7 Nuggets of Beauty Wisdom I'll Never Forget Some of the skin care, hair, and nail tips that still stick with me to this day MICHELLE LEE JAN 18

After many years of working in beauty, I’ve held onto a pretty hefty mental cache of beauty advice—tips I learned from various experts, read in research, or just figured out on my own through everyday living and testing. Yes, we all know about drinking plenty of water and layering skin care thinnest to thickest. But here are some of the lesser-known tidbits that have stuck in my memory through the years. Gently blow-drying is actually better for your hair than air drying Heat styling catches a lot of flack, and for good reason. Heat does damage hair. But your hair is actually in a very vulnerable state when it’s soaking wet because it swells and becomes weak. A study in Korea found that “Using a hair dryer at a distance of 15 cm with continuous motion causes less damage than drying hair naturally.” So it’s better to apply heat protectant and blow it dry on a low heat setting until it’s 90 percent dry. Mind-blowing, right? 7 Nuggets of Beauty Wisdom I'll Never Forget Some of the skin care, hair, and nail tips that still stick with me to this day After many years of working in beauty, I’ve held onto a pretty hefty mental cache of beauty advice—tips I learned from various experts, read in research, or just figured out on my own through everyday living and testing. Yes, we all know about drinking plenty of water and layering skin care thinnest to thickest. But here are some of the lesser-known tidbits that have stuck in my memory through the years. Gently blow-drying is actually better for your hair than air drying Heat styling catches a lot of flack, and for good reason. Heat does damage hair. But your hair is actually in a very vulnerable state when it’s soaking wet because it swells and becomes weak. A study in Korea found that “Using a hair dryer at a distance of 15 cm with continuous motion causes less damage than drying hair naturally.” So it’s better to apply heat protectant and blow it dry on a low heat setting until it’s 90 percent dry. Mind-blowing, right? Paint your nails earlier in the day If you use regular polish, don’t do your nails after 4PM. Even though it may feel dry after 20 or 30 minutes, polish can still be prone to dings and wrinkles for hours after it feels set, especially if you’ve done multiple or thicker coats. I’ve gone to bed many hours after polishing only to wake up with bed wrinkles etched onto my nails. If you go to a a salon, take the morning or lunchtime appointment. I used to paint my nails clear or Black.