How to Care for Your Nails in Between Shellac Visits

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Brittle nails, begone.

Shellac manicures and gel nails are great but if you're a fan of a professional mani, you're probably more than familiar with the less-than-desirable side effects that can come along with a salon manicure – especially if the proper removal techniques aren't followed.

From brittleness and breakage to soft peeling nails, if you don't show you nails enough TLC between salon visits, you could risk harming your natural nail.

Luckily, there are easy ways to avoid this. We asked celebrity nail expert Jenni Draper for her best tips for caring for your nails in between salon visits.

'Use cuticle oil at least once a day, preferable twice and if possible – more,' suggests Draper. Cuticle oil helps to hydrate both the skin and nails, preventing dryness and in turn warding off splitting, chipping and peeling. 'Massaging an oil into the cuticles also helps to stimulate the area which encourages nail growth and strength. I like using Dadi’ oil daily to keep nails moisturised and hydrated.'

This might seem like a strange suggestion, but it actually works. 'Apply a generous amount of moisturiser [or hand cream] and cuticle oil and then pop a pair of cotton gloves on before you go to sleep,' suggests Draper. The cotton gloves will warm the lotion and help the skin to penetrate the moisture more effectively. 'This is also a good tip when washing up', Draper continues. 'Apply your creams, pop your washing up gloves on and the hot water will warm the creams creating the same heated hand treatment effect.'

Supplements are great for strengthening your hair, skin and nails – so they are a great option for keeping your nails in tip-top shape, if you're a regular gel wearer. 'I would suggest taking a good multivitamin such as Perfectil Plus Nails to benefit the health of your nails,' advises Draper.

'It is a good idea to take the approach that everything starts from a healthy balanced diet, which in today's busy modern lifestyle can be tricky. A good multivitamin containing biotin, magnesium, vitamin A and zinc are great for nail health, strengthening your nails from within.'

While supplements can help boost your nail health from the inside, a great nail strengthener can help protect your nails from the outside. 'The Morgan Taylor Daily Elixir Keratin Nail Treatment is a great product to help create a healthy strong nail thanks to the 20% active ingredients and hydrolyzed keratin peptides.'

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