How to Take Care of Your Nails

good nailsBeauty and womanhood go hand in hand. The mental and the physical well being of a woman is very well reflected in a healthy looking radiant skin. Your skin is not just a reflection of external factors but also of various internal factors. A healthy diet and active lifestyle is a must to ensure that you are beautiful, inside out. It is very important to keep yourself hydrated during winters. So drink lots of water, eat lots of fruit and fresh vegetables and avoid alcohol, tea, coffee, soda and other caffeine rich drinks as they tend to dehydrate the body. Rather, you’d be way better off and healthier if you do opt for soups which are nutritious as well as ones that can keep you warm.

Many of us, irrespective of our hectic schedules do ensure that they eat healthy and follow a strict fitness regime. But amidst this, many of us often tend to neglect a very important part of our body- our nails. Gorgeous looking nails would not just boost the inner confidence in you but also make you feel pampered. Cold weather dehydrates your nails and cuticles, leaving them prone to breaking, chapping and discoloration. The best way to keep nails in top shape is by maintaining a meticulous nail care routine, especially during the cold season.

Tips for Beautiful Nails

don't bite your nails
don’t bite your nails

1. Eat healthy: What we eat directly reflects on our nails. Our nails are composed of calcium and other minerals.  So, it is very essential to replenish them, which you can do so by an adequate supply of calcium, vitamin A, phosphorous, zinc, folic acid, silica, vitamin C. That is a long list that’ll do a food technlogist proud, isn’t it? Let’s deconstruct that to something we can relate to, shall we? Here we go. Drink plenty of milk and also make sure you eat plenty of milk products like cheese, yogurt etc. Eggs, green leafy vegetables such as spinach, parsley , coriander, broccoli, apricots, carrots, almonds are also very good supplements to your diet. Drink lots of water as it will not just prevent wrinkles on your skin but also avoid your nails from getting brittle. Also look out for discoloration of nails or developing ridges, because they are indication of vitamin deficiency. Deficiency of Vitamin B12 leads to dryness and darkening of nails.

2. Personal hygiene: Clean nails are not just necessary to look good but also necessary to ensure your well being.  Our nails can carry lots of disease causing bacteria and germs. Winters, especially, make our nails more porous and susceptible to fungus.  Trim your nails regularly.  But do not file your nails immediately after bath because they tend to break. Avoid back and forth motion while filing your nails and make sure you stick to one direction. Resort to nail buffing as it augments blood circulation, stimulating nail growth and voila you have strong and shiny nails. When you wash hands, make sure you massage soap near your nails and cuticles. Rinse and moisture them well .You could also use a soft brush to clean them. Dead skin around the nails could be removed using a pumice stone. Do not keep exposing your nails to extreme temperatures, very hot water or direct heat and cold. They lead to brittle nails. Use of lukewarm water to wash your hands is recommended. A monthly manicure by professional is must but make sure they use clean and sterilized equipment. Use gloves while gardening, washing clothes, utensils and cutting vegetables.

3. Keep them well moisturized: Apply moisturizer while watching TV, before going to bed and after washing your hands. Massaging hot oil once a week could give you smooth and soft fingers and nails. Vitamin E oil is very good for nails and so is castor oil. You could also use petroleum jelly to massage your beautiful nails. Massaging nail serum could also stimulate circulation and help your nails grow faster as during winters your nails tend to grow slow.

4. Avoid harsh chemicals as they make your nails brittle and damage them very badly. Use a base coat before applying paint. Use non acetone nail polish remover to prevent your nails from being fragile, better stick to acetate containing nail polish removers. Vibrant colors like crimson red, neon blue, deep pink, deep burnt rust, grey is the new black, electric green are the hot trends seen at runway currently. Apply vinegar on your nail to last the polish longer. Base coat is very essential as it prevents staining of the nail color on tour actual nails when you apply polish.

How to get a manicure at home

You would need:
1. Warm water
2. Cuticle cream
3. Manicure scissor
4. Nail cutter
5. Nail filer
6. Nail brush
7. Nail polish remover
8. Base coat
9. Nail polish

  • To begin with, make sure all your tools are clean and sterilized.
  • Remove your old nail polish, using cotton ball and nail polish remover(prefer non acetone nail polish remover)
  • Then proceed towards shaping your nails, never file your nails when wet (read that again its a sin to file your nails when they are wet coz they can break too easily).you can shape your nails in either of these 4 basic shapes: round, square, oval and pointed. The shape of the nail should conform to the shape of finger. File your nails in one direction. Back and forth motion is a big no no.
  • Soak your nails in soapy lukewarm water for 5 to 10 minutes, you can add e few drops of essential oil of any fragrances of your chance (my personal favourite lavender), Epson salt and few drops of lemon juice (it de stains your nails).
  • Apply cuticle cream or Vaseline and push your cuticles back with help of ear bud. Apply cream or Vaseline and massage your hands well. Avid cutting cuticles coz its painful and may cause infections.
  • Wash your nails using a nail brush.
  • Exfoliate your skin taking soapy water and sugar to get rid of dead skin.
  • Soak your hands again.
  • Pat dry your hands and massage with good quantities of cream.
  • Apply base coat, let it dry follows by nail colour of your choice.

Voila you have beautiful looking, smooth and soft  healthy hands.

Also Read:

How to Get Perfect Nails
How To Buff Nails At Home : Nail Buffing
What does your Nail Polish Colour say about You : Nails Fun
How To Do Nail Art at Home

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24 thoughts on “How to Take Care of Your Nails

  1. nice article 🙂

    A tip if you break a finger nail (like I just did now 😥 :brokenheart: )If the break isn’t too low, carefully cut the nail, file it, and trim the other nails so they’re of equal length. For a big break (one that’s in the nail bed), apply a couple of drops of nail glue to the surface of the nail. Let set and hold the break in place for about a minute. Reapply glue and cover the nail with a piece of tea bag or tissue. Let dry, and then buff excess off.

  2. I just cut off all my nails short again coz of chipping my thumb nail.
    Very useful tips Puneeta. :yes:
    Specially for me who loves doing weird things non my nails :))

    1. Buffing Your Nails… What You Need to Know
      Quick Tip

      What is buffing all about?

      Buffing can rid your nails of ridges, take care of jagged edges, and even encourage the nails to grow.

      What do they look like?

      Discs: usually made of a very fine grade sand paper. These should be used to smooth any rough edges on your nails.
      Emery board shape
      Buffing Blocks
      3 in One: a buffer, an emery board and a polisher
      What mistakes are commonly made?

      -Buffers come in different grades, so consider what grade should do what. The rougher texture should only be used for shaping and smoothing the edges of the nails… much in the same manner as an emery board.

      -Buffing the nails should be done gently and in one direction only… simply to slow you down. Vigorous buffing can thin the nail and this can be painful.

      What are the benefits of buffing?

      -Buffing can increase the blood circulation to the nail bed.

      -Buffing off the ridges also gives a smoother surface for the polish to adhere to.

      -Actually buffing leaves such an attractive sheen to the nails, that you might skip the polishing step. After all, buffed nails cannot chip.

      -Buffing encourages the nails to grow thanks to the improved circulation.

      -This procedure also helps to remove surface stains.

      How do you buff?

      Apply a little buffing cream to the nails and then buff in one direction. You can use a traditional buffer or a piece of chamois. If you are using both cream and buffer, be very careful that you don’t buff away too much of the nail. Too much buffing can produce a burning sensation. This technique will smooth the surface and offer a little shine as well.

      For even more shine… use a little beewax applied with a chamois and buff away.

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