HOW TO: Grow Nails Fast

*Take Vitamins

The most important tip to grow nails fast is to make sure you get all your vitamins, mainly vitamins A, B, C and D. You can either get these vitamins from your diet or take a multivitamin. Taking vitamins will help strengthen your nails and promote nail growth. 

*Get Moving 

Did you know that getting the blood flowing to your fingers is one of the most effective tips to grow nails fast? If you type often, play piano, cook or do basically anything involving your hands, you’re helping yourself to get a pair of longer nails faster. 

*Take Care 

Keeping your nails healthy and strong will help them grow faster. One of the most important tips to grow nails fast and keep them strong and healthy is to properly clean and moisturize your nails and cuticles regularly. Use cuticle oil to moisturize and apply a protective clear coat every other day to bare nails to prevent cracking, peeling and provide a shield between your nails and the elements.

*Balance 

Eating a healthy and consistently balanced diet is one of the best ways to trim some inches off of your waist and it will also help grow nails faster and stronger. Make it a habit to eat balanced meals and get your daily intake of lean protein, fiber and fresh produce to get a speedy set of nails!

 *Start Rubbing 

This one is weird. I haven't tried it myself, but it’s worth a try if you really want longer nails. Take a clove of garlic and rub it on your nails for 30 minutes and rinse. Afterward, to avoid smelling like vampire repellant, rub a lemon wedge on your fingers and nails. Another option is to chop garlic and put it in your polish and apply to nails. Garlic is said to help strength and harden wimpy nails and you can often find garlic extract on the list of ingredients for nail hardeners.

*Stop Filing

Granted, your nails need to be filed to maintain shape, but if you find yourself filing all the tip..there's no way your nails will grow fast. Avoid over-filing your nails and  be sure that when you do file them, that you are filing correctly (in one direction). Nail files are porous and can easily spread bacteria so replace it often.

*Bring Out the OJ

Another tip is to soak your fingers in orange juice for 10 minutes then rinse off. Orange juice is packed with Vitamin C and folic acid, both which are awesome to induce nail growth. If you can’t stand the smell of garlic, this method might be a better option. 

*Protect 

Protect your hands and fingers from anything abrasive such as dish detergent or cleaning with harsh household cleaners. Also, avoid using acetone nail polish remover more than once per week as it can weaken and dry out your nails. Wearing gloves while washing dishes and cleaning will save your hands from drying out as well as saving your nails.

*Drink Water 

The last and perhaps most important tip to grow nails fast is to stay hydrated and drink lots of water. We all know how essential it is to drink at least 8-10 glasses of water per day for health and weight loss. If we needed another reason to drink up, we now know we need to hydrate ourselves consistently to grow nails long and strong.

If you have read my post on how to get strong nails, then you probably notice this post is very similar. If you haven't read it, please click here. Following these tips can lead you to healthier, stronger, AND longer nails. 

HOW TO: Get Strong Nails

*File Correctly
It’s important to file in one direction. Filing back and forth like a saw can separate the nail layers. Be sure your nails are always dry when filing. Wet nails are softer and can break easily.


*Treat yourself
Give yourself a mini manicure! Take a cotton ball and wrap it around an orange stick. Dip it into some vitamin E oil. Use it to gently push your cuticles back. Add a clear coat of nail-strengthening polish and rub moisturizer or lotion into your cuticles once or twice a day.


*Switch Removers
If you're like me and love nail polish, then your nail polish remover could be making your nails brittle over time. Acetone-based removers are very drying on your nails. Look for removers that say moisturizing, strengthening, or nourishing (or even acetone free!) on the bottle.

*Drink Water
Staying hydrated can affect the health of your nails. If you have a hard time getting the recommended eight glasses of water each and every day, try adding a glass of milk. Milk is rich in zinc, which can really help toughen up your nails for better strength, giving you strong nails.


*Get Enough Protein
Since your nail are made of laminated layers of keratin proteins, getting enough protein in your diet can really do wonders to help them grow and stay strong. Women are recommended to consume about 4 to 6 ounces (or about 25 grams) of protein during each meal. Try choosing from lean sources like chicken, turkey, cold water fish, low-fat dairy products and soy products. If that's still not enough, try protein bars or adding protein powder to cereal or smoothies.


*Consider Taking Biotin
Biotin supplements include B-complex vitamins, which are recommended by the National Institute of Health to help strengthen hair and nails. Taking just 300 micrograms of biotin daily can help improve brittle nails, and transform them into strong nails.


*Eat Iron and Omega-3 Fats
Iron is important to help keep skin, hair and nails healthy looking. Make sure you’re getting enough iron by eating 100 percent whole grain breads and pastas along with dark and leafy vegetables or legumes (like green beans), meats and eggs. As an added diet tip, it’s also recommended to consume omega-3 fats from foods like almonds and walnuts, which can help provide those fatty acids your nails need to keep from splitting (and are also good for your heart).


*Don't Pick
Finally, try to avoid using your nails as tool to pick, pry, and open things. This can weaken nails and they will fray or break. It will also chip your polish! These changes won't be so hard to make and your nails will thank you for it. 

 

Half of this list deals with your diet. Eating better can make you healthier 

AND make your nails stronger and prettier! 

Rachel's Toes

I painted this for my friend Rachel. She wanted something colorful.
The first design is a rainbow leopard print on a pearly white base. 

Berries

A few semesters ago, I took a class called Micro/Botany and this design is inspired by that class. What comes to mind when you hear the word fruit? Probably apples, grapes, and strawberries, right? What is a fruit? A fruit is the edible part of a plant that contains seeds.
 

Now, what comes to mind when you hear the word vegetable? We think of things like tomatoes, carrots, and potatoes, right? A vegetable is commonly thought of as the other edible parts of plants that are not a particularly sweet fruit or a seed. Vegetables can be leaves, like lettuce, stems, like celery, and roots, like carrots.

What about the tomato? Is it a fruit or a vegetable?
The culinary industry is to blame for the confusion. A chef will use a tomato more like a vegetable instead of like a fruit. A botanical fruit is a fruit according to a scientific definition. A culinary vegetable is a vegetable used for cooking and preparing meals. We get confused about how to classify tomatoes because a tomato is BOTH a culinary vegetable and a botanical fruit.

When you hear the word berry, I bet you think of strawberries and blueberries, right? Well, a tomato is also a berry! First let's consider flower anatomy. Flowers have both male and female parts on the same plant. The male parts of the flower are collectively called the stamen, which is a long filament with an anther on the end. The female parts are collectively called the carpel, which is a stigma on the end of a long style, which stems from a round ovary with an ovule inside. The simple scientific definition of a fruit is a mature ovary of a flower. After pollen fertilizes the ovule, the ovary begins to develop into what will become the fruit. The ovule will become the seed.

So, how is a tomato a berry?
In general English, the word berry has come to be known as any small edible fruit. This does not go along with the definition of a true berry. A berry can be botanically defined as a type of simple fruit with seeds within one or more ovary. A true berry has fused carpels.

So here is the design of other foods that may be considered a vegetable, but are actually fruits.
All of these fruits are also berries.



Index finger: Avocado
Middle finger: Bananas
Ring finger: Tomatoes
Pinkie finger: Pumpkin

Up, up, and Away

I saw this on Pinterest and wanted to try it. 

This design is really simple and fun. 

It reminds me of the movie Up.

What do balloons make you think of?

Shooting Stars

I saw this design on Pinterest and I wanted to try it. I really like it. 

It would also look great in a light pink. Or maybe a pale yellow.
It would look awesome on silver, especially if you paint the star a different color.

I did three different versions of this design.
The first version has all star outlines.
The second version has one finger with a star outline.
The third version has all solid stars.

Version 1. 

Version 2.

Version 3.

Sparkle Flower

This is what I have painted on my toes right now. 

It's a bright blue background with part of a white flower in one corner. There's glitter highlighting each of the three petals. Two trails of dots emerge from the flower and meet over the center petal.

Daytona Beach

So, back in June, Aaron and I went on vacation in Daytona for two weeks with his parents.

Yep, two whole weeks of beach!

I have a post on my other blog about all we did, if anyone wants to read it.

(I mainly talk about all the food we ate! Click here for a link to that post.)

I came up with this design after the trip.

Index finger. 

I painted a birthday cupcake.

 I turned 21 on the day we left for Daytona. 

Middle finger. 

On this finger, I painted a crab. 

Every time we go to the beach, we go crabbing!

It's always alot of fun, but you really have to move. 

Those little crabs are fast! 

Ring finger.

I painted cow print for Cowlick's, 

which is this cute little ice cream shop 

with an over the top cow theme. It's so good. 

Pinkie finger. 

This nail is dark and hard to see. 

Aaron and I went putt putting. 

I painted the green with a hole and a flag. 

I lost...badly!

Junior Year

  After finishing up my third year of college, 

I came up with this design for all the classes I took.

I can't believe next year will be my last year. 

It doesn't feel like I should be graduating yet. 

It's almost unreal.

........................................................

 Index finger: Cell Biology

I heard terrible stories about this class.  I was terrified to take this class. But I needed to take it. I was surprised.  I LOVED THIS CLASS. It was a really hard class but has been my favorite college class. I was challenged academically. The first few months I was actually making a C. I have never, ever made a C before. It was stressing me out! I was reading a whole chapter for every class, each one being at least fifty pages long. We had an online quiz for every class. Those tricky things killed my grade in the beginning.But I worked hard to pull it back up and made an A in the class! I will never forget the day we watched this video. Click here for a link. You should watch it too. It's called 'The Inner Life of a Cell.' Call me a nerd, but I sat in total awe seeing this for the first time. It's such a great clip, especially to think it's happening in you right now! I can tell I'm in the right major, because I think that video is awesome. For this design, I painted a piece of DNA.

 

Middle finger: Physics

Let me start off by saying...I hate physics. With a passion. Mainly because I don't understand it. I had trouble with this class too (not like Cell Bio though) Lab was painful to sit through, but we did get out early almost every day. For the first semester, I made a B. So sad. But for the second semester, I squeaked out an A. For this design, I painted a prism. White light goes in and a rainbow comes out as each color is diffracted. 

 

Ring finger: Organic Chemistry

I was also dreading organic. I didn't retain much from gen chem and I was afraid that would really hurt me in ochem. But everything was okay. Organic is related to gen chem, but was mostly its own thing. I actually enjoyed organic. I had an awesome teacher, which helped alot too. My new favorite element? Carbon, of course! For this design, I painted a benzene ring.

  Pinkie finger: Yoga

 I needed another activity class, and I chose yoga. Best decision ever. I love yoga!!I was so sad when it ended, especially since it only last half the semester.I loved seeing my own progress. I gained more flexibility and better balance. Taking yoga also helped keep stress at bay. My favorite things were sun salutations, child's pose, the warrior poses, and legs on the wall. For this design, I pained a figure in a warrior pose.

 Thumb: First Aid

 I enjoyed this class as well. I learned many interesting things. We made first aid kits. Mine now lives in my car. I have now completed all requirements for American Red Cross certification in adult CPR/AED. For this design, I painted a heart, with a heart monitor line inside. 

What's next? My senior year!! And also tackling the big decision of whether or not to be a PA or an MD. I'm excited for next semester. I'll be taking Biochemistry. I'm not excited about Analytical Chemistry.. actually kinda dreading it. I'll also be in TWO art classes, one is a survey class (a boring gen ed) and the other is called 2D design. I'm nervous excited about that one. The only artistic things I can do are paint nails and play clarinet.

Watermelon and a Blue Zebra.

What goes great with summer?
Watermelon.

Did you know that every part of a watermelon is edible? Even the seeds and rind. Did you know the Japanese grow watermelons in boxes so they have a square shape? These toes belong to my cousin, Acelynn. 

This design is so simple. 

 Acelynn also wanted zebra on her nails. We decided on a blue background with black stripes. The ring finger is a pale green background with glitter stripes. This one is fairly simple too.

REVIEW: Salon Express

I'm sure everyone has seen the commercials for Salon Express. The first time I saw the commercial, I knew it was a Konad knock-off and said it probably wouldn't work. I saw it in Walmart several times. Finally, I broke down and decided to try it. It was only $10. The package looks like this:

(Front)

 (Back)

These are the instructions.

And the contents. 

A scrape plate. Scraper. Stamper.  

 Here are the plates. 

These are reason I broke down and bought Salon Express. 

They are different from Konad plates. Plus, Konad plates are like $8 a piece. 

For $10, I got five with this set!

I was really excited to try the new designs on the plates.
But.... I wasted my money on Salon Express.

 Don't waste yours too, if you haven't already.

Salon Express is crap. 

It doesn't work. Period. Not even a little bit. The plates are super shiny, almost blinding. I like the stamper. I would like it better if it worked. Almost every time, the polish stayed on the stamper. The very few times it did transfer to the nail, it was so faint you couldn't even see it.I even tried dark polish and it still looked very faint. I glanced back at the directions, just to make sure I was doing it right or didn't miss anything. I noticed it said to use nail PAINT. Nail paint? Hmm. Obviously that doesn't mean regular nail polish.  

I was excited about this, and then let down. I might even just throw it away.

I think I'll just stick to Konad. No more knock-offs.