Project Nail: Week 1 Results

One week has passed since I made my first project nail post. This week has been quite difficult. Everywhere I go, I see nailpolish. I even went out and bought a whole bunch of colors I had been meaning to get. But I stuck in there and I avoided the polish for an entire week. Just one more week!

As you can see, there is already quite a change in my nails. The polish ban has lifted most of the yellow tones from my nail. I used a cuticle remover and a cuticle balm to care for my cuticles. I don't see much change in my cuticles, but that will come with time.

I've also used a Trind nail balm to regain the moisture balance in my nails. They look much better, don't they?

I can't wait to wear nail polish again, they are my essential fashion accessory.

Project Nail: Getting them back to health

Judging by the vast amount of nail polish posts on this blog, you probably already know that I love nail polish. I think nails are a really important part of your overall appearance. The right color can just pull a look together. But, to be honest, I'm quite careless when it comes to my nails.

As you can see in the header, and in the picture below. My nails are a horrible, short, yellow, unhealthy mess at the moment. I wear polishes too often, I don't use a quality nail polish remover and I don't give them time to breath. And the worst part, I don't use a quality base coat. All important steps in maintaining healthy and strong nails.

Then how do you get those longs nails in your nail polish posts, you might ask. The answer... falsies. As you can see on the pictures above there are a few really damaged nails. On those nails I wore false nails for the last two to three weeks. Whenever a nail would tear or break and I'd be unable to fix it, I would stick a falsie on and call it a day. While that left me with long and pretty looking nails (when covered in polish) it certainly didn't benefit the health of my nails. So yesterday I took all the falsies off, cut all my unhealthy brittle nails short and started project nail. I'm going to work hard and try my best to get my nails to their full natural looking health.

And that requires a couple of steps.

Step 1: I'm not going to wear any polish for the next two weeks. Starting yesterday. So until saturday the 31st of March, my nails will be free of color.

Step 2: I'm going to remove the yellow stains by creating a paste of baking soda and water. Baking soda is a natural whitening product. You can also use it on teeth, like I mentioned HERE. Just apply the paste to your nails and let it sit for thirty minutes. This should effectively remove the yellow stains from your nails.

Step 3: Completely quit smoking. Even though I only smoke about tree cigarettes a month, it's incredibly bad for and it stains your hands, nails and teeth. Not to mention the dangers for your body and skin.

Step 4: Get regular manicures. The salons in my town are overpriced and not that good, but I'm sure a little research and a short trainride will get me to a place where they take care of my nails and leave them looking pretty and healthy.

Step 5: Cuticle care. I don't really take care of my cuticles. I will start maintaining and moisturizing them regularly.

Step 6: Invest in a good base coat. I'm going to do some research (beauty blogs are such a wonderful thing) and find myself a proper basecoat. Any suggestions?

Step 7: Have at least one polish free day a week. To let my nails breath and maintain their natural color and shine.

I think these steps will aid me in achieving wonderful looking healthy nails. I personally can't wait to see the results of my effort. What about you? Maybe you have some more tips for me? Let me know!