Nails at home - if you have soft/ bendy nails?

[JoanDarc]

I have never had success with nail polish lasting more than a day without chipping. I’ve recently been getting gel done in the salon, I like having my nails done but hate the inflexibility of not being able to remove myself as well as the damage caused.
If you do your nails at home (non gel) and have good success with it lasting a few days can you share the secret of your success? What brand do you use?
I keep my nails shortish but they are quite soft which I think is part of the problem.

Rimmel or Barry M lasts me 3 or 4 days. I use sally hansen base & top coat. A hardening base coat helps mine.
This is day 3 with no top coat and the ends are starting to fade. The polish is Rimmel.
I like the longevity of gel but it’s a pain to get off and I like being able to do my own colours frequently.

I have soft bendy nails and do both gel and normal polish at home. I use OPI nail envy strengthener both in between manicures and as a base coat when I'm using normal polish. It's brilliant for making my nails less bendy

Thanks both, I’ll get something like the nail envy to use as a base coat.

I find Essie or Opi gives me up to 5 days if I'm relatively careful. I might have a look at the nail envy though too