails. This is a common false claim to get a sale! This client paid $40 for an acrylic and tip application that was likely not a certified product. The "nail tech" and I use the word loosely, applied a gel topcoat in order to convice the client she was paying for Gel Nails. This picture was taken ONE day after her new set was applied. Notice the mishapen nails, cracks, improper adhesion, and ill-fitted tip application.
The below pic shows yet another example of a visit to a discount salon! This client was told she had Gel as well when in fact this set was done with likely an unsafe, non-certified acrylic. Never should your enhancements yellow. Notice the "rings of fire". Those lines in her nails show how heavy handed the tech was with an electric file. This is damage to her natural nail and not a common result of having nails done by a professional nail tech!
Professional Acrylics removed after 10 yrs of wearing them to reveal healthy, non-damaged nails. Before manicure and preparation of new Gel Nails . Notice: No drill marks or dents, no bruising and layers of the nail bed is still intact.
Gel Nails done in "Forever French" as an overlay on the client's natural nails after having her acrylics removed.
