Butter London’s Strengthener Revived My Dry, Brittle Nails

Whether it’s regular gel manicures or assembling IKEA furniture, nails go through a lot without us always realizing it. If you're not blessed with nails of steel, it can seem helpless. However, with the help of some nail R&R, it's possible to nourish and revive dry, brittle nails and restore them to a strong, healthy state. 

Recently, I tried Butter London’s Jelly Preserve Strengthening Treatment, a 10-free nail treatment that’s basically a multivitamin for your manicure. In addition to rehabbing your nails with ingredients like vegetable proteins, açai, calcium, keratin, and vitamin E, it adds a translucent, tinted glaze to your nails. Keep reading for the before and after nail makeover and deets — and to get our reader-exclusive discount code.

My nails are naturally prone to splitting and breaking, so I was super excited to test it out. Even though Butter London's treatment (which comes in a variety of colors) has a slight tint, it's not opaque like nail polish. (The shade pictured above, Strawberry Rhubarb, is giving liquified Jell-O in the bottle, no?) I love doing my own manicures at home, so this was right up my alley.

According to the instructions, you can apply one coat onto clean, bare nails for an ultra-sheer look or layer up to three if you want the jelly-like color to be more vibrant. After brushing on as many coats as you like (I went with one the first time around), let it dry completely. Next, you can apply polish or wear it alone. I layered it with two coats of polish (the brand's Patent Shine 10X Nail Lacquer in Her Majesty's Red) plus Hardware Shine UV Top Coat to seal the deal.

A week later, I removed my polish to assess the health of my nails. To my surprise, they felt pretty good, even after one use. With continued wear, I'm sure I'd see even better results – aka, stronger, longer nails. For $18, I'd call this nail treatment an essential for anyone looking to give their nails a break from gels or acrylics. For a limited time, we scored R29 readers 25% off with the promo code REFINERY25. Healthier nails, here we come.