My nails constantly break. It's infuriating, especially now because I actually care. I used to have very short nails constantly because I'd bite my nails off or I'd just cut them too short. It never really occurred to me to preserve them for cosmetic purposes. Recently, however, I've been trying to grow my nails out a little because I've gotten much better at painting them.
After much practice, I've almost perfected the look. It only works, however, if my nails don't break or crack halfway through growing them out. I figured out a few ways of helping my nails not flake so much; though of course these are all based on various things I've heard over the years, so they're not my exact creations.
One of the more useful things I've found is to wear gloves or take extra caution while washing the dishes. There's no bigger danger to your precious nails than dipping them in hot water for an extended period and then scrubbing things. If you scrape your nail across a knife or a cheese grater, goodbye to any chance of even nails for the rest of the month. Those things will go through your nail like a knife through butter that's been sitting out on Tatooine.
It's also generally helpful to wear nail polish as much as possible, something I'm abysmally bad at. The nail polish gives your nails an extra layer of protection, making it less likely that they'll get taken off by something.
For some reason, I can't keep nail polish on for more than a few days, so this one gives me trouble. I seem to be unable to leave the edges of my manicure alone. This results in chipping that my slight OCD will not allow, so I generally end up taking off the polish after about four days. While the polish is on though, I have noticed that it's easier to do things with my hands and not worry about whether my nails are going to crack into my nailbed. There isn't much that's more painful than that, so it's definitely something to think about.
One more thing that I've found helps a little is to use jojoba oil on your nails. All credit to the YouTube channel SimplyNailogical for this tip as she informed me of its benefits.
This is a little silly even for me because let's face it, they're only nails. They don't hold the nuclear codes, nor do they decide the fate of the economy on a day-to-day basis. That being said, jojoba oil seems to help my nails keep their hydration for a bit longer, and makes them less likely to get fissures around the edges. I usually apply it at night -- when I do it at all -- and let it soak in overnight. You can do it as many times as you like though; the more you do it, the less likely it will be that your nails will crack due to dryness.
Lastly, if you can help it, try not to cut your nails with nail clippers. It weakens the nail edges and makes it more likely that your nails are going to flake off in layers at the ends.
Mine did that for about two years before I realized why they were suddenly unable to hold their own integrity for more than two minutes. I've found that filing your nails is safer, and gives a better-looking result anyway. It rounds off the edges of your nails, making it less likely that an impact will split them or cause fissures.
Those are the things I've been doing so far, and they sort of work. Obviously, there isn't any cure for my repeated inability to remember that my nails are a little longer than the tips of my fingers, so when I break them on a car door handle, there's really not much to be done.
Target doesn't sell new brains yet, so I'm stuck with that particular problem. Otherwise, these tips helped me keep my nails relatively strong, so hopefully they'll help you too.
