nails | growing your nails toolkit

the one question I get asked the most.. how do you grow your nails so long?

I certainly put in a lot of effort into keeping my nails in good condition and I think that's the secret. I'll be the first to admit that underneath the polish my nails are very prone to peeling and breaking so I made myself invest in a simple 'toolkit' that I use to keep my nails as strong as possible.

nail file | firstly invest in a good file. if you're using emery boards.. you might as well rub your hands down with sandpaper! thrown those away and grab a good glass/crystal file. definitely an investment worth making as your nails can become more prone to splitting if you damage them with a rough file. I was told by a beautician not to file back and forth like you would if you were using a hacksaw, instead file in strokes from the outside of your nail towards the centre this will shape them better and cause less damage.
cuticle oil | my nails are quite brittle so I like to rub it all over my nail beds and cuticles to nourish them. I love the smell of OPI avoplex oil and cowsheds cuticle oil is a winner for me. it's important to feed your nails so don't skip this part of hand care.
hand cream | yep slather the stuff on, there's so many good ones on the market. burts bees have some lovely ones or soap and glory hand food is a good all rounder. other lux favourites of mine are clarins and cowshed both of which absorbs quickly and are worth the splurge in my opinion.
good quality nail clippers + cuticle scissors | personally I prefer clippers to scissors, best used when your nails are soft to avoid splitting. I tend to trim my nails straight after I've jumped out of the bath. cuticle scissors are a luxury not a necessity but I love using mine, for a cheaper alternative use an orange stick and cuticle remover.
4 way buffer | perfect for when your nails do peel/become uneven and you need to even out the nail bed with a gentle buffing.  
seche vite topcoat | ok I'm not going to rave about this once again but suffice to say after I started using this religiously my nails grew to record lengths. my nails are very weak which is why the tend to bend and spilt. seche makes mine much more robust so they can take the bumps without so much damage. instead of investing in nail growing formula's which contain nasties like formaldehyde put an extra coat of seche vite on top of your nail polish every other day.. for me this worked miracles.
.....yikes that was a bit of an essay!
do you have any top tips?
caroline x