Our poor hands take a battering all year round, but in winter months they suffer more than ever. Hand washing, hand sanitisers, spending time outdoors, spending time indoors – you name it, our hands get subjected to all sorts of activities that will leave the skin dry, sore and dehydrated. It is essential to keep hands hydrated to prevent cracks & sores, also to keep them looking fresh & youthful. Here are 7 simple tips to keep your mitts well nourished & in tip top condition.
1. Always use gloves: Whenever washing the dishes or cleaning always protect your hands with rubber gloves. I love these Natural Latex Gloves from Peace with the Wild, they are plastic free, biodegradable, sustainable & compostable:
2. Don’t use hot water: When you wash your hands always go for warm/cool. Hot will strip your hands of their natural moisture even further.
3. Don’t hot air dry, or over dry: Avoid hot air dryers as they tend to over dry. If you can, just pat dry and apply moisturiser immediately to lock in some of the moisture on damp skin.
4. Don’t use soap: Now I know what you’re thinking here – don’t use soap?! Traditional ‘Soap’ is very drying, it can wreck the skin’s natural flora & fauna & strip it’s moisture, natural oils & defences. Use a gentle, natural hand wash that is ph balanced for the skin such as Tropic Signature Hand Wash or a Cleansing Body Pebble (you can purchase those here). If like me, you struggle with soap in public loo’s/the workplace, take a refillable bottle with you. These squeezy travel bottles are handy.
5. Exfoliate: If you get rid of the scaly dead skin cells it helps with 2 things. Firstly, your moisturisers will reach deeper layers rather than being wasted on skin that is already dead, secondly, your hands will appear less dull & dry. You can easily make a DIY scrub (see the 2 recipes below, but if you fancy a little gorgeous smelling luxury, I recommend a small scoop of Tropic Body Smooth Smoothing Body Polish.
Method: Exfoliate for 30 seconds to a minute & rinse. Gently pat dry & be sure to immediately moisturise the fresh skin underneath.
With both recipes you can add a couple of drops of pure essential oil if you’d like it to smell nice, be wary if your skin is broken though as this may irritate. If your hands are feeling sore go for an oatmeal recipe.
Standard Sugar scrub: Mix 1 tea spoon of olive/coconut oil and 2 table spoons of granulated sugar & rub all over your hands for around a minute, rinse & gently pat dry.
Sore hands Oatmeal scrub: Add one cup of oats to a food processor & pulse until it becomes a fine powder, slowly add equal parts of warm water (you won’t need much) & olive/coconut oil until your mixture is wet enough to form a paste
6. Don’t forget your cuticles! We seldom do anything for our cuticles, but these delicate little nail bed protectors need some TLC too. Hang nails (the peely bits of skin on the sided of your nails) are not only painful (when they catch on literally everything you touch) but if you re not careful can get infected too. Ensure you use a nourishing cuticle oil once a day to keep them supple & well moisturised. Tropic Organic Nail Nectar is fabulous for the job, it also smells utterly amazing (like the 80's multicoloured sweets, Refreshers). Massaging the oil in, also helps to stimulate nail growth & promotes healthy, well nourished nails. Alternatively, you could use olive oil (but it defo won't smell as nice).
7. Moisturise, moisturise, moisturise! At every opportunity, get more moisture onto your hands. Make sure you go for a good quality products that will help the problem rather than mask it. Some fabulous recommendations below. All can be purchased through this link.
Signature Hand Collection £24
This nifty duo are the perfect pair so sensitive washing & after moisturisation. Signature Hand Wash & Signature Hand Lotion are made with pH-balanced ingredients that won’t strip your skin or cause it to dry out further. Coconut cleansers in the Hand Wash keep the skin barrier strong & healthy while antibacterial essential oils not only create the uplifting scent, they stop bacteria spreading. Signature Hand Lotion contains glycerin and aloe vera intensely hydrate while shea butter and macadamia oils nourish & condition skin so your hands will never feel anything but soft and smooth. Sinking in fast, you can simply pump and go.
The products can be purchased individually however, the set saves you a whopping £12! When you're running low you can purchase a refill so no plastic goes to landfill too.
Superfood Hand Therapy £12
A light and natural hand cream that’s easily absorbed, it contains olive squalane and mango butters to hydrate and ease any taut sensations along with brightening papaya extract, so your hands will look and feel healthy. They’ll smell incredible too, thanks to the luxurious bergamot, grapefruit, lime and mandarin essential oils that conjure up images of freshly cut citrus fruits on a warm day.
Hand Creambalm £12
Designed to not only soothe & condition your skin, these three delicious creambalms are infused with distinct aromatherapy blends to enhance your mood. Like a mini moment of self-care, choose from Uplift to boost your mood, Recharge to wake you up or Unwind to help chill you out. The most hard-working hand creams you’ll find, they not only sink in super fast so you don’t have to wait around for them to dry before you get on with your day, they’re also the perfect size for stashing away everywhere, from your handbag to your desk drawer or jacket pocket.
And finally! Why not book yourself in for a manicure? A manicure can help to revitalise & drench your skin with moisture, offering intense hydration & much needed pampering. Check out my Treatment Menu for more info on the options.
I hope you found these tip's useful. If you'd like to know a little more about the Skincare Products I have recommended & why I love them so much, take a look at my page. Or, always feel free to contact me I'd love to hear from you.
Until next time, Vicky 💚