If you don't carry a purse, or a man-purse, to keep a file on your person, stash nail files everywhere you frequent. I keep one in the car, work, and home. Being able to quickly file away a snag or imperfection will prevent you from biting your nails.

I find that I most need a nail file when stressed at work, where there's no escape from the snag at hand. Having a nail file easily accessible, in my pencil holder, keeps me ever-ready (and sane!). 

So go forth and hide those files like easter eggs!

Happy New Year!

While we're ringing in the New Year, and thinking of our resolutions for the year, we'd like to suggest making breaking your nail biting habit a priority. While nail biting can seem insignificant to some, to sufferers of the habit it can be an incredibly difficult and significant hurdle to healthy living. In addition to physical symptoms, the mental impact of the habit can be exhausting. No one likes being trapped doing something they don't want to do, and the unconscious mind is often the driving force behind nail biting. Nail biting can be overcome with being mindfully present, and having the right support systems in place, including Nail Quail's Strong Will. So let's break the nail biting habit in 2017, starting NOW!

We wish you all a happy and successful 2017!

As the steamroller of Thanksgiving deals comes to a close, we're going to acknowledge that we are, in fact, an online business. So here's your Cyber Monday Deal - Use our NoBiteNov coupon code at check-out to get 10% off your purchase. One more chance to save before the Turkey sales end for the year!

Hope you all have made improvements throughout #NoBiteNovember. Just a few days left; focus on your nail health and yourself!

Let 'em Grow!

Nail Quail was started when Igor, a chronic nail biter himself, designed Strong Will to break his own habit. We knew that this product was so effective, that we needed to get it out into the public so that we could help others overcome their nail biting. To find out more about us and our company's mission, visit our About Us page.

We're an American brand, made in America, with a deep connection to our local community. In the modern business world, online retailers aren't just mega-brands, but your neighbors.

For Small Business Saturday we're continuing our NoBiteNov coupon code for 10% off. Just enter the coupon code NoBiteNov at check-out to receive 10% off all of our store products, including Strong Will and EZ Flow Cuticle Care. And as always, free shipping for all purchases over $25. Consider getting some Strong Will for a loved one over the holiday season!

And don't forget to push through with #NoBiteNovember! Together we can overcome the nail biting habit. 

Thank you for your support! 

-Adrian and Igor

Hi All,

Now that we've gotten our fingers out of that delicious Thanksgiving food, let's focus again on keeping them healthy and happy. In celebration of #NoBiteNovember shortly coming to a close, and the tidal wave that is Black Friday, we're continuing our #NoBiteNovember discount of 10% off. At check-out simply enter the coupon code NoBiteNov to get 10% off your purchase today, November 25th. Also, as always, Nail Quail offers free shipping for all domestic orders over $25.

Enjoy your leftovers!

Hi All,

In order to spend time with our families and eat too much delicious food together (no regrets!), we're going to be closed for the Thanksgiving holiday. All emails will be addressed Friday during our left-over binge, and orders shipped in between sips of eggnog.

Remember, if you're digging into your Thanksgiving Feast with your fingers, be sure to wash Strong Will off first, and re-apply after. We don't want to be the cause of a yuck-face at the dinner table!

Happy Thanksgiving!

(To all of our non-American followers, Happy Thursday!)

Nail biting is often a habit persisting over years, if not decades. Sometimes it starts in childhood, and resolves there. Sometimes it continues on into adulthood, and sometimes its onset isn't even until adult years.

Regardless of how the habit manifests, one thing rings true, it's a hard habit to break and takes effort and retraining. How often do we hear or wish that we could just "stop it"? It's a process, and through determination and a solid plan, you too can break the nail biting habit.

So how can you be the tortoise?

Have a plan

• Make a plan for how to stop biting your nails or cuticles. Be specific, and write it down (outlines are okay!). 
• The plan should be actionable and achievable.
• Give yourself a reasonable timeline to see growth and feel the urge to bite recede. 

• Find some tortoise buddies. 
• Maybe their goals aren't the same as yours - maybe they're focusing on fitness, or their careers, or learning a new language - but surround yourself with positive, goal oriented people that are also focusing on success and happiness.
• Make it a habit to check in on their progress, and encourage them to do the same for you - be an accountabil-a-buddy!

• Pass on the short term satisfaction of biting for the long term satisfaction of healthy, confident nails.
• Understand that slip-ups can (and probably will) happen. Accept them and move on. Do not let a slip-up spiral out of control. 
• You are awesome, and can do this!

Why cuticles?:

Often in the nail biting world you will see people with perfectly groomed nails, nails that are polished and taken care of, but surrounded by bleeding or sore cuticles. 

Cuticle biting and picking is frequently the result of the cuticles being excessively dry or damaged. This condition can be exacerbated by the fall and winter weather we're starting to get into.

Dryness creates the hard edges that can attract the biter, and the need to correct and flatten out the area leads to over-correction. Sometimes the biting habit surfaces as a urge to remove excess cuticles. If the cuticle is large enough to be bitten, it can often become an irresistible target. 

How cuticle biting can be resolved in a healthy and positive way:

Support system:

It can seem embarrassing, or irrelevant, but try to find a person or two you can talk to about stopping your habit. For me, this was my wife. While I had faced a lot of "just stop it" mentalities, my wife was the first person to address the issue on an emotional level, and help me find a way to break the biting habit without feeling like a terrible person.

Bitter agents:

Just like nail biting, cuticle biting can be approached through using a bitter deterrent. Nail Quail's Strong Will is the best and strongest product on the market for chronic cuticle biting. It isn't a lacquer, unlike other options like Mavala Stop and Thum, so you can be as messy as you want on your skin and cuticles. As it's not a lacquer or polish, it will remain on the skin, rather than peel off. Strong Will has zero smell and dries to be invisible, only leaving an extremely bitter taste. 

Cuticle Oil:

As mentioned earlier, cuticle biting is often sparked by dry, uneven cuticles. Using a cuticle oil will soften the cuticle to make them less noticeable, and harder to bite. Recognizing this benefit, we have done a good deal of research to determine the best cuticle oil option for cuticle biters. We are happy to now offer Ez Flow's Cuticle Care 2-In-1 cuticle cream. Specifically designed to exfoliate dry skin around the cuticle and nail, preventing brittle splits and cracks, this cream is great for promoting healthy skin and nails. It comes in a half ounce easy applicator tube with funnel tip, so that you can specifically target your affected cuticles. Just like Strong Will, it can be applied on the go for convenient and constant support. 

We hope these tips will help you concur your cuticle biting habit. We'd love to hear more suggestions or success stories - feel free to post below!

Dental damages can be devastating on one's confidence and wallet. Nibbling on nails can lead to chipped teeth or in worse cases, cracked teeth. Constant, long term nail biting can also “lead to poor dental occlusion, so the biter’s teeth shift out of position or become oddly shaped,” says Richard Scher, M.D., an expert on nail disorders at Weill Cornell Medical College and a member of the American Academy of Dermatology. Even fixing a single chip can cost in excess of $200. Braces to fix alignment can range anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000! 

More common in kids with developing bones and joints, fingers can become crooked from frequent pressure put onto one place. This happened to me growing up, and even still they are a bit oddly shaped. That's me at 16 by the way.

Simply put, nail biters are at higher risk of getting sick. All of the bacteria we pick up everyday from shaking hands, touching banisters, and opening doors is going straight into your mouth. The introduction of E. Coli into your body can cause stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Staphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of the staph infection, and can lead to painful abscesses which will require medication, and in rarer cases, surgery.

Along the same lines as getting sick, nail biting can lead to acne and blemishes around the mouth. All of the dirt and oils you pick up throughout the day make it onto your mouth area, and can cause white heads or swelling. These can be painful and take a long time to dissipate.

The psychological effects of nail biting presents a vicious cycle. Biting nails causes stress, and stress can make you bite your nails even more. If you need someone to talk to about other stressors in your life, please reach out to a friend, family member, or medical professional.

The nail biting cycle is pervasive and can have longer lasting effects than just painful nails. If you or a loved one is suffering from the nail biting habit, please share these effects, and encourage them to find a healthy and positive way to overcome their habit. Read through other posts here to find helpful tips and support.

Keep up the great work with your #NoBiteNovember progress! Together, we can break the nail biting habit.

One of the most difficult parts of nail biting is feeling alone in the struggle. Often it seems too embarrassing or irrelevant to bring up to friends and family, and those who do know about your struggle can have a "Why don't you just stop it?" stance. A strong support system is hard to develop because it is a habit no one tends to talk about. And unless you've had a history of nail biting, or know someone who has, the struggle of the habit is often misunderstood and its seriousness underestimated.

To kick-off #NoBiteNovember we wanted to share 5 great resources we've found that we think will help in the journey to nail health. Keep these links on hand as you make your way through a November of no biting!

1. This How Stuff Works article, Top 10 Ways to Prevent Nail Biting, is very complete, and focuses on building a support system which we agree is key. It's rather long, and has a lot of click-through pages, but stick it out as it gives some great advice and inspiration.

2. The subreddit, /r/calmhands, is a wonderful, supportive community. Ask questions, start a conversation, and if you're brave, post a photo of your #NoBiteNovember progress!

3. 10 Steps to Quit Even the Worst Nail Biting Habit Once and For All provides a great amount of nail care tips for proper nail health and adds a bit of pop with nail polishes. It's a fun and helpful read! 

4. American Academy of Dermatology is a straight-forward, medically-based resource that goes right to the facts. They even have an explanatory video (trigger warning: the first minute or so does show some rough cases of nail biting).

5. Nail Quail's Nail Biting Info. Yes, we're mentioning ourselves, but we truly believe we have compiled some great info on nail biting, through the perspective and experience of a reformed nail biter. We especially like the "Techniques for Nail Love" section!

And of course we'd like to use Nail Quail's blog as a support system itself. Continue to visit this blog for encouragement, inspiration, and helpful tips on how to break your, or a loved one's, nail biting habit.

Remember, #NoBiteNovember starts today, where we encourage nail biters to make a promise to themselves to not bite their nails, skin, or cuticles for the month of November. Use the coupon code NoBiteNov to get 10% off your purchase of Nail Quail's Strong Will, to help you in the path to nail re-growth.

Let 'em grow! 

Just think of all of the useful, silly, and wonderful things you can do with fully grown nails. People on the outside of nail biting often underestimate how satisfying these actions can be. So here's Nail Quail's list of awesome things you can do with nails! Read through it, and comment with some of you own ideas. 

Picking up coins - For anyone who has struggled with nail biting, this is one of the biggest disadvantages to not having nails. Not only does it become incredibly difficult to pick up flat objects like coins and credit cards off a flat surface, but if doing so in front of others, the stress of an audience watching can be palpable. Successfully and easily picking up coins is a huge perk to growing back your nails.

Peeling stickers off fruit - Think of the frustration in the break room, cafeteria, or kitchen of trying to work that tiny, unyielding sticker off of your piece of fruit or veggie. Now think of the satisfaction of knowing that will never happen again with healthy nails!

Opening a soda can - Now this is just down right utilitarian. Having nice nails not only means healthy nails, or good looking nails, but also useful nails.

Scratch a loved one - The saying, "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" can finally become a literal reality. Really though, it's not just you that benefits from healthy nails.

Nail polish fun! - For those of you interested in painting your fingernails, having fully grown nails means you have a medium on which to work your wonders! Want to try out some flashy colors, match an outfit, or do a funky pattern? Now you don't have to be afraid to highlight your nails!

Point with confidence - This is a huge one for professionals. Need to point on a report, or show off a product in your hands? Now you don't have to think twice! It's amazing what a stress relief it is to not even have to think about posing your hands to obscure view of your nails.

Is there something else you're looking forward to doing with your nails? A recent example of a personal victory over nail biting? Comment and inspire!

Also, don't forget that in just 3 short days #NoBiteNovember starts! Get 10% off all sales using the coupon code NoBiteNov at checkout. Please continue to visit Nail Quail's blog over the month of November for inspirational posts, loads of tips and tricks, and most importantly a supportive community. Let's let 'em grow!

#NoBiteNovember is a promise. It's a promise to yourself that you will not bite your nails, cuticles, or skin for the entire month of November. It's a promise that when stress and anxiety pokes and prods, you won't let it get to you.

Nail biting is one the most difficult habits to conquer. Use the knowledge that we are all in this together, around the world, to empower you to stop the habit.

Get ready for #NoBiteNovember with Strong Will by getting 10% off your purchase using the coupon code: NoBiteNov

For the month of November we will be sharing inspirational posts as well as tips and tricks on our Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest for how to stop your nail biting habit.

Come to our blog for support and community. Together, we can stop the nail biting habit and promote nail comfort and health.

1. Go outside and take a walk. Even a 5 minute stroll around the building can reduce your stress by taking your mind off of business and clear your senses. Alternately, ask your boss if you and your team can have a walking meeting! Fresh air does wonders for creativity.
2. Grab a big glass of water. Not only do you get to walk away from your desk to decompress, but staying hydrated has the added benefit of boosting your immune system, aiding digestion, and keeping you away from sodas and juices which can help your waistline.
3. Make good food choices. That new burrito place around the corner sounds promising, but big meals and large sugary changes can make you lethargic and irritable. Eating smaller, more frequent meals keeps you alert, satiated, and balanced. Focus on healthy fats and proteins, like avocados and grilled chicken. If you're able, taking some time to yourself over your lunch break to decompress is also incredibly beneficial in allowing you to regroup and focus on you.
4. Create time management schedules. Staying organized and on top of tasks is the key to a well functioning workplace. Unexpected circumstances will always arise, but knowing how to work around them with elegant solutions is vital.
5. Get a good night’s rest. Of course we might not be able to get 8 hours of sleep each night with the baby fussing or the neighbor’s dog barking at 6am, but trying to get as much as you can will improve your mood and your metabolism.

So how do you all avoid stress at work? Any advice on game plans that have worked for you? 

Your EDC kit should be simple, portable, and easily accessed. A simple nail clipper/file combo is inexpensive and can be found at any local convenience store. If you want a premium option, this one offered by Victorinox is really nice. Attach it to your keys and it will always be with you to clip off hang nails and round off points to make your nails neat, tidy, and snag-free.

Strong Will is an intensely bitter reminder to leave your nails alone. Sometimes, absent-mindedly, your nails will make their way into your mouth and that is when Strong Will kicks in. It's portable and discrete size allows it to fit virtually anywhere. Since it is odorless, you can apply anywhere, quickly on the go. 

A notepad and pen is not only a perfect way to recall notes and grocery lists but also keeps your hands busy through writing or doodling. This also has the benefit of lowering stress and anxiety by getting tasks down on paper instead of keeping everything in the front of your mind.

Lastly, I like to carry a travel-sized nail file with a few different grit patterns. Fine files (240-600 grit) are for shaping and eliminating burrs, ultra fine files (600-2400 grit) are for smoothing and polishing.

What is the most valuable part of your EDC?

After months of planning, development, prototyping, and finally production, Strong Will by Nail Quail has arrived. We are super excited about helping people of all ages break the habit of nail biting and hope to promote good nail health. If you are just hearing about Strong Will for the first time, please visit our product page and read the about us section as well.

A big thank you to everyone who pre-ordered Strong Will. We are working to fill your orders, and you will receive an email confirmation with tracking info.

We're also working on creating a short video introducing Strong Will and ourselves. We begin filming in October and hope to have it up in the next few months.

Any questions? Feel free to email us: info@nailquail.com

Stress is a part of all of our lives - there is just no way to get around it. For sufferers of nail biting, stress and anxiety manifests itself physically which can lead to tattered and hurting nails which in turn compounds the stress. It creates a vicious cycle of anxiety.

Hobbies which keep our hands and minds occupied are a fantastic way to suppress the nail biting urge. Here are 4 hobbies with little to no investment you can do today to melt away the stress:

Take a hike!

• Hiking connects you to nature and makes you develop a better appreciation of your surroundings. You’ll be concentrating on your immediate steps to navigate terrain, and steeper trails will even require you to scramble by grasping different obstacles. Your anxiety will be forgotten and you’ll explore new places. Win-win. If you’ve never gone hiking before, lace up some tennis shoes and check out your local park, or just go for a long walk around your neighborhood. Simply google “hiking near me” to find a variety of trails!

Go for a ride!

• Cycling is one of my favorite activities for keeping hands busy because you have to keep your hands on the handlebars! You can explore several miles away from your starting point pretty quickly. In addition, it is a terrific low-impact sport which encourages weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. If you’re just beginning, jump over to your local bike shop. They have a wealth of knowledge to find the right bike for you in your budget and help you find safe, local routes. If you’re mechanically inclined, check out Craigslist for nice second-hand bikes that may only need minor adjustments.

Express yourself!

• Express your emotions, feelings, and experiences by working out that left side of our brain. Or simply paint a beautiful scene! Water colors and pastels are easy and an inexpensive way to introduce yourself into the art world. Painting with water colors is very expressive and drys quickly. Pastels are like crayons for adults, not that there is anything wrong with crayons. There are even adult coloring books that can be picked up at your local book shop.

Get to snapping!

• Are you an Ansel Adams or a Henri Cartier-Bresson? Maybe you're a Richard Avedon? No matter what style you like, get outside and start snapping photos. Get your creative juices going and interact with your environment, getting the right angles and the right time of day for the ideal light. Your mind will be working and your hands will be busy with holding the camera and adjusting settings. Take a look on Craigslist for lightly used cameras. You don't need a bulky DSLR, even a lightweight compact can allow you to take stunning photos.

What hobbies do you enjoy to relieve stress?

Welcome to Nail Quail. For more than 25 years, I was a continuous nail biter. I tried using all sorts of methods to control anxiety and prevent the physical manifestation of nail biting also known as Onychophagia. Stress balls, snapping rubber bands, and nail polish. But stress balls were forgotten, rubber bands broke, hurt, and looked unprofessional, and nail polish chipped and was inconvenient to apply. I used every existing anti-nail biting formula on the market, and none of them worked. Some were made of dangerous chemicals I did not feel comfortable using, some left a high sheen that looked terrible when chewed, some didn't taste bad at all, and some were even highly flammable! I could not handle the frustration and embarrassment of having chewed and hurting nails and nail beds anymore. Along with my wife Adrian, we created a formula which is derived from natural sources, can be quickly applied, and is incredibly bitter to help break the habit of nail biting: Strong Will. In addition to new products and news, this blog will also be a haven of positive encouragement, anxiety relief tips, and anti-nail biting inspiration. Together, we can help stop the nail biting habit and promote nail health.