Your guide to post-Christmas nail recovery

After a long Christmas and New Years period, we are still trying to put ourselves back together. If your nails are worse for wear, we have some post-Christmas nail recovery tips for you.

Hands up whose nails are in bits right now? Do you have Shellac remnants still hanging on there? Or gel nails that are now halfway down your nails? Or acrylics that you are just dying to pick off because they've been clinging on there so long now? With all the social occasions over the Christmas holidays, we tend to try and stretch out the old manicure for as long as possible. By now, your nails might be paying the price. Here are our tips for post-Christmas nail recovery.

A good 2-week manicure is super handy when you have a few social occasions in a row. Unfortunately, you will probably see the after-effects of it on your nails. It can leave them brittle and weak. Often, you will see the top layer peeling off and leaving your nails very soft and delicate. It's the same situation for gel nails or acrylics, or worse even.

Ideally, you should massage nail oil into the area around the nail bed while you are wearing the damaging nail coats. Shellac is actually porous so if you use a nail oil every day it will have a positive effect on the outcome of your nails after removal. If you haven't been rubbing oil into your nails, you can start now.

If your nails are in this brittle, thin state now there are a few things you can do. Most importantly, get your Shellac, gel or acrylics removed properly. Do not pick them off. It's so tempting when they have grown out and look shabby but don't give in to temptation. If you find one is coming off partially, don't let it pull off. Clip it off and then try to file it down until you can get help from your nail technician. If you let it pull off, it can cause a break halfway up your nail bed which will take a long time to fix. The removal is key, remove them properly and then start your aftercare.

Get a great nail oil. Massage it into your nails a couple of times a day, especially before you go to bed to let it soak into the nail bed while you sleep. Invest in a really good hand and cuticle cream that is more convenient to use throughout the day. Another thing that will help our nails recover is a nail strengthener that you can paint on while they are healing. Keep them short. Trim them right down to avoid snags and breaks while they grow back.

Finally, eat a calcium and protein-rich diet so get lots of greens in like spinach and kale while you're trying to get the strength back in your talons.

Did you get a mani before Christmas? Are you now suffering the consequences?