Hello lovelies!
When I was a teenager, my mother used to tell me that my hands were one of the first things people looked at. This taught me very early the importance of taking care of my hands, feet and nails.
Unfortunately, my mother didn’t take enough time to teach me how to take care of my nails. I had to make my own research, with some trials and errors here and there. But this was very beneficial for me.
Because now, I can have my own manicure and pedicure at home. And I don’t have to spend lots of money at the nail salon because I can take care of myself.
If you have been in my situation, you must know that your case is not desperate. Some of us go to the nail salon to get their nails done. And that’s fine. But if you lack time or money, don’t worry! All you need is to follow some steps and techniques religiously.
Read below to learn more about my beginner’s guide to nail care!
The benefits of a regular nail care routine
Did you know that your nails are a reflection of your health? For instance, brittle nails indicate thyroid malfunctions, while pale nails might be a sign of anemia or poisoning. Consequently, taking great care of your nails, as well as your health, is essential.
Having a regular nail care routine offers several benefits:
- Prevents nail infections and bacteria
- Boosts blood circulation
- Smoothes your nails and your hands’ skin
- Gets rid of callouses
- Increases your self-confidence and overall presentation
6 steps to build your weekly nail care routine
Getting beautiful nails just doesn’t happen to you. You need to take action! To get healthy nails, you must follow some best practices that I’m about to share with you. Healthy nails have never been so easy to achieve.
Step #1: Start with clean nails
According to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, having clean nails is an essential step to follow for healthy nails. Consequently, you must always remove your old nail polish and wash your nails. I recommend you use an acetone-free remover as it is less aggressive.
Then, soak your nails in warm water with soap during few minutes. Then, proceed to brush your nails to get rid of the dirt and to scrub your nails.
This step will help you to get rid of all the chemicals, and to prep your nails for the nail polish to stick longer.
Step #2: Trim your nails
In this specific step, trimming your nails is essential, especially for your toes. You can use a clipper to help control your nail length, and your nails will have a nice and groomed appearance.
Also, cut your toenails straight to avoid ingrowth nails. Concerning your fingernails, you can cut your nails straight and let your corners slightly rounded.
Step #3: File your nails
If you opted to trim your nails, filing is your 3rd step. But if you didn’t cut your nails, you can forget that step and come directly to the current one.
Filing your nails will enable you to smoothen your rough edges. Moreover, it can help you shape your nails. Choosing the right shape for your nails will prevent them from breaking. That’s why you must choose a shape that works for you, your nail length, and your daily routine.
How do you file your nails properly? You should file in one direction, starting from one side and going to the center. Then, from the center, file to the other side.
Step #4: Treat your cuticles
Your cuticles must be kept under control. However, you shouldn’t cut them because they protect your nails from infections and bacteria. Massage your cuticles with oil, then push them back with wooden cuticle softener. Don’t cut your cuticles, unless you have your nails done by a professional.
If you can’t buy a special cuticle oil, you can use olive oil or coconut oil instead. Those oils are excellent to moisturize your cuticles while strengthening your nails.
Step #5: Paint your nails
Once your cuticles are moisturized, you can paint your nails with the shade of your choice. However, before you paint your nails, you must remove all the residue of oil on your nails. Thus, your nail polish will last longer.
You shouldn’t use nail polish every time on your nails. Let your nails breathe between nail polish applications. With all the chemicals inside your nail polish, your nails can end up damaged. I would advise you apply nail polish every other week.
To paint your nails, you can choose a shade that works with your lifestyle, your skin tone, or with the current trends. Just let your creativity flow!
Here are the steps to paint your nails:
- start with a layer of base coat to protect your nails from potential stains
- then, apply one to two layers of your favorite nail polish
- finish with a top coat to add shine and seal your nail polish. Thus, your nail polish won’t fade and chip easily!
Also, always wait each layer to dry before starting with the following step.
Step #6: Moisturize your hands
Once your nail polish is dry, don’t forget to moisturize your hands. They will be soft and smooth. Also, hands are the first body part that shows your real age; so that’s another reason to moisturize them often. I would advise you moisturize your hands after you had contact with water, and before going to bed.
Summary: what every beginner should do to have healthy nails
In a few words, having healthy nails is something that you must pursue on a daily basis, not only for your beauty but also for your health. Indeed, your nails are one of these body parts that show your medical condition quickly, so you must pay great care of them.
Here are the basics for a beginner’s nail care routine:
- keep your nails clean
- trim your nails
- file your nails
- take care of your cuticles
- apply your nail polish
- moisturize your hands
Well, that’s it for today! What do you think of my ultimate beginner’s guide for nail care? Do you apply these steps in your nail care routine? Share in the comments!
Take care!
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Hello Elodie,
You have a very informative blog listing some great topics. I especially love your nail care blog. It is wonderful to hear your take on keeping nails looking great. I think your mother was right, my mum also mentioned that hands are the first thing people notice. Lovely to hear about your learnings in this care treatments. I think the fashion for false nails has done a lot damage to some woman’s hands and I watch this trend, I prefer keeping nails strong and clean as I do manual work with my fingers and false nails are dangerous to me. I love that you talk of simple ways to keep nails looking natural and healthy. thanks
You’re welcome Erica
For years I was a wearer of artificial nails but over time they damaged my nail bed so last year I took the plunge and got rid and started to grow my own.
My hands are constantly in water and chemicals, being a hairdresser, so I make sure I use hand cream and follow a regular care routine.
I keep them reasonably short for work and have found a new love in gel nail polish which I do myself at home. Great advice here about the importance of looking after our nails and I’ve learnt about how to file our nails the right way now.
Cuticle oil is a must too and I’ve found that it has helped with the growth too.
Hello Louise thanks for sharing !
Thank you for that reminder on how beneficial it is to take care of your nails. I didn’t realize that your nails were such a good indicator of how healthy you are. My Mom in law has white dots on hers. What does that mean?
I am guilty of not taking enough care of my nails as life gets so busy. I also hate the grating sound of the nail file so I tend to avoid that part. Other than that I am lucky as they just grow and when they get too long I cut the ends off.
Hello Michel, I’ll write an article on nails and health so stay tuned !
Your mother was right, our nails are one of the first things people see when they see us. Unfortunately, a lot of us stop at just keeping it neat. I remember my nursery school teacher tapping my fingers and asking me to tell my parents to cut my nails. Nail care is one education a lot of us need to gain. Thank you for pointing out essentials of nail care
Thank you!
I’d say taking care of our nails is as important as taking care of our hair and overall well-being. But some people neglect it because either they are very busy or they don’t think it matters.
When I was in college, I used to go to the parlor to get my nails done. My manicurist was the one trimming and painting my nails. However, I noticed that after removing the paint, my nail looked yellowish and unhealthy. I wasn’t sure what was wrong so I stopped seeing my manicurist and opted to be the one to take care of my nails.
You mentioned that an acetone-free paint remover is advisable. I had no idea because what I know is all nail polish removers contain acetone. that’s why they smell the same, lol.
By the way, how do you cut your nails, straight or curved? And does it affect the growth and health of our nails?
Hello Alice, thanks for your comment! I cut my nails straight on my toes and curved on my fingernails. And it doesn’t affect my nail growth whatsoever!
Thank you for your insight and instructions. I grew up playing a stringed instrument, and was told to not have fingernail polish as that would effect the strings, and would ultimately cause a poor performance. However, I find your insights very interesting concerning that certain medical conditions are able to be identified from the conditions of your finger nails!
In recent months, I have been using more olive oil and coconut oils, as well as taking healthy vitamins, not just a multi vitamin. And I am in the process of daily purifying my own water supply and storing it before use. I am finding my energy and alertness becoming stronger, and I do contribute that to more healthy eating choices and using proper vitamin regiments, although because of the severe state my health was in before I started, it will take time for me to become my best self.
As a “working woman” who was more focused on others than I was on my own needs, I feel I may have provided a disservice to myself by not investing in learning more about “women’s self care” Do you have any other insights about conditions that may appear from skin complexion, or information about healthy eating and how it can benefit you overall that you feel may not be common knowledge? Thank you for these simple, yet valuable insights. I am certain the younger generation, who may not have access to this information from their normal circle of influence will find your instructions both simple and insightful. Thank you again!
Working on it!
Hey thank you a lot for this post!
Lately my nails have gotten quite messy, with chips and little cracks here and there, it has upset me a bit since my nails were always smooth and neat. I think it possibly could be the nail varnish that I’ve been recently using.
A nail care routine is something I haven’t thought about so definitely should consider it! A pedicure and manicure at home! What a splendid idea!
Thanks again and have a great day!
You’re welcome!
This guide to nail care provides valuable information and tips for beginners who want to take care of their nails. You stress the importance of having a regular nail care routine, which can offer several benefits such as preventing nail infections, boosting blood circulation, and increasing self-confidence. The guide covers six simple steps, including starting with clean nails, trimming and filing your nails, treating your cuticles, painting your nails, and moisturizing your hands. I also appreciate that you have provided useful tips such as using an acetone-free remover, filing in one direction, and allowing nails to breathe between nail polish applications. Overall, this is an excellent guide for those looking to improve the health and appearance of their nails.
Thanks!
Awesome info on nail care.
I learned something new today: Brittle nails equals thyroid issues. It makes sense as my wife has brittle-ish nails, has been tested for thyroid problems and comes back fine, however, i think they are doing the wrong tests. When a guy knows, a guy knows, you know…
Anyways, thanks for the read. Great tips from tip to tip!
thanks for your comment!
Love the simplicity and clarity of this post – it has exactly what I was looking for – clear step-by-step instructions to take care of nails and hands. Though I’m really bad with maintaining my cuticles health – I’m a cuticle biter, and then tend to get shabby pretty fast! I think if I just follow these 6 steps, I might be able to avoid biting my cuticles as they’d already be cut off! Haha! On a more serious note, do you have any suggestions to not bite cuticles?
Thanks sanaa ! I must say that I don’t have an answer to your problem yet but I am keeping it under my thumb
This is a fantastic article and is wildly popular right now with self care!! I used to be a nail tech when I was in my younger years and this article is so fantastic!! What a great step by step guide for how to care for your nails! Keep up the great work!!
Thanks mamabear !
Thanks for these great tips! I once made the mistake of cutting my toenails too short, and ended up with a painful ingrown toenail! Ouch!! I’ll never make that mistake again. I always trim them straight across now. As for my fingernails, I like to keep them trimmed short and use a natural polish or a clear polish. I like the idea of using coconut oil to soften and moisturize the cuticles, as I always have dry hands in the winter.
Thanks for your comment !
This nail care guide contains useful information and advice for novices who wish to take care of their nails. You emphasize the necessity of maintaining a regular nail care regimen, which may provide several advantages such as reducing nail infections, enhancing blood circulation, and boosting self-confidence. It’s great to hear about your experiences with these care procedures. I believe that artificial nail fashion has caused significant harm to certain women’s hands,
Thanks !