Gone are the days of killing your nail beds for the latest trend. This minimalist mani is high shine and low maintenance
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There's something so refreshing and modern about the no-color trend.
Instead of shocking shades and elaborate art, this one is all about
showing off the health of your nails and the effect is super easy to
pull off. Innovative base coats and top coats give you perfectly
polished, low-maintenance nails in just a few swipes.
Choose the right base coat
The
latest base coats do more than just prime your nails for polish.
They're laced with vitamins, peptides, proteins, or botanicals to
nourish and protect. OPI Gel Break Serum ($14; loxabeauty.com),
developed as an antidote to the issues that crop up after improper
gel-polish removal (namely weakened nail beds that lead to peeling and
increased brittleness), contains vitamins A, C, and E, plus safflower
oil, bamboo, and cactus extracts.
Or try the keratin peptide-infused Dermelect Launchpad Nail Strengthener ($16, ulta.com), which restores protein to the nails, making them stronger and more flexible. (P.S. you really need to stop these bad nail habits that are going to wreck your tips.)
Now choose a healing nail polish
If
at this point your nails look great, then just go with a coat of clear.
The wide, flat brush in Sally Hansen Color Therapy Top Coat ($9;
drugstores) makes application speedy, and the formula contains argan
oil, acai, and evening primrose oil to keep nails moisturized and
glossy. (But if you do want color, make sure it's still a healthy polish.)
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For more help, try one or two of these Zoya Naked Manicure Perfectors.
Like photo filters for your nails, the sheer topcoats blur
imperfections, color-correct uneven stains on your nails, boost your
skin tone, and add subtle shine thanks to smoothing ingredients and
reflective sheer hues. To offset yellow-stained nails, start with the
lavender. Then opt for the shade that best matches your nail bed—the
pink for warm skin, the mauve for dark skin, etc.—which is what will
look most natural. If you want to brighten your tips, finish with a
swipe of the sheer white across the free edge. Whatever you choose, the
result is your nails, only better. (Love your nearly-naked nails? Try
the no-makeup look next.)
How to get healthier nails in two steps
1. Oil up nightly
Rub
cuticle oil into each nail before bed. "This gives it plenty of time to
be absorbed while you sleep," says King. Vapour Replenish Organic Nail
& Cuticle Oil ($32; vapourbeauty.com)
boasts seven oils to soften, plus extracts of reishi mushroom (to
thicken nails) and horsetail (to reduce brittleness). (After oiling up
your nails, make sure you give your body some attention to keep your skin soft, too.)
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2. Push back (don't cut) cuticles
It takes only 15 seconds for cuticle remover (King swears by Butter London Melt Away Cuticle Exfoliator, $18; butterlondon.com)
to do its thing. "And you don't run the risks that come with cutting
them, such as infection or having them grow back thicker," she says.
After applying, nudge back each cuticle.
