Doing your nails is fun and relaxing, plus it can give you a boost of confidence and really pep up your day. But, it can be a major bummer if you spend time doing your nails only to have the polish chip or peel off too soon. The following tips offer some great advice for keeping your nails in tip-top shape for as long as possible.
Don’t Shake the Nail Polish Bottle
To prevent your nail polish from bubbling in the bottle, don’t shake it up. Instead, roll the bottle between your palms.
Wash Your Hands and Add a Basecoat
To get rid of your old nail polish before applying any new polish, clean your nails with a salicylic alcohol or antiseptic solution instead of nail polish remover. If your nails are smooth, the nail polish can be removed more easily.
If you don’t have any polish on your nails, just use soap to wash your hands. Then, add a basecoat to your nails to help extend the life of your nail polish once it’s added on top of the basecoat.
Take Your Time
If you rush applying your nail polish, you’re bound to do a less-than-quality job. Plus, taking “you time” for your manicure helps refresh your spirit and makes your nails look pristine.
Protect Your Nails Before Showering
Water can damage your nail polish. So, to protect them while taking a shower, apply some oil onto your nails. And while the oil will be washed off in the shower, the fatty layer will still stay on your nails as protection from the damaging water.
Don’t Buy Cheap Nail Polish
If you buy cheap nail polish, expect that it will chip and peel more quickly, probably in a day or so. Instead, use high-quality nail polishes that a professional manicurist would recommend.
Apply More Than One Layer
If you only apply one layer of nail polish, it won’t have the protection it needs to keep it from chipping and peeling. So, apply more than one layer of your nail polish to help stop unwanted flaking.
Don’t Steam Your Cuticles
If you go to get a professional manicure, you’ll notice that the manicurist might soften your cuticle in a small bath. But, when you do your own nails, that process is not recommended because it will prevent the nail polish from affixing to your nails adequately. Instead, use a product made specifically for cuticle care.
Use a Topcoat
Make sure to use a high-quality topcoat on your nail polish to protect your nail polish. You can even use a colorless varnish to protect them.
Let it Dry
Make sure to let your nails dry for 10 minutes between polish applications. If you apply a second layer too soon, it could glob up and require you to start over from scratch.
Using a Hair Dryer
Some recommend using a hair dryer to dry your nails. Others don’t. But if you do use a hair dryer to dry your nail polish, make sure to use the cool setting so you don’t dry out your nail polish too much, which could promote chipping and cracking.
Protect Your Nails While Doing Housework
To protect your nails while doing housework, make sure to wear rubber gloves. This helps keep water and harmful chemicals away from your nail polish.
How to Fix Your Nail Tips
You can easily fix your fingernail edges by adding a polish coating. To do so, gently rub the flawed area with polish remover using the pad of your finger. Then, buff it out using a circular motion. Finally, apply a clear top coat to blend it together.
Refresh the Polish
To make the polish last longer, add a new top coating every other day. This is actually easier than having to repaint peeled polish.
How to Cover a Defect
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If you find a chip or other defect in the polish and don’t have time to fix it right away, add some glitter to your nails. This helps cover the chipped or disfigured area until you have time to redo your nails.