Hi there friends!
PoP reader Hanneri asked me in my first post what I do to maintain my nails in my work environment, so your wish is my command dahling!
First a confession: I am a reformed cuticle-picker! It was a compulsion and I've been doing it since I was a kid. It looks terrible, often feels terrible, but somehow is really satisfying (and probably classified as self-mutilation...). Several years ago I finally decided that enough was enough and that grown-ups shouldn't have hands that look like they've been rubbed on a cheese grater!
How I solved the problem was the same way I keep cuticles happy now: moisturizing!
Now I work in a lab where I do the complete opposite of moisturizing all the time. I douse my hands in ethanol to do lab work. I wash my hands 80 squimillion times a day. I use noxious chemicals. I snap things open and closed. I pick at metal things. I pick at glass things. Read: cuticle torture.
But the solution is simple - I swear by these three products:
L-R:
Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream
CVS Healthy Hands Hand & Nail Care Lotion
Sally Hansen Maximum Growth Cuticle Pen
Burt's Bees claims to be a cuticle 'cream' but I would describe it more as a balm. I love this product because its easy to use on-the-go. I keep a little tin in my briefcase and apply it whenever - on the bus, in the hospital, at my desk, in a seminar, etc. It's not as messy as a creme, smells like real lemons (one of my favourite scents ever), and does a great job at nourishing the part of your nail/cuticle that get dry, hard and tacky.
Now I've used a lot of hand creams. I go through it like a teenage boy goes through burgers. I've tried all different brands/price ranges/consistencies/ingredients. I have many different kinds at home that I've gotten on sale (i.e. Rescue Beauty Lounge hand cream for $2!) but this is the one I always come back to and keep a stock of at work. First of all, it doesn't smell offensive, so my labmates won't kill me for stinking up the place. It just smells like 'pink lotion' if that makes any sense. I keep the scented ones at home. It's also chock full of goodies like keratin, alpha hydroxy, and vitamin E. For me, vitamin E is the key for keeping your skin moisturized long after you've put lotion on. It's a work-horse I tell ya! It also sinks in super quickly so I don't have to wait before doing anything after I put it on. Its cheap, smells nice, and works really hard for you. What more could you ask?
Sally Hansen's Cuticle Pen is a product that doesn't seem that popular and I'm psyched to have a platform to *rave* about this. It's described as "maximum growth" which isn't something I care about, but I find that it is simply an amazing cuticle oil! It is made of mostly safflower seed oil, but also contains yummy things like aloes, wheat germ oil, apricot seed oil, and the amazing vitamin E, among other things. It smells like almond oil to me (love!) but there isn't any in there. I may be crazy, but whatever it smells good! But the absolute best thing about this is the application method. It's in a pen where you twist the end, and some comes out on to the little brush (see pic below) and you can apply it precisely to your cuticle. It seems like a small amount in the pen but it lasts a long time, even with my chronic use. I think this is because you can apply it exactly where you want in the amount you want - no waste. I find there's no mess, and it's a totally luxurious oil. I stock up on these whenever they go on sale at the drugstore.
My routine at work is whenever I go to my desk to write something down or look something up, I put on a little hand cream. This has become a total reflex! Whenever I have a little longer or I'm just doing some reading, I put on a cuticle treatment - whichever one I'm in the mood for! Really simple, but it works. Nobody wants to pick a moisturized cuticle - no fun!
It feels like a little bit of luxury to give your hands a treat during the work day - like you're getting a minute at the spa in the midst of all the madness!
Do you guys have any creams/oils/products that you swear by? I'd love to hear about them!
<3
kittytokaren
