No More Nails.

I always imagine how much dirt and gunk is hiding on the back of those highly coloured nails. ? at least when there short /clear you can see dirty nails. ?

But helenmabr, the people who would allow dirt to collect under their highly coloured nails are the same people who would let dirt accumulate under their short nails. People who take care of their nails, coloured or not wouldn’t dream of letting them be dirty.
Don’t get me started on the sight of people who run their nails across their teeth to remove dirt and debris instead of using a nail brush. It’s was an unwelcome sight on the metro.

I have let my hair go grey since last year and admit I really like it. Have had quite a few compliments on it as well. Admittedly I was feeling a bit 'fake' about my colour the last few years since the upkeep needed to be done every four weeks. It was just too much for me.

As for nails, I never really have bothered much with mine. They are generally a good shape, and I keep them trim. Polish every once in a while, but it is not the norm. I have had gel done on toes for vacations and it is brilliant, but I wouldn't want the upkeep.

Prior to lockdown I had my finger and toe nails routinely gelled for more than 12 years and loved them. My ring finger nail became extremely thin and it was really painful having the gel removed. Although my nails were in really bad condition after I removed the gel I decided not to have them redone once lockdown lifted. It’s taken the whole of the past year to get them into a healthy state and I’m determined not to restart having them done.

Not a beauty thing at all but I’ve decided not to buy flowers again. I love having flowers around the house but, when I wasn’t visiting the shops and couldn’t buy them, I went into the garden and got ‘artistic’ with whatever was in season. They usually don’t last as long as shop bought but I planted everything in my garden so I always love to see them while they last and it costs nothing. If there aren’t many flowers I just use greenery.

@Chestnut
I cut my own hair a month or so ago, and now looking at it and thinking it's not half bad. I'm wondering whether to bother with the hairdresser!

I did the same just before Xmas, mine was almost halfway down my back but was starting to look a bit straggly at the ends, so I pulled it all up into a ponytail, moved the scrunchie down to just below where I was going to cut it and with a big sharp pair of scissors chopped it off just above the scrunchie.
No mess all over my floor because what I cut off was held together by the scrunchie. I chopped about 8 inches (20cm) off it. It actually looked OK and a number of my friends and family also said it looked good.
Now having had it like this for 4 months, it feels healthier, still looks good and is really easy to manage. Since the menopause, my hair has developed a natural curl, when it's wet the curls come into their own but if I brush it they all disappear, so I've found a way to be able to brush the tangles out and to keep my curls.
My hairdresser is lovely, I originally went to her because I found a cheap deal, didn't have much cash to spare and was desperate for a cut, when I went back for a second cut several months later she said that every cut & blow dry in the future would be at the same price as I'd paid for the original deal! So, even with a fairly decent tip, I walk out of the salon having only parted with £20. She also runs a loyalty scheme, 10 visits gets your next one free.
Because she's good at what she does, is a really nice girl and her charges are really low, I guess I'll probably pop in for a c&b around the end of June because my son will be celebrating his 25th birthday and we'll probably do something (government/Covid permitting), it'll be good to have a catch up with her too but I'm in no rush to be having anything done with my hair right now, I'll let those who are 'desperate' get in to see her first.

There is a Swiss product,I think it is called Mava,you paint it at the bottom of your nail and it strengthens it,worked wonders for me some years ago.

justwokeup I’ve been doing the same thing. I participated in a Zoom floral arrangement class, where the key was to arrange flowers you had to hand, in your garden or wild flowers etc. I really enjoyed it, and enjoyed seeing the flowers in my garden being shown off to good effect in my home. I’ve bought a wee ‘Ikebana’ set from Amazon for another Zoom lesson in the art of Japanese arrangement which I’m really looking forward to.

Queenofsaanich you're thinking of Mavala Scientifique. It hardens the nails.
Twenty odd years ago I used to buy stuff with formaldehyde in it, my nails were ridiculously long and strong. I don't think that they are allowed to sell it anymore.
Harmonypuss how do you brush your hair without damaging the curls please? My hair is like yours. I've recently been looking at lots of Curly Girl things on the web.

For most of my adult life I have been plagued with problems with my nails. No matter what I did they just broke and flaked. As a teenager, I tried everything, even chewing on a square of jelly every day (Yuk). Was not helped as for a couple of years I trained and worked as a manacurist, and could make everyone elses nails look lovely - but not mine.

Strangely - through each of my pregnancies, my nails were fine, actually grew beyong the finger tips - but within days of babies being born, they broke painfully low and were back to as they had always been.

Then I had a fall, resulting in a stress fracture to my spine. My GP put me on weekly Alendronic Acid and daily, two pills of Adcal - and the result has been that my nails have improved so much.

I can sit and admire them now - BUT recently I thought to start using a nail varnish on them to show them off. And have found that this seems to damage them. They are not as bad as they used to be, but have nearly all broken. So, will just use that on special occasions and keep to my nice plain nails for most of them time.

I have wondered about gel nail varnish. How do you remove it?

I'm back at my hairdressers plus all else, which includes my yearly top up appointment last week for my cosmetic eyebrows. I was at my hairdressers too last Friday.

I also now, do my own eyebrows and face waxing. That had to be done at home, as I couldn't bear them getting in such a mess.

I used to go to the spa 4 weekly for that doing and pluck out straying hair during the 4 week. £20 every 4 weeks or the cost of a tub of wax, a wax heater (£30) and wax strips.

The initial set up of it was £35 which paid for itself in just over a month. Google, waxing yourself to get tips and that would have cost me £260 for the year so a good saving for something easy to do yourself. I'm still using the large wax tub and the very large bag of waxing straps from last year too.

Now not my hair. There is no way on God's earth I would do my own hair. I'm a Leo and my mane is my pride and joy. It's been bad enough having to colour it in lockdown. I have hated every minute of doing it. There is no way I would cut my long hair. Been with my hairdresser 20 years since she in-house trained and no one gets to do my hair but her

I also have reflexology done to help my health needs. I've been following a YouTube stream on doing it. Its not the same. So no way I would keep doing that. Due for that next week and bliss. I will then feel almost my kind of normal again. I've really struggled without that as treatment been spasmodic the last year with lockdown

M0nica

Everything I do to adorn myself is to please myself. I do get bored with all the sanctimonious posts making sweeping judgements about those who do it. No, that is wrong. I am sure the people who do that would immediately assure me that everything they say and do is totally non-judgemental.

Well, nothing I do to myself is because I have given in the the oppression of society on how women dress. I adorn myseld to please myself and will continue to do so until I die, or do I mean dye?

Absolutely agree! I do it for me. I've posted above about what I have missed and how I've managed in lockdown. I have no intention bar the waxing of carrying on doing the rest myself.

Many would shudder at what I spend on top of cosmetic eyebrows, hairdressers and reflexology (last one for my health needs anyway) plus various lotions, potions, make up etc.

I like to look my best. I don't look my age which is partly a little luck with genetics and time spent on me when I got in my 40s. I'm now in my late 50s and seeing as people are stunned when they know my real age I would say with genetics and a good skin routine etc its worked. Most people think I'm mid to late 40s.

Growing older disgracefully is fine by me. I've no intention of looking like an older lady. Though do have the fortune, temperament etc to not look older. Oh and yes my dress style pretty quirky too ?

I won't go there on my hair colour has some on here would go into meltdown. Again I can wear it so I will

Glad I'm not the only one like it ?

Keffie I'm very intrigued now about your hair colour.
Go on, 'go there' and tell us what it is!

I have stopped getting my nails gelled too. It got expensive & as DH has had no work since the lock down it was an unnecessary expense.
However they have grown back so long & strong that now they look much better than they did gelled!
I have been colouring my own hair too which is a saving. I am seeing my hairdresser next week ( YAY!!) but only for a cut.

Eyebrows to be tinted and shaped tomorrow, haircut on Friday and I will look in the mirror and see me and not an old English Sheepdog.

I pay to have my hair cut and coloured, and my face threaded. I’m going to stop the colouring now.

I understand why people like to pay have some pampering though I’ve never done myself.

DS2 once bought me a day’s spa voucher, and it was lovely.
My sister once paid for me to ‘have my colours done’.

Both were really lovely gifts.

I don't even wear ordinary nail varnish as my hands somehow feel 'grubby' if I do. But I found this interesting as about four years ago, I remember reading an indepth article about the trend for these massive 'talons' that many women have. If they are the ones where you have to sit with your hands in a bowl of chemicals in order to remove them, especially if the people applying them to your nails are wearing masks (I'm talking about wearing masks before the pandemic), you should really wonder what's in the chemicals. In the article I read it said some of the chemicals are what are known as 'hormone disruptors' which could be one of the reasons so many women have difficulty getting pregnant. It may be worth going 'au naturel' if you are thinking of having a family.