topic Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails in Beauty

Advice please: growing out natural nails

homedecor1 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 01:36:53 GMT

I removed my pink & white gels for almost 2 months now, replaced with shellac nail polish. This shellac peels off & my nails are a total mess. Suggestions please on what or how to get my nails back to good condition. Thank you!

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Dorothy11 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 01:50:19 GMT

Skip the polish for a while and rub coconut oil into them several times a day.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

I am still oxox — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 01:52:56 GMT

Good luck I have never been successful, I always go back to wraps

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

sonechko — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 02:00:08 GMT

You may get good nail buffer and gently buff your nails and cuticles once in a while. Treat cuticles with nice essential oil, tea tree, argan oil, maybe there will be some other useful suggestions for good oil. Even without anything else, your nails will look clean and healthy again soon. Like young girl's nails. Good thing about nails is they do grow out fast!

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Rachb — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 02:49:48 GMT

I was a die-hard acrylic wearer for 10 years because I would compulsively bite and pick at my nails without the acrylic. After a really bad refill, I had to take them off, but the manicurist I went to didn't have time to put on a new set. So she gave me a regular manicure and scheduled me the following week for a new set. That was 4 years and I'm still sporting my natural nails. Here are my secrets for getting them healthy and keeping them healthy: -Keep your nails relatively short. Mine are pretty flush with the tip of my finger. 2 coats of Citra Nail Strengthener, formula #2 or Duri Rejuvacote. 2 coats of nail polish, preferably Essie, OPI, or Zoya. 1 coat of deborah Lippmann addicted to speed or Seche Vite quick drying topcoat (not the best ingredients but it dries to a hard, strong finish super fast). CND Solar Oil - a little bit on each cuticle every night. If I feel I don't need the Citra, I use one coat of Zoya Anchor basecoat. I typically get 6-8 days chip free (and I cook/do dishes 4-5 times a week.). I get shellac/gel manis once in a while. They claim to be undamaging to nails. The polish itself might not be damaging but the removal process, and excessive buffing that they do to get it off both before and after soaking in acetone, is very rough on the nail. So I typicalky stick with Essie or OPI, and doing my own nails.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Still Raining — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 03:35:04 GMT

It took a while after I took off my nails and when I tried shellac I realized it can also cause damage.

All you can do is stop everything and let them grow out for a while. It is a nasty process to wait it out, but they will come back. An oil treatment a couple of times a day helps. No polish or remover which can be drying.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Kelseys Mimi — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 05:16:07 GMT

You know recently my nails were terrible, they were splitting, peeling and breaking, I told my husband I was ready to have gel nails applied, he knows how I hate the time and expense of these not to mention what they do to your natural nails. Bless his heart he talked to the lady who does our hair and she suggested biotin supplements. I was skeptical, but it has been two weeks and I am amazed! Not only are they growing faster, but the damage I had is gone! Give it a try!

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

homedecor1 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 05:24:22 GMT

Thank you I have no patience just like when I was growing my angle cut hair style -- yup called that hairdresser w/in 2 months cut it please! I'm going tomorrow for just a plain manicure and I hope I have the willpower (since they split, hurt, & just plain ugggggly hands) to not go back to gels!!! Thanks for the tips on products.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Kelseys Mimi — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 05:32:15 GMT

I am going to watch this thread, would love to know what you try and if it works for you. Really give the biotin a try, the ones my husband bought are fast dissolve and cherry flavored ymmmm. I guess it is like a form of vitamin B.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Kachina624 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 06:52:57 GMT

On 3/17/2015 Kelseys Mimi said: You know recently my nails were terrible, they were splitting, peeling and breaking, I told my husband I was ready to have gel nails applied, he knows how I hate the time and expense of these not to mention what they do to your natural nails. Bless his heart he talked to the lady who does our hair and she suggested biotin supplements. I was skeptical, but it has been two weeks and I am amazed! Not only are they growing faster, but the damage I had is gone! Give it a try!

With all due respect, you are dreaming if you think biotin has improved your nails in 2 weeks. There's no scientific proof it does anything in any length of time. if it did work! it would take several months to show improvement. I took massive doses of it for over a year, and it did absolutely nothing. Others have reported similar results.

Nails go to he// in a hand basket in the winter with the drying heat and cold. The best thing you can do is keep your nails well moisturized with some kind of oil or rich cuticle cream. Many people use a nail hardener. My favorite is Nailtiques Formula 2. I've tried others but they weren't so effective.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

sunnysw — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 07:41:04 GMT

There is a new nail treatment in the professional marketplace, i.e., manicurists, called IBX NAIL STRENGTHENER. You can go their website to see if there is a manicurist in your area that uses it. It goes on the natural nail & penetrates the nail to strengthen it. Good Luck!!

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

wonderfulworld — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 13:48:07 GMT

I went through the same thing. My nails were even lifting from the nail bed because of years of acrylics and silk wraps and gel. What worked beautifully for me was biotin ( I have taken it for 3 years now) but also nothing on my nails except oil or hand cream. Keep them short and no polish or anything on nails except for social occasions. It took about a year but 9 nails are perfect...one still has some lifting.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

pattypeep — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 14:18:41 GMT

I have used ""Nail Magic"" for 30 years and swear by it for healthy nails. Agree with the above poster ~ skip the colored nail polish for a while. It just draws attention to your nails. Keep the cuticles healthy.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

CelticCrafter — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 14:30:22 GMT

When I had the gel fill taken off for good, it took 6 months for the damage to my nails grow out.

I used Revlon Post Trauma Nail Treatment and kept them really short until the damage was gone.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Pook — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 14:34:51 GMT

After acrylic coatings on my nails for years, they were thin and awful but by using TIPS, they strengthened and looked good in about a month. I got a fungus infection on one nail and was told by my doctor that that nail would never grow in right but low and behold that one was restored using TIPS.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

cac140 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 14:47:30 GMT

On 3/17/2015 Kachina624 said:
On 3/17/2015 Kelseys Mimi said: You know recently my nails were terrible, they were splitting, peeling and breaking, I told my husband I was ready to have gel nails applied, he knows how I hate the time and expense of these not to mention what they do to your natural nails. Bless his heart he talked to the lady who does our hair and she suggested biotin supplements. I was skeptical, but it has been two weeks and I am amazed! Not only are they growing faster, but the damage I had is gone! Give it a try!

With all due respect, you are dreaming if you think biotin has improved your nails in 2 weeks. There's no scientific proof it does anything in any length of time. if it did work! it would take several months to show improvement. I took massive doses of it for over a year, and it did absolutely nothing. Others have reported similar results.

Nails go to he// in a hand basket in the winter with the drying heat and cold. The best thing you can do is keep your nails well moisturized with some kind of oil or rich cuticle cream. Many people use a nail hardener. My favorite is Nailtiques Formula 2. I've tried others but they weren't so effective.

Actually, she's not dreaming. I have had wonderful results taking a Biotin supplement. My nails dramatically improved in about three weeks time, are growing like crazy and look great. The proof is in the results which I also have had. Sorry it didn't work for you. It's a fantastic and inexpensive way to go for good nails.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Gerri S — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 15:10:03 GMT

Dear HomeDecor1,

After reading all the replies I almost didn't add mine, and then decided I should.

I have healthy nails but they never looked good enough for me......truth is I was lazy and the only way to get them all to look the same (at the same time) were acrylics. 10 years later, with no complaints about the appointments or the $$$, I had to have surgery on my thumb so I decided to have them removed (by the same nail tech that had been doing my nails). It was a shock to see what they looked like underneath, peeling and dull, not a pretty sight. I even photo'd my nails each week to see the progress I anticipated. I too came to this forum looking for help, and as always the ladies came through for me.

Home Decor1 I tried every product out there....and they all worked to some degree, some better than others, but what I learned was you need patience! I know you said it is difficult for you. It really does take about a year, be faithful in your treatment, keep them moisturized, creamed and polished with a good product. Keep them trimmed, they seem to grow faster if you clip them as the 'dry old nail' grows out. I ultimately had great results with QVC's ProFormula (their file is wonderful) and now use it all the time. There's no magic, just time and you will see that once again you will have the nails you love.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Andreatoo — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 16:06:27 GMT

Shawn was raving about Perfect Gel Coat Formula (I think that's the name) working well after years of acrylics last night. Has anyone tried it?

When I quit the acrylics I just let my nails breathe for a while with nothing on them.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

Brigitta — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 16:21:15 GMT

Well, I use Biotin and have for years. My nails are strong and grow fast. I wore silk wraps for years back in the 90's and wrecked my nails. I also always use OPI's soft and thin treatment for nails as a base coat and top coat. It works for me and I'm almost 74.

Re: Advice please: growing out natural nails

cantdrive55 — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 16:21:35 GMT

I swear by Qtica Natural Nail Growth stimulator (it also hardens and hydrates) and the Cuticle Repair Balm.