Tech Insider/Megan Willett
This manicure has withstood three sinks-worth of dishes.
Dirty dishes are a manicure's worst enemy.
As a renter for my entire adult life (and a millennial who might never own a home), I do not have a dishwasher and don't think I will any time soon. I'm left to wash all of my dishes by hand, which is fine with me - but it's not fine with my nails.
Hand-washing dishes can wreak havoc on a manicure. I find that a regular manicure with plain polish and a topcoat will start to dull or chip after only a few days when I'm consistently washing dishes. This led me to try gel manicures, more heavy-duty treatments that are supposed to last up to two weeks with no chipping. But even they often can't withstand a few loads of dishes, undergoing the same dulling and chipping as a regular mani.
This is not only annoying, but costly and time-consuming - whether or not you head to the salon to get your nails done.
But recently, I stumbled upon an old trick from the '60s that really extended the life of my manicure: dish gloves.
Tech Insider/Megan Willett
It seems really obvious, but it had never occurred to me to don these yellow rubber gloves when washing the dishes. I didn't even own a pair until recently - I had always seen them as a cleaning accessory more suited to a 1960s housewife than me. I'm not one of those compulsive cleaners who is always scrubbing away at something, so dish gloves always felt unnecessary.
But I ended up buying them because I had a full bottle of bleach spray whose nozzle was leaking all over the place. I didn't want to buy a new bottle, so I figured I'd protect my hands from the bleach with those yellow gloves my mom used to use.
I picked up my first pair at Duane Reade - you can also buy them online for as little as 80 cents - and started using them for all of my cleaning needs, including the dishes.
To my surprise, this led to my manicure staying immaculate much, much longer than usual - about two weeks on average. Whether I do my nails at home, get a plain manicure at a salon, or spring for a more expensive gel manicure, it stays flawless for a markedly longer amount of time if I'm using dish gloves.
Let's say I get either a gel manicure ($30 including tip) or a regular manicure ($15 including tip) every two weeks because of the chipping caused by washing dishes. Over the course of a year, I'll spend $360 to $720 on my nails (and that's not including pedicures in summer months).
But with my new trick, I find myself going for a manicure only about once a month, maybe twice if I have a special event coming up. This is because my professional manicures last longer and I'm more likely to do my own nails because the dish gloves make even my amateur-level manis last a week or more. So now, if I'm getting my nails done 1.25 times a month, I'll spend $225 to $450 times a year. I'll be closer to the $225 figure, too, because now, it's not necessary for me to get gels every time.
Tech Insider/Megan Willett
My manicure is safe and sound.
That's the other great part: This hack dissuades me from getting gel manicures. While I love gel manicures - they're more sturdy than regular manicures, they look better, and they last longer - they're not great for your nails. They can bond a bit too well to your nails, leaving them thin and brittle after you remove the gel, as anyone who's ever had gels can tell you. Plus, the UV lamp required to set gel nails doesn't seem too safe to me.
They're also expensive at $25 a pop.
But with my dish-washing glove trick, I don't feel a need for a heavy-duty manicure since my regular old nail polish is lasting longer.
Now that I know the secret of the dish gloves, I will never be without a pair next to my sink.