Nail tip of the Day #20 : How to remove cuticles correctly?

I guess most of us do not know what is a cuticle

So this is a close picture of a cuticle.

So here is the correct way to remove them
1. Wash them with warm water and soap and dry them well.
2. Apply cuticle softener/remover.
3. Use orange stick to push back the cuticle and ensure they are soft enough
4. Use a cuticle cutter to cut your cuticles very carefully. DO NOT over cut.
5. Apply moisterizer.

P.S. for the pushing back of the cuticles, try to use orange stick instead of metal sticks cause it is actually better :)

This is my #20 nail tip! Do check out the other nail tips.
Nail tips will be temporary stopped till further notice.
I'll be sourcing for more tips for all of you in the mean time:)

Thanks for dropping by :)

Nail tip of the Day #19 : How to prevent nails from being broken?

Many people tell me and think that its really difficult to keep long nails. But actually it is not.
Its just that we take our nails for granted.

Many of us use our nails as pliers to open objects like metal or even fight against other stronger objects, definitely your nails will break. We also drown them in water, dishwater and harsh chemicals. These are one of the few main reasons that cause nails to break easily. Everything that changes from a dry climate to a constant immersion of hot water can cause nails to peel, split and crak.

So, a few preventions are
1. Wear rubber gloves when washing dishes
2. Don't let solvents like paint thinner and overn cleaner have contact with your nails
3. Avoid long tub baths. Water will weaken the nails
4. Apply lanolin or jojoba lotions to the nails before and after exposure to water
5. Do not use ur nails to pry or push any more than necessary
6. Rounded nails are said to be more difficult to 'break' than other shapes. Check post here.
7. Use nail polish remover not more than once a week
8. Avoid nail polish removers with acetone and remove nail polish at most once a week.
9. Use a glass file or an emery board instead of a metal nail file.

However, there are some people who have health problems thus resulting in the brittle nails.
So, the basis of hair and nail structure depends on this thing called 'silica'. A lack of silica will cause hair to be weak and dull and nails to be brittle and thin. You can go to a doctor to check out or speak to a staff about your problem.

Also, keep a healthy diet as poor diet leads to vitamin deficiency that also includes a lack of 'silica'.
Do take lots of greens ;)

Thanks for stopping by!

P.S.
As most of you who have constantly been reading my blog, you would have realised that i post nail tips and nail arts on alternate days. However, i've been really busy in school and work thus i'm really afraid i might not be able to keep this up especially when my exams are coming in like 4 weeks' time. So i'm really thinking if i should leave for a short hiatus or have lesser posts :(

What do you guys think!!

Nail tip of the Day #18: What to eat for my nails to grow faster?

What do I eat to make my nails grow faster?

1.  Most important is a healthy diet. Enough sleep, enough fruits, vegetables and adequate food is a good start.
2. Water. Drink lots of water to prevent dehydration.
3. Eat Gelatin. Gelatin is a form of protein that will enhance growth speed for both your hair and fingernails.
4. Try eating vitamins. Unless instructed otherwise by your doctor, increase your daily doses of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, calcium, folic acid, protein, Vitamin B12, and zinc.
5. Eat lots of protein like chicken, fish.
6. Eat calcium too. Like milk, cheese, etc.
7. Try Garlic as well.

I hope these tips help!
Thanks for reading

Nail tip of the day #17: Nail Growth

I guess everybody would love to have long nails, so here are a few physical tips whereby you can improve your nail growth!

1. Eat healthily. Diet is the most important factor and it can determine your nails being healthy or not. My next entry will be on food that will make nails grow faster.
2. DO NOT bite your nails or use them to open stuff. Don't be stupid, it will definitely break.
3. Have manicure/pedicure at least once a month to look after your nails well. For me, i do them every fortnight.
4. Practice proper cleaning and moisterizing to your nails daily. Like washing it with mild soap and rejuvenate with salt in boiled water!
5. Try not to keep your nails wet for a long time as it will weaken over time.
6. Remove cuticles after soaking your fingers in salt in soapy salt water.
7. Shape your nail well. I recommend the square tips. Feel free to refer here.
8. Do not constantly apply polish. Always leave it bare for a day or to for them to rest. For me, i'll always let it rest for at least a day.
9. Discolouration is one of the most important things that will make your nails brittle, so important to ensure that your nails are well taken care of. Prevention is better than solutions. Check out here to how to remove yellow stained nails!

I hope all this tips helps!
Thanks for stopping by :)
Do check out my next entry which will be food that make your nails grow faster!

Nail tip of the Day #16: Finger Nail Facts

Did you know that finger nails grows approximately one-eighth of a inch every month?
Here are just some fingernail facts that not many people will know.

* The longer the finger, the faster the fingernail grows.
* Nails grow faster in warm climates and fastest in the summer.
* Nails grow 20 percent faster when a body is fighting off the flu.
* Extreme dieting slows nail growth.
* The nail on the pinkie grows the slowest, followed by the thumbnail.
* Fingernails grow twice as fast as toenails.
* Men's nails grow faster than women's.
* Nails grow fastest between the ages of 10 and 14.

Thats it for today!
Hope you guys enjoy the tip!

Nail tip of the Day #15: How to paint nail polish correctly?

I've been thinking that maybe some people have different methods of painting nail polishes on their nail and for me i'll start from one side to the other and ensure that polish isn't too thick.
I found this online and it seems really cool and i think we can try it too.
Its just step by step how to apply polishes correctly.

You can click to enlarge it!!
And I think its a good method too.
Or you can try from one side to another.

What do you guys think?

Nail tip of the Day #14: I always paint everywhere on my fingers.

I guess some people aren't good painters and so they usually paint everywhere on their nails and even on their skin. And sometimes the polish on the skin are really difficult to get rid. So i have a few solutions for you.

1. Practice makes perfect. Keep painting and training and you can do better.
2. After your nails have dried from painting, use a cotton bud dipped in nail polish remover and gently rub off the excess.
3. Use tape to paint (troublesome).
4. When painting, use a cuticle stick to get rid of the excess before the polishes dries.
5. Paint your nails at night, at least an hour before bed time. And when you shower the next morning, the skin around your nails will soften and excess polish would be easy to get rid with a soft towel. Alternatively, you can soak your hands in warm water and just rub the excess nail polishes around your cuticle off.

Thanks for reading folks!

Nail tip of the Day #13: How to make nail polish thicker?

I guess some of us might get this proble, which is when your nail polish becomes to thin or watery.
I have a few solutions for you.

1. Leave the bottle open and put it in a well ventilated area for 10-15 mins depending on what thickness you plan to achieve. Then close the bottle and roll between your hands until you get your desired consistency.
2. Try putting it in the fridge for about 1-2 days and see how it turns out. Also depends on your nail polish*
3. When the polish is older, it will be thicker.
4. Buy the brand which suits you (thick).
5. Apply a few more layers since its thin, but ensure that the layers are dried up first to prevent blobs from forming.

Thanks for reading.
I hope these helps!
P.s. I'll be adding links to my blog. So those who own nail blogs feel free to email me so we can exchange links :)

Nail tip of the Day #12: How to get rid of yellow stained nails from polish?

I guess some of us might have gotten this problem which is to get yellow stained nails after using polishes frequently.
I have a solution for everyone to make this problem go away.
Yellow nails are always really ugly and so, these are a few methods which can help!

Preventions:
1. Always use a proper base coat or use a base coat to prevent discolouration.
2. Prevent putting nails polishes that frequently, always allow breaks in between painting nails.
3. Buff your nails to remove any yellow stains on surface of your nails.
4. Do not smoke.

Solutions:
1. Whitening toothpaste is the trick. Put toothpaste on an old toothbrush and brush them 2-3 times until the stains fade away.
2. Mix lime juice and sugar to make a scrub and scrub them on your yellow nails.
3. Soak yellow nails in 1 tablespoon of lemon and  warm water for about 15 mins and cut a slice of lemon and rub them on your nails or apply 3% hydrogen peroxide over and under your nails.
4. Mix 3 table spoon of baking soda with 1 tablespoon of 3% hydrogen peroxide in a small bowl. Use an old toothbrush to put the mixture into your nails. Massage the mixture and allow them to penetrate into your nails for 5-10mins. Cleanse with water after that. Repeat it twice daily till stains are gone.

I hope this tips helps!
Thanks for reading!

Nail tip of the Day #11: Roll, don't shake your polishes.

Many people shake their polishes before they start to use them. But actually, it is a WRONG method.
DO NOT shake your polishes before you use them as it will result in air bubbles.
Always remember to ROLL your polishes before you use with your 2 hands.
This will allow the solvents to be mixed evenly.

You can even add thinner after that if it is too thick.
Check out more nail tip of the day at the tag below.
Thanks for reading :)

Nail tip of the Day #10: How to make polish last longer?

How long does your nails last before they chip off?

I have a few ways where you can keep your polish last longer.
1. Apply topcoat all the way to the tips of the nails. Apply topcoat every 2-3 days to ensure no chipping. Choose a good top coat like for instance, my favourite: OPI, SV, etc.
2. To make your polish last longer just dip the newly painted nails in a bowl of chilled water for few seconds and leave them to dry and you can paint top coat twice :)
3. Wear gloves (Ok im kidding)
4. Gelish is a good option cause it lasts up to 2 weeks i heard. I personally haven't tried it yet.
5. Use a gel top coat.

Thanks for dropping by and reading.
Do follow for more exciting entries!

Nail tip of the Day #9: Nail polish remover and thinner?

Whats the difference between nail polish remover and nail polish thinner?
Are they the same?

The answer is no.
The chemicals that consist in the nail polish remover will break up the bonds in the nail polish and ruin them and thus removing your nail polish from your fingernails.

Nail polish thinner has different concoction and is designed to loosen and to be used for bringing the right consistency in thickened nail polish. They not only restore the right consistency to the nail polish but also prolonge the lifespan of the nail polish!

I hope this tips helps.
Thanks for reading

Nail tip of the Day #8: What to do when you smudge your nail polish while painting?

Oh no, i smudged my nail polish before it even drying!!
Yes i know this happens really often especially to people who are not particularly patient and usually have many errands to do with their hands.

I have a good solution.
1) Never paint another coat on top of it and leave blops, it will only be thicker and even tougher to dry.
2) You can dip the smudged nail polish into a nail polish remover to smooth the surface. Wait for it to dry, and repaint another coat.
3) You can also erase and repaint (Which i think is the best solution).
4) You can also lick your nail polish. Yes, saliva can help your nail polish, but i don't really like the taste of it, so i really highly recommend other methods :)

I hope all of this tips help!
Thank you for reading!

Nail tip of the day #7: How to remove glitter polish easily?

Yes, i know all of us hate rubbing nail polish off our fingers.
Well, for one thing i really hate it. So i'm gonna teach you a tutorial on how to remove difficult polish that doesn't want to go away on your nails like glitter, dark coloured in simple methods.

These are the things that you will need.

You will need nail polish remover, a pair of scissors, cotton bud and aluminium foil.

1. Cut the cotton bud into small pieces and wet them with nail polish remover.

2. Put them on your finger like the picture above.  

3. Wrap the cotton bud soaked with nail polish remover on your finger with aluminium foil. Leave it for around 5 mins.

Okay, this usually works for me for almost every nail color and every brand and every glitter.
I hate rubbing and it wastes alot of time. So this is my favourite method of removing tough nail polish.
After which, it usually removes of up to 90% of the polish after 10 mins. Then just rub a little more and your nails would be very clean. Wash with water afterwards.

This would help many as i know sometimes glitter are a HUGE problem to us and this would definitely help remove polish much easier and saves lots of time as well!

I hope you liked my tutorial and do follow me.
Thanks for reading!

Nail tip of the Day #6: What shape suits your nails best?

Ever wondered what shapes would suit your nails best?

There are many kinds of tips for nails, but i'll just go through 2, a rounded tip or a square tip.

1. Rounded tip makes the fingers look elongated and slimmer. It suits people who have wider fingers and definitely it would make your fingers look more 'classy'.

2. Square tips are really common and are actually more suitable for people who do quite a number of chores with your hands. Like typing, writing, or even gardening.. Most people suit square tips and square tips are usually prettier with longer nails!

Definitely, try different styles to see which suits you best and stick with it :)
But my advice would be : Square tip.
Because its fashionable and also easy for everything.
Who doesn't use their hands to do work?

Thanks for reading! Do follow :)

Nail tip of the Day #5: How to prevent polishes from drying up?

Most nail polishes should have a shelf life of 1 year.
So to prevent polishes from drying up and getting thickened polish...

You must...
1) Keep it in a dry and cool place. The best place to keep your polishes are in the refridgerator.
2) When storing your polishes, put it in a upright manner to prevent the solvents from separating.
3) Ensure that your bottle is tightly closed. This is a important step to prevent the polish from drying up.

You can also
1) Put thinner(a few drops) to your nail polish.
2) NEVER PUT NAIL POLISH REMOVER to your nail polish as nail polish remover contains water and is not compatible with nail polish.

I hope this tip helps:)

Nail Tip of the Day #4 : Real or Fake OPI polishes?

There are many people saying this OPI is fake and that OPI is real but seriously, i find it very hard to differentiate cause many are saying many different things. So these are just my point of view. :)

1. Ensure that the font of your OPI NAIL LACQUER has the right font and is it aligned properly and not skewed.

2. The real OPI brush has an embossed logo on the top of the brush. You can try using tissue to dap it so as to see it.

3. The original OPI has the same serial code engraved on the top of the bottle, bottom of the bottle, painted in black and same code number on the sticker at the bottom of the polish bottle.

4. There is a peel off sign, and when you peel it, there is a list of ingredients. And on the other part of the sticker, the color name and code is printed. And you can never stick back the 'peel here' sticker.

5. There are 2 steel balls inside the polish bottle. More/less = fake!

6. The inside of the cap must be jagged, not smooth.

7. Many are saying that the warning symbols at the back must be 4 otherwise it is fake. But OPI has addressed the issue: "The number of symbols on bottles may vary due to regulation changes and does not mean that a bottle is fake if there are only 3 labels".

8. There is always the address of the OPI distribution center on the back of the nail polish. This address will be in the Netherlands.

I've found them for many sources online.
Pictures from Here and my own.
Hope this helps :)

Nail tip of the Day #3: Brittle Nails

Do you have brittle/soft nails?

I have a cure for you.
You can...

1. You can apply a strengthener like the one from OPI envy series.
2. You can try a DIY method.
- To harden soft nails, soak them in warm olive oil for about 20 minutes on every alternative days. You should be able to see results within 2-3 weeks.
3. Paint polish over !

Nail Tip of the Day #2 : Onychophagia

The habit of those who nibble their nails and cuticles, till the extend of even bleeding is called onychophagia! To prevent biting of nails, put a transparent base/top coat and it will prevent biting due to its taste and smell.
If you have this habit, do try to change! I guess everyone loves pretty nails, no?

Nail Tip of the Day #1 : Buffing/filing of nails

I'll be posting a daily nail tip for everyone.

Today's nail tip of the day:

File your nails regularly. When you file or buff your nails, only buff them in 1 direction, so as to prevent splitting of nail. The best time to file your nails is when your nail polish is on, so as to prevent splitting.