It is all the rage to color and strengthen your nails beautifully with gel polish or also called soak off gel. A major advantage of gel polish is that it lasts a long time without damaging. You can have it done by a nail technician or you can do it yourself. But you can also use this gel polish for your toenails. This way you can enjoy the summer or your holiday address.
Gel polish
Gel polish is not an ordinary nail polish. Gel polish dries under a UV lamp. It is applied in a few thin layers and then hardened under the lamp in a few minutes. This way you don’t have to wait until the nail polish is finally dry. You can have gel polish applied by a nail stylist. She often works with more expensive products and has a lot of experience, which produces long-lasting beautiful results. However, you can also easily apply and remove gel polish yourself.
Benefits of gel polish
- Not harmful to natural nails
- Cheaper and more natural than artificial nails
- Quick to apply
- Provides extra strength to the nails
- Ideal for the nail biter when used on the fingernails
- Immediately dry by using the UV lamp
- Shiny and scratch-free nails like never before
- Don’t have to worry about your nails for a few weeks
Toenails
Your toes are important because they help with balance while walking. Toenails protect the vulnerable end of the toes. The nails are made of the protein keratin. The nail plate is formed by small round cells at the beginning of the nail (in the matrix). The new cells push the previously formed nail plate forward. As the nail plate grows, the nail cells are pushed flat and the material squeezed out of the cells (protein) functions as a strong glue. This way the different layers are held together and the nail plate becomes hard, strong and transparent. A nail plate consists of more than a hundred layers of flattened cells.
The growth rate of nails varies. Nails grow faster in warm weather. Toenails grow slower than fingernails. The nail of your big toe needs about a year to completely renew itself. It is therefore extra important to take good care of your toenails. Pink nails indicate a good blood supply and healthy nails are nice and smooth. Many nail ailments indicate a vitamin or mineral deficiency, circulatory problems or other diseases.
Taking care of your toenails
It is important to take good care of your toenails. Your toenails are more likely to be in moist conditions, which can cause infections to develop more quickly. Diabetics and seniors in particular should take this into account because they are more susceptible.
It is best to cut your toenails when you have just gotten out of the shower or bath. They are still soft. First loosen your cuticles with a wooden or metal cuticle pusher. Then it’s time to cut. Cut your nails straight across and without corners to prevent ingrown toenails. Do not cut them too short, because then your feet are more sensitive to external influences (for example fungi) and you also have a greater risk of an ingrown toenail.
Gel polish on your toenails
Once all your toenails have been neatly trimmed and possibly treated with a good cream, you can apply the gel polish.
- Matte your nails with a buffer block or file.
- Clean and grease-free your nails with prep disinfectant.
- Apply the prep (degrease)
- Apply the primer (for good adhesion)
- Paint your nails with the gel polish
- Let the gel polish harden for 2 minutes under the UV lamp
- Apply a second layer of gel polish and let it harden again
- Apply the top coat
- Also let the top coat harden for 2 minutes under the UV lamp
- Remove the sticky layer with gel cleanser
The gel polish lasts much longer on your toenails than on your fingernails. This is because your toenails are less exposed to external influences and because your toenails grow less quickly. Gel polish is ideal, you don’t have to do anything to your toenails for a few weeks!
