Refining Your Hands

A woman’s hands are exposed to the elements daily from washing dishes to typing emails. Great looking hands and nails make a strong impression and so do troubled ones. If your hands are dry, your nails are brittle or uneven, or your cuticles are hard and curling, its time for some hand help. Overworked hands need care and attention to look their best. (See Nail Care)

What you’ll need: lavender essential oil, cuticle cream.

v  Soak The Hands: Soak your hands with warm water. Add 2 drops of lavender essential oil. Lavender acts as a soothing antibacterial agent, helping to clean and disinfect nail beds. Immerse the tip of your fingers into the water making sure your nails and cuticles are completely covered. Soak for five minutes. This softens the cuticles and helps prepare the nails for additional care. Apply cuticle cream on a regular basis.

v  Exfoliation and Grooming: Exfoliate with your favorite scrub, working from the top of your hand up your fingers to the nails and around the cuticles. Rinse; then with an emery board (metal files can damage nails), file each nail from one side to the center with one smooth movement and repeat from the other side. Push back cuticles using an orange stick wrapped in a small piece of cotton (never cut your cuticles, as this can cause infection).

v  Hydrating Massage: Your hands have fewer oil glands than the skin on the rest of your body. Apply an extensive restorative lotion, such as vitamin E or hemp to keep them well hydrated. Disperse a small amount in your hands and rub them together to spread the lotion evenly. While hydrating your skin, give yourself a simple massage to help relieve hand fatigue. With your thumb, rub deeply in small cuticles all over your palm and along the length of each finger.

v  Nail Buffing: Finish your manicure by giving your nails a natural shine, using a buffing file or block. Hold the buffer between your thumb and finger; curl the fingers of your other hand in toward your palm. Slightly extend one finger at a time and use the buffer in a back and forth motion across each nail, using quick, smooth strokes to give nails a long lasting polished shine.