Dont Pick At Your Polish
Again, because it bears repeating: If and when you decide to get another gel mani once your nails have healed, resist the urge to pick and peel the polish off. When you do this, layers of your nail can come off with it. Get yourself to the salon for a proper removalor buy a removal kit to do it yourself.
Moisturizes Nails Destroyed By Gel
To harden the nails after removing the false nails, it is very important that you hydrate them constantly. To strengthen them again, we recommend that you get a neutral vaseline bottle and a pair of cotton gloves. Before going to bed, apply a little petroleum jelly to each nail. Then, without removing it, put on the gloves and sleep the whole night in them. The next morning, remove the gloves and, if necessary, massage your nails so that they finish absorbing the petroleum jelly. Keeping it overnight you get more absorption and hydration.
Use A Nail Strengthener
Applying a nail strengthener will also help strengthen your nails after having dip powder. Although this isnt necessary, it is a good product to use that will have the main benefit of strengthening your nails.
A nail strengthener is a type of base coat that gives intense healing for damaged nails, they are mostly used after having your nails done for a lengthy amount of time, and your nails are weakened from the constant use.
What is great about a nail strengthener is that you can apply it under your nail polish or the clear polish means you can wear it on its own. You can apply a nail strengthener whenever you think it is necessary or as often as you like however, the recommended application is one coat every day until you feel your nails have become stronger.
If you are doing at-home manicures or are removing your dip powder yourself, it is advised that you use a nail strengthener as it gives an added layer of protection to your nails and can help any damage that is caused.
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Is Hard Gel And Builder Gel The Same
When it comes to Bluesky products, these two products have different uses! Hard Gel is best used as a nail strengthener either underneath your gel polish colour coats or on its own for a natural-looking manicure.
Builder Gel is perfect for gel nail extensions and can be used with nail forms to sculpt medium to long nail extensions. We have plenty of tips for how to apply Builder Gel as well as a tutorial video you can follow if youve not used the product before.
Now you know exactly how to help your nails grow stronger, don’t forget to take a look at our 8 Top Tips For Stronger Nails – including more of our favourite products!
The Most Effective Ways To Strengthen Your Nails After A Gel Manicure & Acrylics
I. Foods Good For Your Nails
1. Chia Seeds
Chia seeds are well known to be a wonderful source of nourishment for your whole body. They are abundant in calcium, B vitamins, zinc, and protein, which not only help your nails but also the skin and hair appear shiny and healthy all the time.
You can put some chia seeds in your smoothies, yogurt or make your own chia puddings if you like. By doing this, you both have a healthy diet and strengthen your nail right away.
2. Oats
Oats are among the top whole grains to add to your meals so that your hair, skin, and nails can be healthy and strong. Oats are full of B vitamins, notably biotin, which is beneficial for our nail strengths. Furthermore, this grain takes a long time to digest due to itâs high fiber content, so it also slows insulin release into the bloodstream. As insulin bursts occur in the body, blood sugar levels rise, which creates stress on the body. This sequentially damages the repair and growth mechanism for nails as well.
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What Happens When Nails Are Weak After Gel Polish
After removing gel polish, nails tend to be thinner and weaker than before gel polish.
They are susceptible to breaking, peeling, or chipping because the person who has gel polish before is accustomed to the extra thickness and strength gel polish provided.
Now with gel polish removed, even a simple use of the nails like scratching, hair washing, or putting on clothes can cause these thin nails to peel or tear. If the tear goes deep into the nail bed, it could cause bleeding.
Use A Crystal Nail File Only
Regular nail files are SO damaging for your nail & really should only be used going in one direction. When you rub the emery board back & forth on your nail like you see in movies, it will cause your nail to break & split. Instead, get yourself a crystal nail file they are safe/gentle on your nails & can be used any which way.
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Switch To Regular Polish While They Heal
Instead of a gel polish, which usually entails filing down the nail when it’s removed and reapplied, try staying on a regular nail lacquer routine for a while. “If one really can’t go without their normal nail-care regime, I recommend a clear nail polish, just to observe one’s nail growth situation,” says Lin.
Take A Break From Color
While theres no scientific evidence that keeping your nails polish-free will make a difference, anecdotally I can tell you that we totally notice a difference in the strength and health of the nails when our clients do take a break, says Tuttle. Choi and Holford agree all three recommend keeping your nails au naturel for at least a few days after sporting a gel, acrylics, or dip.
If you really need to keep them polished, use a nail strengthener as a base coat, suggests Holford. You can also look for a color that contains strengthening ingredients.
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Try To Restrict Your Exposure To The Light
A 2016 research from the American Academy of Dermatology disclosed that gel manicures may not be a safe alternative for people who are very sensitive to UV light. The UV dosage that you get throughout a gel manicure is short, yet its intense, Dr. Adigun claimed in the research. In time, this extreme direct exposure can add up to trigger skin damages.
An additional issue is the increase in appeal of LED nail lamps, Dr. Adigun notes of her research study on the safety and security of gel manicures. LED lamps have become preferred as much for their faster treating times as the idea that theyre much safer than UV lights, but Dr. Adigun urges this is not the situation. Although many individuals erroneously believe these lights do not make use of UVA to cure, they use higher intensities of UVA wavelengths to achieve the much shorter treating times. This higher strength of UVA irradiance suggests that it calls for much less time for these lights to possibly damage the skin, she explains.
Instead, Dr. Adigun recommends bringing along your pair of YouVeeShield handwear covers to safeguard your hands against UVA radiation . It is the most protective material because it protects the entire digits and also wrist, Dr. Adigun states.
How To Strengthen Nails With Gel Base Coat And Topcoat
If you do gel manicures at home, you already have your nail strengthener kit. It is your gel polish base coat and topcoat combo.
When my customers decided to take a break from color gel polishes but still want a clean manicured look on their hands, I always applied one layer of gel base coat and a couple layers of gel top coat after a regular manicure which consisted of nail shaping and excess cuticle trimming.
This is beneficial if especially if their nails are thin and flimsy to begin with. The process of putting a gel base coat and gel topcoat on the nails is just like adding three extra layers of nail strengthener.
Doing this will make their nails much harder and my customers were happy because their nails would not be breaking, tearing, or peeling so easily.
Side note: if your nails are thin after dip powder or from any other nail artificial nail enhancements like acrylics, hard gel, or polygel, you can use this method to strengthen your nails as well
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Stick To A Natural Nail
Gels, dips, and acrylics may offer a candy-shell lacquer you adore, but they can actually be quite harsh on your nail plate. “Not only are acrylic and dip powder nails full of potentially nail-harming ingredients, but the process and wear can be very damaging to your nailbeds, and if done improperly can even lead to infection,” organic manicurist Eunice Montes-Hamaguchi has told us. To keep your tips healthy and strong, you might want to forgo the faux nails and stick to a bare-nailed look or coat of clean polish.
And if you do have gels, dips, or acrylics, don’t peel or pick them off, as this can only harm your nails moreyou can actually rip off pieces of the nail plate along with the polish. The thought alone makes my fingertips ache. Instead, use this step-by-step guide to remove your faux nails.
Think Of Gel Polish As Liquid Acrylics
Ever wonder specifically just how gel manicures remain so excellent for so long? The chemical make-ups for gel polish and routine nail polish vary with each brand, however, the significant distinction is that gel polish will only dry out under straight UV or LED light contact, while routine nail polish can broadcast completely dry, discusses star nail musician Yoko Sakakura. Gel gloss applications treat under a lamp, producing a hard layer of polish that makes it more resilient and also longer lasting. The removal procedure for gel gloss is more complicated as well, needing the nail to be soaked in acetone to appropriately liquify the formula off of the nail. Not only will they last much longer, but theyll look more difficult and also shinier while youve obtained em, too.
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The Damage Acrylic Nails Can Cause
You’re not guaranteed to see damage after a set of acrylics – there are many different factors at play – but it can happen. “The condition of the natural nail after acrylic nail removal varies greatly depending on the skill level of the technician who’s applied it, as well as the quality of product used,” notes Fleury Rose, the a celebrity stylist and the in-house creative director at Wild Oleander Beauty Bar in Brooklyn, New York.
If a nail technician doesn’t know what they’re doing, they may file your nails improperly creating thin and brittle nail beds, according to Candice Idehen, celebrity nail artist and owner of New York City-based nail bar, Bed of Nails.
“Usually your nails hurt to the touch and are visibly damaged,” Idehen tells us. “They may be extremely thin and flexible in a way that they bend under. Another sign is if they begin to break easily or tear.”
Rose agrees adding that in worst cases you may see “‘rings of fire’ caused by improper e-filing, and even nail fungus!” Chipping, flaking, and indentations or grooves are also results of improper nail technique.
But damage can’t always be blamed on the salon. It can also be a result of peeling off your own acrylics, which Idehen strongly urges you to resist doing.”When you peel off acrylic or any other enhancement, for that matter, you take off several layers of your natural nail with it.”
First Of All What Is A Gel Manicure
Let’s clarify something here: There is “Shellac” and there is “hard gel.” It gets confusing because some salons refer to Shellac as gels, but Shellac is actually just the trademark name of CND, the first nail company to invent and register this type of polish. It’s commonly found in salons and is similar to hard gels in that it’s also cured and hardened onto your nails with a UV light. Where it differs is its softer than gel and soaks off with acetone.
Gel or “hard gel, can be applied over natural or fake nails. The main difference from Shellac is that you can extend the length of the nail, which can be sculpted and shaped just like acrylic.
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Strengthen From The Inside Out
Along with addressing nails from the outside, all the experts we spoke with agreed that the right supplements can help strengthen your tips from the inside, out. One good option? Collagen. An essential protein for hair, skin, and nails, ingestible collagen peptides are easily incorporated into your daily routine and can help promote healthy nails.
“Collagen has really made a difference in the health of my nails. They feel resilient and stronger,” says Holford. Try: NeoCell Super Collagen Powder. Another good option? Biotin. The B vitamin is one of Tuttle’s top picks for strengthening nails. Choi adds that along with supplements, you can also get these internal benefits by focusing on incorporating biotin-rich and collagen-synthesizing foods in your diet, such as salmon, avocados, sweet potatoes, leafy greens, and nuts and seeds.
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How To Remove Nail Strengthener Gel Polish
When it is time to remove gel polish as a strengthener, I recommend that you use a method that does not damage your nails.
There are 6 different ways to remove gel polish but my favorite method is the one that can take off gel polish naturally and fast.
Which method you use, make sure you give it time. Rushing through a gel polish removal will damage the nail surface and ruin the shape further which you do not want to happen to them.
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What Causes Nails To Become Weak
Just like with our skin and hair, nails can become brittle and dry when we dont drink enough water, so make sure to get your two litres a day.
Ripping off gel nails or getting acrylics without a break in between appointments will also weaken them. Make sure you get them removed professionally, or give them the proper DIY removal treatment.
Wearing rubber gloves when handling detergents and bleach is also a must, as overexposure to these chemicals can make nails soft, resulting in them splitting or breaking.
Noticed it takes your nails forever to grow? You could be lacking in vitamin C. Make sure your diet includes food that is a good source of vitamin C, including peppers and broccoli. Taking a supplement may also help improve the quality of your nails, as well as your skin and hair.
However, all these methods do require a bit of patience. A strengthening product, on the other hand, can make a huge difference to the appearance of your nails in weeks.
Selecting Is A Bad Concept
One thing thats rather usual among gel fans is the picking process. When the color begins to raise, you may be attracted to remove it, almost like you would a scab. As peeling and raising begin, water can seep right into the nail, says Jenna. This can nurture bacteria and also perhaps trigger fungi. Once the peeling phase begins, its hard not to choose at your gloss. If you rip it off, youre possibly taking some layers of your nail off with it. This kind of damage can take control of 6 months to fix. Dr. Adigun includes: In one research, nail plate density was determined both before and after just one gel manicure as well as thinning was observed. Its unclear precisely which component created the thinning, yet one or more factors in the gel procedure are to blame.
When used and gotten rid of appropriately, how to strengthen nails after gel are secure to wear on an ongoing basis, adds Rita. Gels can certainly damage the nails if they are peeled off or pried off the nail, which can strip layers of the natural nail, or if the nail if over buffed before the gel application.
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Apply Gel Base Coat And Top Coat The Second Time
You do not have to remove the old gel polish.
After a two-week time or so, you will have a growth area near the cuticles. To apply gel base coat and topcoat to cover this new growth, follow these simple steps:
Wash hands and nails with water and soap.
You can repeat this process every two weeks, two to three times if it still looks good.
