5 Natural Ways To Get Healthy Nails

Well, if you do not have time to go for a salon nail care, you can Do It Yourself (DIY) at home with these quick and simple tips.

* Remove old lacquer using nail-polish remover and a paper towel or a cotton pad (both offer more friction than a tissue and won’t shred the way cotton balls can). Always use a non-acetone polish remover, which is less drying than regular formulas.

* For better shape control, file your nails while they’re dry. Overly abrasive files, including metal ones, will promote peeling, so always choose a fine-grade emery board. The best technique: Choose a direction and stick with it using smooth strokes. Don’t saw back and forth a sure way to break the nail.

* Soften nails and cuticles in a bowl of warm water mixed with cuticle oil, olive oil or body lotion. After a 10-minute soak, dry off and apply cuticle cream or lotion. Gently ease cuticles back by making tiny circles against the cuticle with an orangewood stick (a thin wooden stick with a slant-edge tip at both ends, available in drugstores) wrapped in cotton.

* Wash away oil or lotion with soap and water, and dry nails thoroughly. Re-rubbing them with polish remover (as they do at salons) shouldn’t be necessary and can actually over-dry nails.

* Apply a base coat. Many women skip it, but shouldn’t. Basecoat holds polish in place so it lasts longer. It also prevents dark lacquers from tinting your nails.