Woman With World's Longest Fingernails Finally Cuts Them for First Time in Nearly 30 Years | "It's Time for Them to Go"

Say hello to the woman with the world’s longest fingernails... well, not anymore.

A Houston woman who held the Guinness World Record for the longest fingernails on a pair of hands has had them cut after nearly 30 years. According to CNN, Ayanna Williams first broke the record in 2017 for the world's longest fingernails when they measured nearly 19 feet long. She later broke her own record for the longest fingernails on a pair of hands (female) with a new length of 24 ft 0.7 in. Just before getting them cut, that is.

Williams went to Dr. Allison Readinger of Trinity Vista Dermatology in Fort Worth, Texas, to have her nails sawed off with an "electric rotary tool." Prior to the cut, a manicure for those hands would take three to four bottles of nail polish over the course of a few days. "With or without my nails, I will still be the queen," Williams said, according to Guinness. "My nails don't make me, I make my nails!"

"I have mixed emotions about my babies going," she said of her nails. Williams has been growing them for "about 28 [or] 29 years." "I’ve been growing my nails for a few decades now. I’m so, so ready for a new life. I know I’m going to miss them, but it’s just about that time – it’s time for them to go." She is now ready for a new chapter in her life with shorter talons. "I'm so, so ready for a new life. I know I'm going to miss them, but it's just about that time – it's time for them to go. I'm just about tired of them so it's time for them to go."

She also admitted that her decision to cut her nails stemmed from difficulty doing daily tasks, something many people may have been wondering about. "With my movements, I have to be very, very careful. So usually in my mind, I'm already preparing for the next step that I have to do to make sure that I don't hurt myself with my nails - or break them," Williams revealed. "I'm excited about cutting my nails because I'm looking forward to new beginnings."

After her procedure, she told the doctor, "I love it" and admitted that her knuckles felt instantly relieved. Williams' record-breaking nails will be preserved at the Ripley's Believe It or Not! Museum in Orlando, Florida. "It's gonna be awesome," she said, according to Guinness. "It's going to be like a wax of myself even though it's just my nails. I can't wait to see that, for real. I'm going to be grinning from ear to ear. Just really think about it, it's amazing." Williams is also is encouraging the next history-making nail enthusiast to grow their nails and go for a title if that's what they want. "Do what you want to do! Let everyone be themselves," Williams said. "If you want to grow your nails long, do it!"

According to the website, even though Ayanna’s most recent measurement broke her own first record, the record for the longest fingernails on a pair of hands ever (female) still stands with Lee Redmond from the USA. Redmond started to grow her nails in 1979 and maintained them to reach a total length of 8.65 m (28 ft 4.5 in).

References:

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/04/07/us/woman-cuts-longest-nails-trnd/index.html

https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2021/4/woman-with-worlds-longest-nails-has-them-cut-after-almost-30-years-654013

Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Photo by Anthony Harvey / Stringer