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For as long as I can remember, my poor nails have taken a beating. I'd chew them down to the quick or pick at them absentmindedly, then wonder why they always stayed short, brittle and prone to breaking. When I'd paint my nails to keep myself from biting them, I'd start to chip off the nail polish instead, peeling off layers of nail with it and keeping my nails weak.
Then I set a date for my wedding and decided enough was enough — I'd have strong, healthy nails for my big day, and I wouldn't settle for costly acrylics. The only problem? My nails were so damaged, they could no longer grow without breaking. So when a friend recommended I try Onyx Professional's Hard As Hoof Nail Strengthening Cream, I jumped at the chance to find an easy fix to years of mistreatment.
Long story short, this stuff works, and it's now on sale at Amazon for $8 (was $10).
If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $25 or more.)
After reading a handful of the nearly 36,000 five-star reviews, I added Hard As Hoof to my cart without a second thought. I was skeptical at first that it would actually work — I had tried nail strengthening polishes and never noticed much of a difference — but the price was so low, I decided it was worth a shot.
I first noticed that cream itself is thick, almost like solid coconut oil, and has a scent to match, but easily melts with the heat of your hands. The instructions say to rub the product into your beds, cuticles and undersides of your nails up to three times a day to get the best results, but I settled for once a day because I knew I wouldn't remember to reapply it so frequently. The instructions also specify that you can apply the formula even when wearing polish, and it'll still work to strengthen your nails.
There's a lot going on when it comes to the ingredients in the formula, which likely contributes to why it's so effective. Hard As Hoof comes packed with vitamins A, C, D and E, along with minerals, jojoba seed oil, calcium and beeswax — just to name a few ingredients. The brand promises that with regular use, your nails will grow longer more quickly and you'll notice fewer chips, cracks and peels.
To remind myself, I kept the small pot at my desk alongside my hand cream, so I would remember to massage the formula into my nails first thing in the morning. Even with my sporadic use, the results were quick and shocking.
It's been about three months since I started using this cream, and my nails are the longest they've ever been in my life. They're also incredibly resilient — I have yet to contend with a crack or a chip, which typically happens the moment I even think about growing out my nails. My nails are so strong that when I nicked my finger with a knife while chopping veggies, nothing happened. Before, that would have easily meant a broken nail, but now it's a barely noticeable scratch.
I'm so proud of the length and strength of my new nails, I've started taking better care of them just to make sure they stay this way. And I'm not alone in believing this product to be a gift from the nail gods — plenty of reviewers are experiencing exactly what I am.
"I took my acrylic nails off and my natural nails were extremely damaged......thin as paper and splitting. I thought about putting the acrylic back on," one reviewer said. "I used nail strengtheners that paint on the nails that cost $40, and still they looked bad. Tried this product and within seven days my nail were looking and feeling great and my cuticles are healthy and soft."
Another added: "I've only been using it for about a month but my nails are already SO much stronger. They have ALWAYS peeled and would bend under any pressure, and were so thin that the nail beds would actually get sore sometimes. I'm purposely keeping them shorter, but they are so much harder now! They have stopped peeling, and the dents in my nails have actually FILLED IN!"
According to this reviewer, Hard As Hoof can even help nails stand up to jobs in the service industry. "Let me start off by saying, I'm a bartender. From constantly washing my hands, dipping my hands in sanitizer for a bar rag, and cracking beers, my hands (and nails) go through A LOT," they said. "Today, I finished my first container [of Hard As Hoof] and I gotta say, wow wow wow. My nails have NEVER looked this good or been this strong."
Get it now for $2 off and you'll see the healthiest, happiest nails of your life, no matter how long you've been biting them.
The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.
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