There are women who choose to do their manicure at the salon and there are more skilled women who do very well on their own and do this work at home. I prefer the salon, but I do pretty well at home. But regardless of your preferences, hand and nail care is a job that must be done constantly and not only at the salon, but also at home.
It is said that the neck and hands are two elements that betray a woman's age, so we need to pay extra attention to them. I am lucky and unlucky at the same time to have small hands like a child, with short fingers and buttocks, and very short nails. For this reason, I often choose to lengthen my nails with gel, so that I also have more feminine hands.
Hand and nail care is something I am especially passionate about because at first I want to like what I see when I look at my hands. So, while sitting in salons and among specialists, having access to the latest launches in the field and being up to date with everything that happens on the international market, I came to be just as gifted in terms of information, but also of the products they own, like a salon. I have everything I need for a professional manicure at home, which my friends love when they visit me.
In this article I want to share with you some tips that I have also stolen from specialists in the field over the years and some favorite products that I have been using for years and that I think are worth recommending.
My ritual of caring for my hands and nails
My ritual always starts with the nails. First I shorten them and give them shape, then I take care of the cuticles, I apply the nail polishes (the treatment, the color and the top coat) and then I take care of the hands. I rub my hands and then apply a very moisturizing cream.
It is also very important exfoliation of hands and I usually prefer to do this with an oil-based product that moisturizes the skin very well.
I I don't usually cut my cuticles, only if it is really needed or if it keeps the manicurist dead so as not to ruin her feng shui. But I usually choose to take care of my cuticles at home and so they don't need to be cut. How do I do that? Once every 2-4 days I apply a gel that removes the cuticles, or a cuticle oil and push with a wooden stick. It is very important to push them every few days because this way we detach them from the nail, and they are no longer glued to us, they are no longer lengthened and they do not grow with the nail. If you constantly hydrate and push them, you will see that they no longer grow. But this cuticle job is a matter of preference and habit, so everyone does what they want.
I exfoliate my hands about once or twice a week and use hand cream every day, in fact I apply the cream several times a day. Cătălina Stoica he advised me to apply hand cream every winter before leaving the house and wearing gloves. And I try to apply as much as I can to her advice.
That's why I have a hand cream in the car, in my bag and in my gym bag.
In order for the nail polish to last a long time and the nail to be protected and cared for, it is recommended to apply a base varnish first. (found under the name of base coat) which can also be a strengthening treatment, two layers of colored nail polish and then a layer of transparent top coat (top coat) that gives shine, seals the nail and increases the strength of the manicure. It can be a quick-drying top coat, like the ones I prefer.
How do you choose the shape of your nail?
Jessica Vartoughian, founder of the Jessica Cosmetics brand (you can see my interview with her here), revealed to me that the shape of the nail that suits us is given by the cuticle line. We can make our own choices, we can orient ourselves according to trends, but that is the recommended natural form.
Jessica also told me that it's not good to change our nail polish too often. The solvent can dry the nail, and the filing can thin it. From the point of view of nail health, it is better to wear gel on the nail than semi-permanent nail polish. Because semi-nail polish is peeled at every maintenance, while only the gel is peeled and the nail is not so affected. However, both variants affect the natural nail to a certain extent.
Specialists recommend that the shape of the nail should be given from the file and not from the scissors because small cracks form in the nail by cutting (especially in people with hard nails).
Another tip for people who use those 4-sided files to smooth the nail, is not to use the last face (the meadow). The explanation is that by filing, the nail becomes thinner and removes some oils. That last side of the buffer, evenens those oils on the nail, and the treatments and nail polish will no longer adhere. It is good to leave them a little porous, and if you are careful and when you do the manicure at the salon, you will notice that even the manicurists do not use the buffer for gloss, but only for smoothness.
My favorite products for hand and nail care
Here is a list of some of my favorite products, which I have tested over the last 7 years and which I buy every time I run out of:
Alessandro Hands! Spa hydrating Magic Manicure Exfoliating blend - is a biphasic nail scrub that must be mixed before use. It is a mixture of moisturizing oils and abrasive particles with which I massage my nails and then rinse with water. It is my favorite product because if I massage my cuticles, they leave me clean and hydrated. The hands remain extremely velvety after use. Generally you can find the product in salons or at the Topline store. Of course you can use any body scrub, because it does the same thing.
OPI Nail Envy nail strengthening treatment - Every time I take off my semi-permanent nail polish or gel and stick with nails as thin as a sheet of paper, I know that Nail Envy will save me. A coat should be applied every day for 7-14 days and the nails become very strong. I have used the green variant so far, but recently I also discovered the pink variant, which I want to try next time it will be needed. The treatment contains calcium and wheat proteins that strengthen, protect thin nails and prevent their exfoliation.
The formula is enriched with Vitamin E, Aloe Vera and Kukui walnut oil. For optimal results, apply 2 coats of treatment and reapply 1 coat every 2 days.
You can order online here.
Cuticle Removal Gel Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover - I bought my first tube in Madrid in 2012 when it was not even in Romania and since then I have remained faithful to it. I haven't even tried another product of this kind because it pleases me and because it is now everywhere (in Sensiblu pharmacies they are for sure). The gel removes dry and hardened cuticles, and moisturizes and soothes the skin. Apply it on the cuticles, leave it on for about 15-30 seconds to act, then with a wooden stick, clean the cuticle. The result is wow, and I say it too, I'm not used to cutting my cuticles. After using it you should wash your hands with soap.
Cuticle Emollient Cream Jessica Nourish Cuticle Formula - It is a product that takes care of the cuticles more than an oil. In fact, it takes care of the cuticles and the skin around the nails. If, for example, you put gel on your nails and your manicurist uses the cutter on the cuticles and the skin around the nails is a little ragged, this emollient cream seems to stick all those peels and the fingers no longer have that dry and messy appearance. In addition, it nourishes and moisturizes, has a disinfecting and healing effect, and reduces inflammation. It is applied daily (although I do not apply daily) in circular motions. In the evening you can apply cuticle oil first and then emollient cream.
It comes in two variants, I have a small bag variant.
You can order online here.
Cuticle oil Jessica Phenomen Oil - This is one of my favorite cuticle oils because it is pure Jojoba oil. The formula heals and nourishes dry cuticles, ensures nail growth and keeps them flexible. It can be applied to any dry area on the body (knees, soles, elbows) and can be used in conjunction with Nourish Cuticle Formula.
You can order online here.
CND Vinylux Weekly Top Coat - it's a fast-drying top coat that I told you about when I reviewed it on the blog and that you can read here. First of all, I like this top coat because it dries my nails very quickly. It is a product with a special PROLIGHT technology that after exposure to natural light creates a long-lasting adhesion because it reacts to the natural UV rays to which we are exposed daily, strengthening the nail more and more every day. On the advice of Catalina Stoica, in order for the nail polish to last longer on the nails, once every few days I reapply another layer of top coat.
Hand cream Palmer's Formula Coconut Oil - It's a cream I bought last week from Farmacia Tei. In fact, I also got a classic Cocoa Butter Formula. Both are excellent products that moisturize the hands very well, which leave that protective film, but which is not oily and loaded. In winter I prefer fuller textures of creams, and these two creams contain cocoa butter, coconut oil, Tahitian Monoi oil and Vitamin E. They are suitable for moisturizing any part of the body (except the skin), so it is good to we always have one with us. I took two because I keep one in the car and one in the house.
You can order online here.
MoroccanOil hand cream - I received it for testing and I hope it was not a limited edition in Romania because I can no longer find it on the Topline shop website. However, I write about it because it is a product that impressed me and that took very good care of my hands. It has the specific smell of MoroccanOil products, only it has a slight citrus, orange flavor. The formula is based on Argan oil with antioxidant effect, shea butter, coconut butter and mango. What I particularly liked about this product is the fact that regardless of the condition of my hands, they immediately hydrated them and became velvety. If, for example, they were frozen and I had that feeling of skin that cracks and stings easily, it immediately calms that feeling. And the effect lasted for many hours, even if you washed your hands. That's what I thought was great about this product.
La Roche Posay Cicaplast Mains Hand Cream - and this is a cream that particularly impressed me and that I recommend to people who have serious problems with their hands. Soothes sting, softens the skin and makes it velvety and leaves a protective barrier. If I forget to wear gloves when I clean the house and use solutions that dry your skin or even burn it easily with this cream, I pass. Contains Niaciamide 4% and Glycerin 30%.
You can order online here.
Quick-drying top coat Orly Sec'n Dry - It is said to be the only varnish that dries nail polish layer by layer, which gives the nail polish shine and strength. Dry, it dries very quickly, I confirm this because I have been using it for many years and every time I am just as satisfied. It doesn't seem expensive to me and it doesn't contain DBP, formaldehyde and toluene.
You can order online here.
I hope you enjoyed this article and found out useful things. If you also have your favorite products, please share them with me in the comments section. I love receiving feedback from you, so feel free to write to me!
2 comments
Apart from Palmer's Formula Coconut Oil cream, I also used everything you listed and I confirm that they are wonderful. I prefer the quick-drying cattle dryer lake.
Very useful this article.
I did not know many of these products presented by you.
Thank you.