IBX treatment nails is a salon-only repair that sinks into the top layers of the keratin and hardens there, fusing splits and flakes back into one solid surface. Gel, BIAB and hardening polish all sit on top. This works from the inside, so you can’t see it or feel it, there is nothing to remove, and it simply grows out. It was developed by Famous Names, a US brand run by a former CND chief executive, and only trained technicians can apply it in salons.
Two formulas, two jobs
- IBX Repair. The thinner of the two, made for tips that split, crack or show small pits. It seeps into the walls of each damaged spot and holds them together like double-sided tape, sealing the very top layer where the damage shows. It always comes first and never goes on without its partner.
- IBX Strengthen. The main formula, which fuses the upper layers of the plate into one reinforced structure. It is the only one of the two that works as a standalone, so tips that are weak but not yet splitting get this step alone.
How IBX repair nail treatment works
Keratin is built from thin stacked layers. Rushed soak-offs and scraped gel pull gaps between them, and those gaps are why tips flake, bend and snap just as they gain length. The system closes them in four stages:
- Spot repair. The Repair formula goes only where damage is visible.
- Gentle warmth. At 41–44°C, a little warmer than a hot tub, heat carries each formula inward with the help of jojoba and avocado oils.
- Blot and cure. The excess is blotted off, then an LED lamp sets what has soaked in.
- Full coverage. Strengthen goes over the whole plate and repeats the warm, blot and cure cycle, twice on a first visit.
Once cured, the formula bonds to itself rather than to your keratin and contains no formaldehyde. The result is tough but still flexible, never brittle.
Ways to book it
- On its own. Finished with a buff and a natural look. A first visit takes around 30 minutes, follow-ups about 15.
- Before colour. Applied under the base coat of a gel manicure. It adds 15–20 minutes and protects the plate at the next soak-off.
- Under an overlay. Applied to new regrowth before a BIAB infill. Builder gel gives structure on top, while this repairs underneath.
- On toes. The same process fits into a pedicure for toenails that split at the edge.
- In the same hour as other services. Two specialists can work at once, so it sits easily alongside a classic manicure or makeup.
How many sessions you need
- Weekly for three to four sessions when damage is heavy. Never more often, as overtreatment makes keratin brittle.
- Every two to three weeks once flaking stops.
- Once a month to hold the result.
Growth runs at about 3 mm a month, so a fully renewed plate reaches the tip in three to four months.
Who IBX nail strengthening treatment suits
- Thin, bendy tips after gel or acrylic removal
- Flaking at the free edge, splits and ridges
- Regular gel wearers protecting what’s underneath
- Jobs that rule out polish, and men with corners that crack
- Anyone whose length keeps snapping before it grows
Who should wait
- Plates lifting away from the bed (onycholysis)
- Fungal infection, which needs medical treatment first
- Nail psoriasis, which needs a dermatologist’s advice first
- A past reaction to acrylates or nail products
- Broken or inflamed skin around the fingertips
- Pregnancy combined with sensitive skin, which calls for a word with your doctor first
