Taking care of your hands, so they can take care of you.

*This is a review post, I was kindly sent some items to share about*

Taking care of your hands so they can do their job is also important.

Our hands part of our body we use all the time, every day, and a part of us we don’t always think about. They are just there, doing a multifunctional job. When we hurt or injure our hands we then realize how much we use them. I am a person who always looks at someone’s hands when I meet them, and hands fascinate me. I think you can tell a lot about someone’s from their hands.

My hands take a real hammering every day. I work with small children, so I wash my hands a lot, and I also cook and clean at home, and hate wearing rubber gloves. Gardening and cold weather also make life tougher for my hands.

Image from Pixaby

Hands can, like the rest of your body, show your age, and I try to look after them as much as I can. Some things I like to do, to look after my hands and nails looking and feeling good.

Using a good hand cream. Not just every now and then, when I remember, but at regular intervals. I carry a hand cream in my work bag, I have a tube at work, I have one on the sink in my kitchen, and one by my bed. I apply hand cream in the morning, when I do the rest of my skincare, after I have washed up dishes or cleaned up at work, when I am at home and have made my hands work hard, and also in the evening before I go to bed. I also keep a tube of salve in my bag for when the skin on my hands is very dry and sore and needs extra tlc. I use a variety of hand creams. My family will buy me a rather expensive brand I like for Christmas and birthdays, and I tend to buy a more cost-effective brand for day to day use. Running out of hand cream is right up there with running out of coffee for me. I try to avoid it.

Spa treat your hands. If I could, I would love to have someone spa treat my hands every week, but sadly my budget and time don’t allow for this. So I use a hand mask once a week or so to give my hands some extra tlc. The children think it look hilarious but it works to help my hands feel soft and smooth.

Sun protection. When you are applying sun cream, don’t forget your hands. They also are exposed to the sun, and this doesn’t help with dryness or preventing the signs of aging. For day to day use, you can choose a hand cream with SPF in it, and when on holiday or out in hot sunshine, use the SPF you are using on your body to make sure your hands are well protected too. Protecting against sun damage and age spots is just as important for your hands as it is for the rest of your body and face.

Nail care. Your nails need looking after too, and clean, tidy, healthy-looking nails not only make your hands look nicer, but also make you feel good too. I don’t tend to paint or gel coat my nails for everyday wear, but I do look after my nails, and use treatments to strengthen them, and help repair or prevent damage, and I also use a cuticle oil on my cuticles regularly.

Although I don’t paint or gel colour my nails I do like them to have a shine to them, so this glossy top coat works well on bare nails but also on top of nail colours to give a shine and finish, and helps to make nail colour last that bit longer and chip less easily.

Wear gloves for tough jobs. I am not very good at this for indoor jobs like cleaning, because I hate the feel of rubber gloves on my hands, but for gardening or dirty work like cleaning outside, I use a pair of gardening gloves, to protect my hands and keep them from getting hurt too.

Hand and Arm Massage. Whilst we would all love to be able to have a proper massage and a skilled massage therapist spend some time working on our bodies to bring some life back into our tired muscles and help us feel more relaxed and calm, it’s not always easy to find time to enjoy that. Hands and arms can benefit from massage and Nina from Richmond Park Massage Therapy has an easy hand and arm massage that you can do on your own hands and arms when they are feeling tired, sore and overworked, or just to help keep them feeling good.

Image from Pixaby 

Looking after your hands and nails doesn’t have to be hard. Keeping it simple and part of your routine can help to keep them looking and feeling good and working hard for you, for as long as you need them.

Please do share any hand and nail care tips you have, in the comments, it’s always helpful to find out what other people do, to look after themselves.

Posted in Everything else and tagged hand and nail care tips, hand care, nail care, taking care of your hands.