6 Must-Use Hand and Nail Care Products

Do you take care of your hands? Be honest. In our quest to keep ourselves looking and feeling beautiful, the one area that seems to be routinely neglected are our hands.  This may sound obsessive, but I’ve gotten into the habit of doing something, anything to my hands every 3-4 days when really once a week is all that is necessary. Habits are hard to break.

A pair of dry hands doesn’t make a good first, second or even third impression, and I was pleased when my sister turned me onto the coolest hand cream from the home furnishings store Restoration Hardware called No-Crack® Original Collection (4oz., $8, restorationhardware.com). The name says it all. If you’ve got rough hands, this thick, rich cream will definitely soften them.

Tip 1: Choose an intensive moisturizer if you have very dry hands and moisturize them at least four times a day.

Anti-Aging simply means preserving the sexy for as long as possible and why should that notion stop at your face? The Lippmann Collection has a hand and cuticle cream called ‘Rich Girl’ at nordstrom.com for $26 that contains an SPF of 25 and anti-aging properties. For a fraction of the cost, Boots Pharmacy has a hand and nail product (sans the anti-aging properties and sunscreen) called Boots Mediterranean Hand and Nail Cream for $8.99 (target.com). It’s a cream that treats both your hands and cuticles and softens them with the refreshing scent of lemon and rosemary oil.

Tip 2: Exfoliate your hands weekly with a gentle store-bought or home-made scrub like oatmeal and warm water to reveal softer and healthier looking hands.

One of my true obsessions are my nails and when I found Talika Instant Manicure Nail Whitener 8-ct. ($33, bebeautiful.com), I was impressed. Buffing the nail to make it appear whiter works for some people, but doesn’t work for all which is why these nail whitener packets which contain Vitamin C and lemon (among other ingredients) are ingenious. Just remove your nail polish and pour the powder from the packet into a warm bowl of water and soak your fingertips in the bowl for two to three minutes. What is revealed after this process are brighter and stronger nails.

Tip 3: An at-home remedy for removing stains from your nails is to soak your fingertips in lemon water.

If you don’t wear a ton of color on your nails a good nail lacquer with high shine is always in order. My suggestion: Le Metier de Beaute – Nail Base & Top Coat ($18, bergdorfgoodman.com). But if you are into color, you can never go wrong with a classic NARS Nail Polish (Limited Edition in 4 colors) ($16, nordstrom.com).

Hue Knew It? I did.