Hey guys,
Happy Thursday! Hope you’ve all had a good week so far and have a fun Friday tomorrow💃🏼
If you know me personally then you’ll know I had short, brittle and bitten nails (ew right?) for YEARS. It was a habit that I had since I was as a child and as I grew up it began to be caused more by stress and anxiety.
I HATED my nails, I used to be so embarrassed of them and hide them as much as I could. When I got to 15/16 I started to get my nails done. I got acrylic nails as that was a quick fix to my solution, so I thought… Yes acrylic nails do help your nails to grow underneath however, it weakens your nails and they’re very likely to break. This was a never ending cycle for me.
I would get acrylics, they’d fall off, I’d get excited about how long my nails had got, they’d break and then I’d bite them off. And repeat…. There was one point when I thought enough was enough and I was sick of wasting money on acrylics that just damaged my nails.
I then moved onto Shellac which at first was great, my nails were growing more, it looked nicer as it was actually my nail BUT the more I got it done the weaker my nails got. They had gotten really nice and long until the shellac started to peel off and off peeled my nail with it!
This caused me to start biting them again. At this point I had given up on the idea of growing them until me and some of my best friends decided we would motivate each other to grow our nails through making a group chat to share our process. This has really motivated me to grow them and worked!
This is what my nails looked like before….
And this is what they look like now..
They are far from perfect and are very plain at the moment but I’m super proud of myself.
(Sorry for the crap picture quality, these pictures were only initially intended for the group chat)
Here are the stages of the nail growth
How did I do it?
First thing I did was paint them with a nude coloured nail varnish to make them look a bit nicer.
Then I went to my local drugstore (boots) to look for nail varnishes to help nails grow and viola I found one!
It’s by Sally Hansen and is called Maximum Growth, it promises to give visible results in 1 week! It wasn’t lying! I saw a difference in TWO days. (2nd picture from the right).
The third picture in the collage is a week after using the nail polish. (It really does work)
Directions for use: apply 1 coat to bare nails every other day or as a base for a nail varnish.
It cost me £5.99 and worked better than I ever expected it too! I would highly recommend this if you’re trying to grow your nails.
Self care is important too
Obviously there are other factors that can affect the health of your nails, a big one is stress. This had a huge impact on my nails as in my old job I was under so much stress and pressure it was affecting my nails, hair and skin!
Within a week of leaving and becoming stress free I noticed a difference!
So if you have weak/short nails and work in a fast paced/stressful work place, I’m not saying you have to leave but relieving some of the stress will definitely help and not just for your nails. You can release stress by meditation, exercise, reading, being creative …etc. To find more ways of relieving stress check out this website https://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/blissing-out-10-relaxation-techniques-reduce-stress-spotHow to care for your nails
I’m no expert believe me but I’ll tell you what I do that helps my nails to stay strong.
When my nails are bare I use this buffing block which has four different textured sides; one that files, one that buffs, one that smoothes and one that makes it shine. I bought mine from boots but a lot of drugstores and supermarkets sell them!
After that I rub hand cream onto my hands and nails.
Before applying nail varnish I use the Sally Hanson nail varnish as a base then apply the nail polish.
I try and take nail varnish off after 4 or 5 days and give my nails 2-3 days to breathe in between. (If you constantly wear nail polish your nail gets deoxygenated and goes orange)
And that’s all! Let’s hope I keep this routine up and my nails stay long!
I hope this post has helped you in some way, please leave a comment on any tips you have on growing your nails!
Thank you for reading.
Love, Jess x
My nails definitely look like your before picture, I think I’ll be giving this a try! Great post thank you for sharing ❤
LikeLiked by 2 people
You honestly should! It’s amazing how quick mine grew, thank you for reading ❤️
LikeLike
I’m terrible the minute I’m stressed or anxious that’s it I attack my nails. Similarly to you I tried acrylics but when they came off I would bite them!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did the same thing but I find pretty nail varnish helps to deter me from biting them!
LikeLike
I need this in my life!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
It works miracles honestly!
LikeLike
Ok wow I need to try that ASAP!! I really struggle trying to grow my nails!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did too for ages and I promise you it works!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
My nails always split too and I hate it! I used to bite my nails but now I only seem to bite them when I’m nervous or stressed.
I also use the Vaseline intensive care nail and hand cream! I find that helps. I’ll have to give that nail varnish a try 🙂 x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oooh thanks I’ll give that hand cream a try!x
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve never had any problems with my nails but I don’t ever really leave my nails bare, I never even thought it would have a bad effect 😮
Great post btw! X
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah once my nails went orange and I freaked. Thank you! X
LikeLike
I have been biting my nails for as long as I can remember but I would love to stop – will definitely try that Sally Hansen thing a go – it looks amazing!xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
It really is!xx
LikeLike
I used to bite my nails too! When I got braces it actually made me quit! However, my nails are super brittle and break very easily. I might have to try that stuff out!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It works miracles honestly! X
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay thanks for the help! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Anytime x
LikeLike
Congratulations on growing your nails out! They look amazing and they’re going to look so pretty painted!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks 🙂
LikeLike
Love this Jess. I have had Nexgen nails on for years and recently just taken them off. I don’t tend to bite my nails but I definitely bite the skin around them 🙈
LikeLiked by 1 person
What are nexgen nails? Never heard of them before!
LikeLiked by 1 person
They’re like acrylics ☺️☺️ but instead of using a brush to apply you dip them in the powder
LikeLike
Ohhh okay!
LikeLiked by 1 person
your nails look so beautiful and long! Wow thanks for sharing your tips with us xx -M
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! Xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is so useful! Thank you for the tips! X
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you x
LikeLike
Great post! however, I won’t need your tips because I’m blessed with very strong nails. They rarely break and I lways have to use all my strength to cut them. My secret? I don’t have the time or patience to polish my nails even though I really like artwork on my nails.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I always bite my nails too! This looks so good though thanks for sharing it! X
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for reading x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow what a huge difference! I love Sally Hansen x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Same it works miracles!x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Whoah I didn’t even know products like this existed – thank you for sharing! x
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome! Thank you for reading x
LikeLike
Gah, a fellow nail biter! My poor nails were the same as yours, I found something as simple as just wearing nail varnish when I’m stressed luckily stopped me biting my nails… but whenever I forget to redo my nails I still bite them all off ☹️🤷🏽♀️ Xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did that too for a long time but when they were long I was less likely to bite them which is why this nail varnish is so good xx
LikeLike
My nails are awful as im constantly using false nails, I’ve been wondering how I can get out of the habit and grown my own nails they just have no strength in them at the minute. Great post I’ll definitely look into getting some nail strenghtener.xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
You defo should it saved mine and thank you xx
LikeLike
Great progress!!! Your before pic is what my nails look like now lol.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you!
LikeLike
I’m someone who’s nails grow SUPER fast, although I do bite on them (not chew them too death) but I do bite because of my anxiety, and if they ever get short because of that I will definitely try this out! Thankyou lovely xx
http://www.beautynbrushes.co.uk
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for reading xx
LikeLike
Great post! I couldn’t live without Shellac on mine, then they grow & stay strong x
LikeLiked by 1 person
That worked for mine but then it completely broke them haha x
LikeLike
So helpful! I’ve been trying to take better care of my nails and this post certainly helps!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad it’s helped x
LikeLiked by 1 person