How To Avoid Smudged Nails

By Bethan Grylls

Polished nails always look better than the naked nail. However, there’s one problem that I’m sure we’ve all experienced…the dramas of perfectly painted nails smudging.

No matter how long you seem to wait, nail varnish never seems to be completely dry, whether it’s the entire colour wiping off, or the pressure marks that end up ruining them.

So how do you avoid the smudged nails? Well, you could sit around for a few hours doing nothing, but it’s rather dull and a bit of a time waster, especially for today’s busy woman!

As a beauty therapist I’m always investing in a wide range of quick drying products, such Rapid Spray, Miracle Drops and nail driers. These do seem to the trick, but it still requires our precious time and patience!

Gel manicures and pedicures have recently become an extremely popular treatment and here’s are the reasons why:

• Literally no dry time
• Lasts for two or more weeks
• Perfect for those trying to grow their nails after having nail extensions

There are a wide range of gels you can choose from, it all depends on the salon you go to. As a beauty therapist my personal favourite brand is Shellac. Not only is this gel super shiny, but it’s one of the kindest to your nails – after all nail care is the most important thing to consider when having any sort of manicure or pedicure of this kind! The reason it’s gentler on the nails, is because it doesn’t require any buffing with a file beforehand. The nail is simply dehydrated (this sounds scary, but it’s only a bit of product wiped on to the nails, this helps to bond the gel to your nail) and the gel is applied. The gel is ‘cured’ under a UV lamp for 2 minutes – this is done for every coat, that means base coat, first colour layer, second colour layer and top coat! The nails are then wiped again to remove the ‘sticky layer’ and are instantly dry! The beauty therapist will then apply cuticle oil to your nails and cuticles to rehydrate them.

No need to worry about smudging those gorgeous nails now!