I am such an at home mani / pedi type of girl. Don’t get me wrong there is nothing like going into a salon and spoiling yourself with a mani or a pedi but lets be honest budget doesn’t always allow for it.
I have always had mani and pedi tools at home – my mom being a beautician really helped as she taught me what cuticle remover is, cuticle clippers or a pumice stone for the feet. As I have gotten older I am quite proud of my little mani and pedi at home kit and thought today I would share 3 at home game changers.
The Scholl Velvet Smooth Electronic battery operated Nail file, buffer and foot file. These are probably one of the biggest game changers for me. The Scholl Velvet Smooth Electronic Foot File has been the best thing for pedicures getting rid of all that rough heel skin so quickly and leaves them super soft. There is something about the nail file and buffer that has changed up my routine. I think this is mainly because I hate the sound of filing my nails it gives me the heebie geebies. Although I do find it does take a little longer to use the Scholl file it is a lot more precise and makes the nails perfectly straight, it also makes buffing so easy. It comes with 3 different heads; a file, a smoother and a buffer/shiner. Theses 3 heads can also be bought in a pack alone so you can replace them when the heads are finished.
After filing and buffing I move onto cuticles I absolutely love this Essence cuticle remover, its super affordable and does a great job at lifting all the muck around the cuticles and dissolve all the extra skin. I then use my cuticle pusher/knife from Sorbet and clip away any hanging skin. Sorbet make some great manicure tools from clippers to cuticle pushers, definitely have a look at clicks if you need to update your mani/pedi draw 🙂
I then move onto prepping my nails which I have been doing with the Morgan Taylor Elixir and/or the Essence SOS Detox Base Coat. I have a really bad habit of biting and picking my fingernails when they have nail polish on or not I just tend to struggle to leave them alone. This Morgan Taylor Elixir has been such a game changer for my nails; it is a Keratin nail serum that instantly moisturisers and repairs your nail – the more your use it the more bonds are created. It has a gorgeous citrus smell and the best way I can describe it is that it is a thick gel/serum that feels wet on the nails, it sinks into the nail and leaves the surface matte. However it works best worn on natural nails alone and not as a base for nail polish. I have tried to use it under nail polish and under a base coat however I noticed that it made the nail polish peel very quickly. What I choose to do in stead is put it on my nails in the evening and then paint my nails as normal the next day, that way it has had sometime to sink it. It has changed the texture of my nail drastically;they do not split at the tips anymore and are so much stronger in just 2 weeks. Highly recommend this Morgan Taylor Elixir if you have damaged or weak nails. I often prep my nails the day before painting them with the Elixir that way it has time to sink in and then I use the Essence SOS Detox Basecoat before going in with a nail polish, it works wonders as a basecoat and helps keep the nails healthy, not split and strong.
Lastly after I have painted my nails with which ever colour I feel like, I then go onto one of my most favourite top coat – Essence Ultra Gloss it locks in the nail colour, makes the polish last ages and kinda makes it look like you have gel on. I then always use quick dry drops because lets be honest who has time to wait for nail polish to dry! I have the Morgan Taylor and Essence quick dry drops, 1 to 2 drops of these on painted nails makes the nail polish dry to the touch within a few minutes which if you’re an impatient person like I am this is such a winner because there is no faffing or waiting for your nail polish to try, you’re good to go within a maximum of 5 minutes!
Essence have some really great affordable nail products, from nail strengtheners, growers, basecoats and so many top coats to choose from. If you are looking for for some basecoats, topcoats or treatments definitely browse the Essence isle.
What are your at home mani / pedi go-to’s or are you more of a salon goer?
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