To just want nice nails for once in my life ?!

[NormaNameChange]

Long story short. Persistent nail biter my entire life , despite endless encouragement to stop. Spent most of my 20s and 30s wearing false nails as I was so ashamed of how scruffy my bitten nails looked. Reached the point where I could do them myself to save time and money.

Went on holiday in August - my one time a year I wear no bra, dont take my straightners with me (let the curly unruly mop do its own thing) and most importantly... dont wear nails! Well, they started growing and I made a resolution to stop biting them all together and I did. I should add I'm now over 40 so it was about time.

However, despite my best efforts, everytime they get a decent length they snap, flake, bend and generally end up looking shit again. I currently have six decent nails (broke one this morning changing the bed) the others look awful.

AIBU to ask for your luscious long nail secrets? What do you use, take?

Thank you in advance

Let them grow a little bit and get a shellac manicure. Very few people have nice nails that are long (and 100% Natural).

I don’t like acrylics but shellac is a nice compromise.

boujois , sorry if wrong spelling , do a pale pink almost white nail vanish made my nails grow for the fist time . I'm an out door person so no mean feat

Get clear shellac put on.

Shellac, definitely.

I find mine grow nicely when I eat properly, so a good amount of 'good' fats, lots of green vegetables and salads.

I also have a shellac manicure fairly regularly, making sure I take the polish off properly before I reapply.

Keep polish off for a few days and put moisturiser on them morning and night. I find my nails break, flake etc when they are too dry.

Stay clear from having gel polish put in them, as the top layer of your nails gets buffed/filed off for the gel to stick.

I was the same as you, but the last few months I have lovely nails! You need to invest the money and get a proper gel polish done. I have builder gel for strength, and at the moment two tips where I managed to break a couple. I pay £25 every 3-ish weeks, and it's worth every penny!

Thanks all! Going to research shellac and a decent moisturiser :)

Ive had biogels for the last 3 weeks, took them off yesterday and the are nice and long now.

Absolutelynothing do your nails have to be a certain length to get them done? Im quite embarassed by my short ones...theyre really bad but I do want to protect the nicer ones. Manicures are a mystery to me

Oil your cuticles, keep your nails short and neat and buff occasionally for shine.

Embrace the naked nail look for a bit, you’ve spent decades weakening them with the biting and the falsies so just let them heal. Maybe try those nail/hair vitamins as well, I know my nails are generally nice but round this time of year when I load up on the shitty food they start splitting!

Hi OP. Hope you don't mind me jumping on!

I have been having gel extensions for many years now and a couple of times had them taken off to try natural.

My nails always used to break off so would be interesting to know how I can get my natural nails back!

rather than pay for your nails boots / sainsburys sell Rimel super gel nail varnish & top coat
just as good as shellac & comes off with normal nail varnish remover , plus if it chips you can correct it yourself

A good multivitamin. Ime, good nails and hair are more affected by nutrition than anything else.

There’s a very cheap polish called Rimmel nail nurse - it’s either stronger bail or nail rescue I have - it has really improved my nails after pregnancy and breastfeeding destroyed them. Just sling a coat on every few days, very low maintenance.

I bit my nails for over 50 yrs but stopped 2 yrs ago.

You need to moisturise them and put products on - sally hansons hard as nails or something similar. And keep them a bit shorter whilst they grow stronger.

It can be done - here are mine before and after! They are my own nails with my own normal polish design. Gel & shellac are a bit harsh for new nails imo

Cross post with annette, rimmel polishes in general are brilliant.

Sorry to hijack your thread OP, but do you have any tips for stopping biting nails? It's one of my new years resolutions - as it is every year, but I never seem to make it past January!

A good nail tech won't buff or file your nails for shellac or a gel polish.
I would recommend a gel polish applied regularly to allow some length to grow on your natural nails.

Drinking milk is good for them if you like it. A zinc supplement. And a decent hand cream - ever noticed how amazing your nails are on holiday, when you're rubbing in suncream every day?!

But I think a lot of it is genetic. Some people are lucky, some people (like me) are more prone to weak, splitting nails. Gah!

Jammy - my friend broke a 30 year habit by having them manicured once a week. She said as soon as she caught sight of the bright red/pink etc, it reminded her not to bite. After a few weeks they looked so much better that she stopped wanting to bite. And hers were dreadful - so bitten down and bleeding they made even her feel queasy. Now they look great. Good luck!!

Sorry to hijack your thread OP, but do you have any tips for stopping biting nails? It's one of my new years resolutions - as it is every year, but I never seem to make it past January!

I know you weren't asking me but hey

Moisturise regularly, use a strengthening product, put varnish on even if it's just clear because they will look better instantly. Get a buffer and use a couple of times a week. And take a picture each week to record progress - you will be amazed at how quickly they grow and start to look good.

Good luck

Moisturiser EVERY TIME you wash your hands and after a shower. My favourite for my dry nails and cuticles is Aveda Hand Relief, but a jar of coconut oil in the bathroom goes a long way for not too much money (Holland & Barrett have a good deal at the moment). Rub the oil/cream into your nails and cuticles - and the backs of your hands too for good measure. I used to love L'Occitane 25% shea butter hand cream, but I prefer the smell of Aveda.

No more falsies, and try to avoid any chemicals (like acetone) for a full growth (2 months? 3?) so just keep them filed short and keep them moisturised.

Supplements don't really help.

You can paint them again when you have got a full regrowth.

MAJOR ex-biter here too, btw.

JammyGem long term biter here who quit! Best advise I can give you is pain them, even if they are currently REALLY short. You will notice the colour when you raise your hand to bite them and kind of jog your memory to not bite.

I find a small change like that helped massively as I would bite unconsciously when driving etc but the colour / texture of my nail made my brain go ‘woah this isn’t normal!’ Which would make me think about what I was doing.