The Total Clutz’s Guide to DIY Nail Repair

January 8, 2015


I don’t know about you, but when I’m reading a good book, I don’t want to put it down even while getting dressed in the morning. Which is how I ended up pulling on pants while standing way too close to my bathroom cabinets, kicked one, and managed to do this:

It looked a lot worse before I washed the blood off

It looked a lot worse before I washed the blood off

The splits went straight back, which on the one hand, yay – despite the bleeding, no actual pieces of nail detached. On the other hand, that is a recipe for yanking them off later, when the split bit gets caught on sock, shoe, sheets, or any number of other objects I manage to whack into because I’m reading instead of paying attention. So off I went to the pharmacy, where I discovered you can in fact, buy a nail repair kit for $12. It contains cyanoacrylate, which, when called “Superglue” instead of “Fancy Nail Repair Kit,” costs quite a bit less.

We didn’t have any superglue at home, but we did have some 5 minute epoxy. Combine that with a tiny little lattice cut from cheesecloth, and there is no longer any danger of further toe-related damage. At least on that foot. Unless my book is really, really good…

It's like the world's tiniest fibreglass cast

It’s like the world’s tiniest fibreglass cast

Share your DIY first aid and grooming tips in the comments!



3 Comments on ‘The Total Clutz’s Guide to DIY Nail Repair’

  1. I did something similar last week — scraping gunk off a hard surface with my thumbnail (yes, dumb) and the thumbnail, split, folded back on itself, and didn’t break off. Usually I just cover something like that with a small bandaid so I won’t catch it on something else, but this was gonna take a long time to grow out and I didn’t want to use up all my bandaids. I cut a little nail-shaped piece of duct tape. Worked like a charm.

    Klutzes of the world, unite!

    Reply | 
    1. Ooh, duct tape, – excellent idea! We must be the only household in the world that doesn’t currently have any, but Tech Support’s industrial strength packing tape may have been an option, as well.

      Reply | 

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