Operation Nails SOS - The Results

About five months ago I started to trial a nail strengthener, nail/cuticle oil and hand cream to see if I could repair my badly damaged nails and restore them to a healthy condition. Over this time I think I've given them a fair chance to work and have really put them to the test given the previous state of my nails. You can see the original post here and an update after the first week here, but here's a reminder of what they looked like back in February...

And here are my nails now...



I will be posting this Nails of the Day shortly...

You can find the OPI Kiss Me On My Tulips post here from June

As you can see I had an issue with weak, brittle nails that easily split and peeled, and I suffered with a problem of my thumb nails breaking very far down the nail on a regular basis. It may have taken longer than I expected to get results but its been well worth it in the end.

In my quest for the perfect nail I was testing the following products; Duri Rejuvacote nail strengthener, Elemis Exotic Frangipani Moisture Melt and finally, Aveeno hand cream.

The Verdict
In short, I absolutely love all of these products. Independently they are fantastic - from smell, texture to functionality.

Aveeno hand cream - as far as hand creams go, this ticks the boxes for me. Non-greasy,  rich enough to tackle my dry skin but quickly absorbed and light feeling. It is paraben free and unscented but still manages to smell nice. This is a great drugstore product (retails for around £5 for 75ml) but there is currently an offer on at Boots for £3.40. I would definitely repurchase.

Elemis Exotic Frangipani Moisture Melt - This is a multifunctional oil that I was told was great on nails and cuticles and this really feels like an indulgent home treatment product. You need to warm the bottle (not directly) in order to melt the oil - hence the name - and I do this by standing it in a small bowl of boiling water for about 30 seconds. The result, a warm, fabulous smelling oil - think sweet almond and vanilla massage oil - that when rubbed over nails and cuticles really moisturises and softens and helps manage the hard skin (that i bite from time to time) around my nails. This is an expensive product to just use as a nail treatment - retails at £29.70 for 100ml, however as this can be used for body and hair as well it is a good investment. If the price tag still seems too high, then you could always do what I did and get a smaller bottle as part of the regular offers that Elemis run such as pick five travel size products when you buy two full size.

Duri Rejuvacote - I think the most important thing I have to say about this product is that IT ACTUALLY WORKS. My nail health as improved vastly over the course of this trial and I now experience zero splitting or peeling. Obviously I still have some breakages, but my nails are no longer dry and brittle. I went for a manicure recently and even the beautician I see regularly comented how good my nails looked! The downside to the product is that it does peel off quite easily = after applying a coat every day or most days, once it starts to peel it looks really bad, but I would say this is a small price to pay for overall improved nails. Unfortunately the nail treatment has to be applied to completely dry nails meaning that it does not bind with the nail if you use hand cream or an oil at the same time, so its best to have a morning and evening routine so you can use all the products. Also the bottle went a bit gunky before I'd completely finished it so it was too thick to apply, however I will be repurchasing this product. If you were only going to buy one product out of the three I would recommend it to be this one - I bought mine off Amazon for about £10.

I am so happy, however I do still suffer with the severe breakage of my thumb nails only. As previously mentioned, this happens very far down the nail and is very painful and has occured twice since I started using these products.

So what next?
I will be repurchasing Duri Rejuvacote to continue looking after my nails, but first I am going to try another product. The lovely team over at Mavala, a beauty company that specialises in nail care, hosted a live Q and A session on Twitter (@MavalaUK) where you could pose your nail problems to their expert team. I contacted them with a question about my thumb nail breaking issue and they explained that I may have damaged the nail matrix (where the nail cells are formed) which means it has a weak point. This damage can be permanent but they suggested I try their Nailactan product which works on the matrix to produce healthier cells. They have sent me a sample which I am going to use until it runs out and of course I will report back! In the meantime if you wish to find out more about Mavala products you can visit their website http://www.mavala.co.uk/

Have you tried any of these products or which ones do you use in your nail care routine?

Lindsey

Really Ree Elemis Giveaway

So the first week back to work after a holiday is normally a bit grim to say the least. Particularly this week coming back to a cold, grey, wintery England.

Now I enter loads of stuff but I am the unluckiest person I know - "I never win anything" is a massive cliche, but genuinely, if I'm at the races, people ask me what I'm betting on to make sure they back something else. I'm also banned from watching any important football matches as I'm that much of a jinx (not that Leeds United need any help from me, ahem).

However, the blow of returning from Ibiza was well and truly softened for me, as I learned when I was away that I'd won a competition that I entered ages ago.

You may know that Elemis products and facials make up a major part of my regular skincare routine (previous post here), but what you may not know is that one of the first Beauty Blogs that I stumbled across, and one of the reasons I was inspired to start blogging myself was Really Ree. So it seems even sweeter to me that I should win a competition on her blog!

Here's the lovely package I returned to after my holiday:

It contained full size bottles of the following - meaning the prize was worth a staggering £144!:

• Papaya Enzyme Peel - love this and use already
• Melting Cleansing Gel - new product out this year that I haven't tried yet so can't wait to test this one out
• Sensitive Cleansing Wash - not tried this before
• Maximum Moisture Day Cream
• Maximum Replenish Night Cream - not used either of these before as I currently use the Pro-Collagen Marine Cream and Night Cream so will be very interested to see how they compare as there is a huge difference in price!!

Anyway, this has definitely taught me that despite how unlucky you may be, you are always in with a chance. Many thanks to Ree and I look forward to letting you know how I get on with this huge package of luxury products!

Have you won any great competitions from other blogs?

Lindsey