Though any oil, cream or lotion will do something, jojoba oil is often seen as the best because it can penetrate the nails the best. I use one drop of jojoba oil per hand, but Anna suggests to use only one drop for both hands.

I've been here too. I'd manage to stick to a routine, oiling my nails 5 times a day for maybe a week, and then I'd lose my motivation again.

For some people, it helps to link an action to another routine. This is also true for new medication, but in this case, it helps with your nail oil routine. So an example one could be to oil your nails right when you wake up and right before bed, every time you brush your teeth, and when you watch some tv to wind down after a long day.

But something that helped me a lot, was to find the right form factor.
For the longest time, I used the pipette that came with my jojoba oil. It was fine, but you often apply way too much because of it. Eventually I filled an empty nail polish bottle with oil, so that I could use small brush to apply the oil to my nails.

But it still bothered me that I had to dip back in and it just wasn't perfect for me personally. So, my last experiment was to buy an empty watercolor brush to fill it up with my oil of choice. And believe it or not, now I find it fun to oil my nails! That means, it's easy to do it multiple times a day.

So my best tip is to experiment with some different ways you can apply your nail oil. What works for me, might not work for you. But there are so many different form factors you could try; pipette, nail polish brush, brush pen, felt tip marker, roller, solid balm, spray/mist dispensor, pump dispensor, lip gloss doe-foot wand, lip gloss squeeze tube, cotton swab / pre-soaked pad, or you can just use your fingers to apply if all the applicators and tools make it harder for you. 

Using nail oil, hand creams and lotions daily (preferably multiple times a day), will improve your skin over time. I know it’s hard to build a new routine, but a little goes a long way. I personally use one drop of jojoba oil per hand, but Anna suggests to use only one drop for both hands.

It’s often a long, tedious process, but it’s not impossible to get stronger and healthier nails. You might not want to hear this, but keeping your nails very short is the best for weak nails, as any sort of pressure on your nails is a big test for them.

Try to avoid water as much as you can. And use nail oil and hand creams as often as you can. In a perfect world you want to use nail oil after every hand wash, but I know that’s not easy for most people. So my advice would be to aim for 3-5 times a day.

Once a portion of your nail plate is damaged, whether it’s thin, split, peeled, or dented, it cannot truly "heal" or repair itself because it's dead tissue, just like hair.

No matter what brands of 'nail repair products' tell you, the only way to get rid of physical damage is to wait for the nail matrix to grow a fresh, healthy replacement that gradually pushes the damaged area to the tip, where it can be trimmed away. For a full fingernail to grow from base to tip, it typically takes 4 to 6 months.

Products such as nail oils, keratin / bond building serums or nail hardeners, cannot reverse physical damage to the existing nail tissue, but they are still useful as damage control and protection.

The opinions on this question seem to be mixed. And in my personal opinion, I think it depends on what kind of nail damage you have, but also what nail chemistry you have. Some things work for one person, but it may not work on someone else.

Some people state that nail polish can act as a barrier or shield and protect your nails from water or friction.

While Anna of The Salon Life explained that water will still reach your nails even if you paint your nails. And also, if your nails get swollen from water (like when taking a shower), the nail polish might cause minor tears because it’s less flexible.

I think both of these opinions can be true. Because it depends on what nail polish you want to use and what kind of nail damage you have.

Glittery nail polishes are stronger and might act more like some sort of shield. I feel like that can temporarily make your nails ‘stronger.’ But at the same time, removing glittery nail polish can damage your nails too.

So in my opinion, it’s a trial and error process. Use a creme or any polish without glitter or shimmer in it at all, if you want to take care of your damaged nails. 

Or just take a break of nail polish! Not because nails ‘need to breathe’ (that’s a myth), but because some people might react to nail polish (the ingredient PVB is a well known culprit of nail peeling for example). 

I’ve tried both, wearing polish to grow out some slight damage. But I’ve also tried going all natural for a while and keeping my nails short to attempt to grow some more healthy nails again.

And lastly, this may be a controversial take but in my opinion, nails do not have to be perfect. It’s fine if your nails have some flaws. 100% healthy nails shouldn’t be the goal. If nail polish makes you super happy, you don’t have to stop using it all together if you have a tiny bit of peeling or damage.

Think of it like makeup. Do you have to stop wearing all makeup if you have a pimple or a dry patch somewhere? I don’t think so. I don’t like the ‘all or nothing’ and ‘black or white’ mindset. It all depends, and it’s your job to find out what works for YOU because everyone and every body is different.

A hang nail looks like a hard, thin piece of skin on the side of your nails. Filing too deep into the sides of the nail plate, takes away its structural support, which can cause painful tearing and hangnails.

If you notice any of these signs, you might have over-filed your sidewalls:

• Tender, stinging sides that bend too easily.

• Nails constantly crack or split at the side edges.

• Your white edge goes further than half of your nail bed.

Do NOT pull or bite the hangnails to try to get rid of it. This will only make things worse. 

Did you know that you can also overfile the top of your nail by buffing? Too much buffing, like with Japanese manicures, can unintentionally cause very weak nails, so please be careful with filing or buffing your nail bed.

You should also NOT file your nail bed to make it textured in the hopes that your nail polish will last longer. I think this misconception came from acrylic or gel nails, but please skip this step if you're working with air dry polish.

Carefully snip a hangnail flush with the surface of healthy skin, with small manicure scissors or nippers. Never rip, pull, or bite it! If you pull, it strips away living tissue, which can cause bleeding, inflammation, and it's a great entry point for bacteria.

Apply a drop of cuticle oil or an ointment like petroleum jelly over the area to protect and help heal your skin.

But preventing hang nails is the better option.

1 Moisturize often (jojoba oil, petroleum jelly, or shea butter)

2 Wear gloves when doing the dishes or other when you're exposed to water

3 Stop cutting live cuticle tissue

Most people that wear nail polish every now and then, can end up with yellow nails. This does NOT mean that your nails are unhealthy.

But there are ways to prevent the chance of getting stained nails, such as always using a good base coat and keeping your nails generally in a good condition (as dry nails have a tendency to stain more).

A classic rule of thumb used by nail technicians is to mirror the natural curve of your nail fold.

Soft, rounded shapes like oval, round, or almond look the most harmonious if you have curved or rounded nail folds. Angular shapes like square, squoval, or coffin suit you best if you have straight nail folds.

You can also decide based on your hand profile. So almond, oval and stiletto can work well for short or wide fingers to give the illusion of longer fingers.

Square and squoval can work well for long or slender fingers because straight horizontal edges break up vertical length.

BUT, in the end, trust your own gut feeling on this. Pick the shape that makes you happy!