I think my break through moment when it came to keeping my nails in good shape was keeping them polished 24/7. For me they feel very weak if I leave them nekkid. Polish makes them feel stronger and protected. The key to keeping them polished for me is quick dry top coat, I am too impatient to sit around for an hour waiting for them to dry so this is a god send. About 5 minutes after I finish a mani I give my hands a gentle wash is cool water and put a bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil on my nails and cuticles and I am good to go. I'm careful not to dent but basically I'm dry.
These are 2 of my favorites. I had been using Fast Forward for the better part of a year when I finally caved and bought a bottle of Seche Vite to see if it would live up to the hype, boy did it ever! I still love the China Glaze but I have to admit that Seche Vite has become my go to. I have heard alot of complaints about shrinkage with Seche Vite but have yet to experience it myself (knock on wood). I think for me the trick to avoiding the dreaded shrink is to wrap the tip well, also I do my cleanup before I add my top coat so I always use Gelous under because Seche Vite is meant to be used on wet polish, if you do use it on dry polish it will cause some really funky cracking and the shrinking.
As I mentioned above I always use Gelous under Seche Vite to make sure there is no shrinkage and add strength, this is thick stuff and it really does make my nails feel stronger. Gelous is meant to be used as a base coat but I have not yet worked up the nerve to try it as one. I have seen alot of different reviews and several of them have said that Gelous can cause the peelies when used as a base, I admit it I am a chicken and don't like to mess with a good thing.
The thing that Gelous is absolutely perfect for is to smooth out rough glitter. If you want that glassy shine even with rough or chunky glitters this is the stuff for you. Usually 1 coat of Gelous and a coat of QDTC are enough to tame even the nastiest of glitters, occasionally I use 2 coats if it is a particularly chunky glitter (Kleancolor I'm talking to you).
I have tried cushion files, buffing blocks and glass files but for me this is what I end up going back to. I picked up this Ruby Crystal file at my beauty supply, I'm pretty sure it was less then $5 and I love it. There are a couple of things I have to warn you about. They are breakable much like a glass file so don't drop it, I am on my second one in 2 or 3 years. If you file the sidewalls of you nails please be careful, I learned the hard way that the corners of this thing are sharp and will cut the skin around your nails when you file if you hold it at the wrong angle and are not careful and you won't necessarily feel it until you wash your hands, especially when it is newer. I also use this file to seal my free edge and it works great, better then a buffing block in my opinion. If you are looking to take down length what works for me is to use a cushion file with a rougher grit until I am just about where I want to be length wise and then finish with the ruby file to ensure the edge is smooth and sealed.
For me a base coat is more of a treatment then to prevent staining or help with polish adhesion, mostly because I have not found anything that truely prevents staining. I have dry nails that tend to be brittle so I'm looking for strength and moisture in a treatment. I have always liked the Sally Hansen treatments and just cycle through them, my go to is the 4-1 Complete care. I just picked up the Salon Manicure a couple of weeks ago but so far so good. I also use the China Glaze Calcium Gel Fortifier, I put this one over my treatment base coat. I have never seen this one in stores, I ordered it on a whime with a bunch of other stuff. I tried it out as a straight up base coat and for some reason I don't remember I did not love it but when I put it over a treatment it is great. Adds strength which for me is always a good thing, and gives a great smooth base for polish.
