Question:

My nails are stained from polish. How can I erase the stains and prevent them from happening again?

Answer:

Nails oxidize and turn yellow if they’re frequently shrouded in red or dark-color polishes, which are heavily pigmented. To erase stains at home, soak nails for a few minutes in lemon juice (the citric acid helps remove discoloration). Next, dab on some cuticle oil, and use a buffer to gently slough away the old, stained nail plate, suggests Skyy Hadley, a manicurist and the owner of the As U Wish Nail Spa, in Hoboken, New Jersey. "Buff horizontally, not up and down," she says. "This buffing motion will revitalize the new plate, and a healthier color should appear, which is a whitish, flush pink."

To prevent stains from happening altogether, use a base coat, a step you may tend to overlook at home, says Ji Baek, owner of the Rescue Beauty Lounge, in New York City. “A lot of people skip it because they think it's unnecessary. But it shields the nail bed from absorbing the pigment,” she says. You should also give your nails a rest with a two-week polish hiatus every four months. However, if you can’t stand the thought of naked nails, then alternate your go-to dark polish colors with lighter ones.

Bora Chang
Beauty Department