Cuticle Close Up – The SAFE Way To Push Your Cuticles Back.

Did you know that your nails conveyor belt their way forward at around 1 millimeter per week and they’ll drag an unintended cuticle along with them? Gently pushing your cuticles back will increase the durability of your nail polish, as your cuticle may create a lift under your Polish if you neglect them for too long, they’ll create a mess. 

Trust me, I’ve been there. I went well over a decade without pushing mine out of fear, but now I’m going to share my secret method with you. Here we go. 

Pushing is best done while your nails are bare and clean and moisturized. There are three main kinds of pushers. Plastic, wood, and metal. Avoid the orange stick. They’re porous and not as hygienic and metal is almost as scary. So I like to use wood as its most natural. 

I apply Angie only over the margin between the skin and nail and let it rest and absorb into the area. After about 5 to 10 minutes, I then start gently pushing. I spread Angie back into my cuticles. After pushing, I start by pushing up toward the knuckle with the pusher flat against the nail plate. This detaches any dead stuff that wasn’t removed in the first push. 

Like nails themselves, the cuticle tissue that moves forward as they grow is completely dead. Pushing should never hurt or leave your fingers feeling sore. If it does, you’re pushing too hard or too deep.

Remember that the living tissue back there is what guards your new nails growth.

Once the major pushing is done, I touch up any tricky spots with the tip of the pusher. You have to be extra careful if you do this and it’s a good way to shape the cuticle if needed. Push too hard and you could damage your nails or slip or jab your fingers with the pusher. 

Notice that no cutting of any kind has happened. You shouldn’t do any trimming, nipping, cutting, etc., at least where cuticles are concerned. 

There’s only two things I cut as needed, hangnails they need to be trimmed or they’ll tear and my fingernails. 

And in case you doubt it, your nails and cuticles can be beautiful without polish. All you need is a good quality hand and nail treatment that’s water free and chemical free like Angie or Angie with CBD to help moisturize, protect and strengthen your nails and cuticles and voila, healthy natural shiny nails that give colorful manicures a run for their money.