How To Fix/Reinforce a Cracked or Weak Nail

Scenario: All of your nails are looking long and pretty just how you like them and then the worst happens, you do something dumb and crack your nail. It's visibly intact, but you can see that slit in the nail that going to start snagging. It's annoying and it has to go... unless you know how to fix it!

Here's an easy way to fix broken nails or even reinforce nails that have had layers removed on top and are therefore weakened.

What You Need:

• Nail glue
• A nail buffer (you may also want to use a nail file in addition to the buffer)
• A tissue with the layers separated (just pull the edges apart)

How to Do It:

1. Start with a clean, dry nail (this prevents bacteria getting trapped). If the nail's really rough, give it a few swipes with a buffer. Apply nail glue to the surface of the nail without touching skin. Make sure to cover the break in the nail. You don't have to cover the entire nail, in fact this may result in glue sticking to your skin and cause a whole mess to clean up. Stick to the center of the nail, the free edges not touching skin, and the cracked areas.
2. Take a single layer (of a 2-layered) tissue, cut out to roughly fit the size of your nail, and place it on top of the glue so that the glue permeates the tissue. If the glue doesn't go all the way through the nail, you can add more glue to the top of the tissue where it needs it. Let all of this dry.
3. File or buff off the excess tissue. Your nail should look really rough--and that's okay. Take your buffer and buff down the rough edges and surface so that the tissue is almost flush with the nail. If you do it all correctly, the tissue should end up looking and feeling very similar to your natural nail.

This isn't a permanent or ultra-strong correction for a broken nail. You should still be careful with the broken nail because it could re-break through the tissue. Other than that, this acts just like your normal nail would. You can paint over it easily, but it will most likely come off when you remove your nail polish.