Jojoba oil three times a day at least. There’s a good video out there showing proper manicure technique that covers this.
Layer a balm like Burt’s Bees on top to seal everything in.
Any other signs that nutrition might be the issue? Fatigue or dry skin, maybe hair that won’t cooperate?
Olive oil rubbed into the nail beds helps during rough patches, at least from what I’ve seen. But sometimes it’s more about what’s happening inside than the products.
Okay, nail slugging before bed. Yep, a horrible name, but the concept is great. This fixed my cuticles after years of religious oil application that did nothing.
The routine is almost embarrassingly simple. Lotion on the hands first, then a tiny bit of Vaseline worked into each nail and cotton gloves over the top. By morning, everything just feels softer and more hydrated. Hangnails have gone from being my constant companion to a rare event.
And now my nail prep time is cut in half. Which I figured you would appreciate given how many clients you see in a day.
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Oh the jojoba oil thing is true! It really does help keep hangnails away.
Hangnails happen when dead skin gets stuck to your nail and then your nail grows out, tearing the skin at the sides. Pushing back cuticles a few times a week actually prevents them because your nails can grow without dragging skin along with them.
Orangewood stick for gently pushing back cuticles plus daily cuticle oil and hangnails basically disappear. The better you treat your nails, the less those little rips show up.
Kerasal ointment works. Put a pea-sized amount on your nails before bed and you’ll see a difference with those hangnails.
For maintenance tips, check out The Salon Life on YouTube. They know what they’re doing.
Tiny pushback on the ‘push them back hard’ advice. If the skin’s already splitting, cuticle remover or aggressive pushing will just irritate it more. It might be contact dermatitis around the nail fold rather than hangnails. Redness, itching, swelling, and cracks that keep coming back could mean patch-testing products and sending the client to a derm.