by Chrissy Iley
I am the kind of person who can`t stand to look at unpolished nails. I would rather have bad colour that was chipped than no colour. I would rather have a bad manicure than no manicure. I would rather have a manicure than a martini.
Imagine my recent horror when every time I looked at my nails they were frayed at the edges, and even after a manicure they just looked sad and broken.So frail the polish flaked off as soon as it dried….. I took nail vitamins, and I put on all the usual strengthener suspects. Restoring them has been a long process.
Vitamins for nails alone certainly did not work. A combination of QMS`s Intravital Plus, which is actually designed for skin, and a little bottle of Mavala Mavaderma (£13.00) helped them grow.
Mavala of Switzerland has a whole range of little helpers, including something to stop you from biting them, something to brighten and whiten, and something that helps them grow. You simply put a drop on the base of the nail every day and briefly massage it in. It is not oily or gooey and it sinks in fast. It really helped.
They also do something that helps nails recover from acrylics and gel. A top-coat with a super high gloss finish without the need for UV lamps. I have yet to try it but getting over acrylics was a long painful process for me and there was never any particular help, just months of really disappointing nails.
I tried gels only once; it did not stay on as long as promised, I did not like the colour and it made my nails look thick. When I wanted them removed I could not find a salon that would to it. Resorting to a pint of nail polish remover was probably not my nails` happiest moment.
The other good thing about Mavaderma`s Grow Potion is that you don’t have to wait long for a reaction. I noticed the difference within two weeks.