Has anyone given up on nail polish?

[citygirl1961]

Hi

After having a break from wearing nail polish on my fingernails I decided to start wearing it again, just a nude colour with a nail conditioner underneath, and my nails have started splitting and flaking again (the reason why I stopped using it before).

I always paint my toe nails just in the summer as I don't like to see bare toe nails with sandals. I can cope with fingernails with no polish on them to a degree but I do like to wear a nice nude colour.

Is it time to just give up on painting my fingernails?

I find it near on impossible to keep painted fingernails looking good.
I go for clean mid length nails and a nice glossy nail strengthener.

I never wear nail varnish and never have except for a special occasion. Eg a black tie event. In summer I usually paint my tie nails once and then can't be arsed. I think nails look nicer natural. Personal choice obviously and if you like it, paint them

I've given up. I love painted nails but they get ruined and chipped within a day or two with doing things around the house and for the kids. So I don't bother anymore with my hands

Like you OP, I keep my toenails neat and painted in the summer, but only bother on my hands (gel polish) when going away on holiday (it has a chance of lasting for a little while then). Painting my fingernails is a waste of time the rest of the year as it often chips on the first day. Gel lasts longer, but ruins my nails, so keeping it just for holiday seems sensible.

I don’t like the feel of it. I wear it for special occasions but that’s it

I had given up but gone back to polish and got a gel polish booked in next week.
I bought a new candy pink colour so gone back to it. You’re right about splitting and peeling though, they don’t like being covered up!

I've pretty much given up, normal nail polish chips very quickly on me and it's really not worth the effort. I do like getting a gel polish but it absolutely trashes my nails so I've resigned myself to saving that for very special occasions. I do my toes in the summer though.

Buffed finger nails only.
I do my toes though. I like painted toes.

I've got a allergy to it and also to gel nails so forced to give up painting my finger nails. The beauty of a gorgeously manicured nail is somewhat ruined by all the skin peeling off and my nail beds weeping. I was initially really upset by it once I first made the link. I was okay with gel nails for a few applications and then that triggered a new and more painful reaction. My toe nails don't react so I've basically kept one bottle of a nice metallic deep red for pedicures. I try to keep my hands nicely moisturised and nails shaped. Then I do gardening and ruin it all. I loved painting my nails in my teens and 20s and still dream of the perfect dark metallic blue.

Do you use hand sanitiser a lot?
It's wrecked my nails, causing them to flake.
I'm still wearing gel polish, but moisturising and using nail oil too.

For me, some things are sacred! Fingers and toes.

Ringfinger on hands often a different colour. 🌈

I don't own a single nail polish! I am considering pedicures this summer though, so will get a subtle colour on my toes I think. I don't like it on my fingernails at all. I do have a buffer thingy. And I do wear sandals with buffed toenails too sometimes . I haven't been runout of town for it... yet

Used to collect Chanel nail varnishes. Such beautiful colours (terrible staying power though). But could never be bothered with maintenance of painted nails - fingers or toes.

I buff finger and toe nails regularly, apply cuticle oil and separate creams to both hands and feet every night and use a regime of Footner/foot file every so often too.

Think they look quite nice with this regime, despite no nail varnish.

What I find interesting about nail polish from Chanel and YSL is that, although it doesn’t have the staying power of some of the newer/cheaper brands, it remains fabulously useable for decades. I have several colours of both that are used on my toes (where it lasts ages) that I have been using for 35-years! It is still as fluid in the bottle, with the same intensity of colour as when I first bought it 🙂

I loved nail polish in my younger years and would always have nails in blue, teal, grey - anything other than red or pink. They were pretty bomb proof too and a home manicure would last a week.

Over the last couple of years I've found that getting two days out of a manicure is good going and then my nails split and break for months afterwards. I've reluctantly given up apart from special occasions and get my colour fix on my toe nails.

I like gel toes and bare fingernails

No, I don’t ‘get’ nail polish. I don’t get why people do it. It looks like of weird to me.

Nail polish is terrible for the nails so once I realised that, I stopped using it in my early twenties.

Personally, I hate nail polish and think it looks awful. Nevermind how toxic it is and damaging to your nails, and I wouldn't want those chemicals leaching into my body day in, day out. There's enough chemical fuckery we have to deal with, I don't want to add more.

I quite like the look of nail polish on short nails - not all the time but every now and again. I hate the smell of it though. Even days after applying it I can't put my hands anywhere near my face.

I used to do my nails every say but age, and Psoriasis, have made them ridged, dimpled and warped. I think a glossy top coat makes them look as good as they possibly can. If I paint them a nice colour, the polish wears away on the free edge very quickly, then chips, and it looks awful.

I do like a bright colour, something like turquoise or coral, on my toes, though.

I wouldn’t ever get Gel again - so damaging - but may get Shellac if going on holiday (hah!).

The only time I’ve had ‘naked’ nails since about 13 is when in hospital for scheduled procedures - f* knows how those Reality ‘stars’ (particularly in the USA) go in for their surgeries with full face of make-up, false eyelashes plus Acrylics.

BTW - I would NEVER do Acrylics!

I can do my own French Manicure (ooh, never thought before but does sound rude . . .)

shellac is gel

No I love nail polish and will never give it up!

I love the look of painted nails but never liked the "suffocated" feel.

The idea of sealing a body part in plastic feels a bit odd to me currently. I think I'm done with if, but I haven't given away my nail polish yet.