Perfectly Polished Tips 206 - Saving Winter Cuticles

Fall and winter are horrible on my skin. It probably doesn't help that I never moisturize consistently ever. I don't get it, I know that using oil or lotion will help the gross situation on my hands and I just don't do it. Minds are crazy things. I wanted to share my favorite products that give great results.

Cuticle Removal -
If it's been awhile and your cuticles are over grown and just plain nasty I recommend trying Blue Cross cuticle remover. I get mine from Sally's, it's a white liquid that you apply to your cuticles and then wash away. I can't remember if they carry a smaller bottle but the one I got was huge. I suggest either decanting some into an empty nail polish bottle and using the brush to apply or some type of bottle with a dropper. This stuff is pretty powerful so make sure not to use it too often or leave it on for too long. I usually use it once every two weeks and leave it for about a minute.

Another product I love is Sally Hansen Diamond Strength Cuticle and Nail Refiner. It's pretty much an exfoliator for your finger tips. If my cuticles are looking really rough I use this after the Blue Cross remover.

Usually my next step is pushing back my cuticles but I recently read that this is no good. Cuticles are there to protect your nail beds and when you push them back you are exposing the nail bed. Now what? I would like to hope that moisturizing alone will remedy this but I am not so sure. Any thoughts?

Treatment -
CND Cuticle Eraser will always be a favorite of mine. It's made up of AHAs which help to dissolve all of the dry, yucky skin. For a while I was only able to get this online and when my nail polish purchasing decreased it was silly to spend an insane amount on shipping for a tube of it. Luckily someone told me about a brand that Sally's carried. I can't find it on their web site but it was the same deal as Cuticle Eraser, AHA cream. It looks like Sally's has a Poshe AHA cream that is probably similar.

Moisture -
Currently I have been using Badger Balm for cuticles which I picked up with an Apothica.com order a few months ago. It's not overly greasy and it doesn't really have a scent which I like. Burt's Bees Lemon cuticle balm is also nice. As is LUSH Lemony Flutter. For the first time ever I live near a LUSH store so I am super excited to head over there one of these days.

Oils are another great option for keeping cuticles soft. I recently picked up Josie Maran Argan oil. I use it mostly for my face but it is very nice on the nails/hands. Extra Virgin unrefined coconut oil is another top pick of mine. I actually use this on my entire body. One facebooker told me that they liked almond oil to treat their dry cuticles. EVOO is another option.

I hate lotions, I cannot find one that won't break out my face. What does hand lotion have to do with my face you ask? Well I am a constant face toucher, all the time and I cannot break myself from the habit. I even tried wearing foundation in hopes that it would help me stop. Nope, I quit wearing foundation because some nights I'm too lazy to wash my face before bed (WHAT!?!). Yes, maybe that has something to do with my face break outs too.

I will tolerate Eucerin Dry Skin Therapy plus Intensive Repair hand lotion. It sinks in quickly and is pretty long lasting, usually I still feel smooth 2 or 3 hand washes later. I'm also loving Weleda Skin Food. It's very thick so I try to apply it before bed.

Although I am no longer an avid participant of the MUA Nail Board I do read there from time to time. Lately the ladies over there have been raving about Lansinoh Lanolin, the stuff many women use while breastfeeding. This stuff is very greasy though and can stain so while it may work very well I'd be weary about getting on my clothing. I haven't personally tried this but lanolin is supposed to be awesome all around so it's probably worth a shot.

Those are some of my favorite products, not necessarily just for fall and winter but year round. Hopefully they help out any one in need of some cuticle pampering!

Did I forget anything? What are your favorite cuticle care items?

Perfectly Polished Tips 67 - Lippmann Collection Base Coat & Cuticle Remover

This is Lippmann's Cuticle Remover, it contains lanolin oils to help soften your cuticles while the chemicals do
the removing. I like to use this weekly after I scrub with Sally Hansen Cuticle & Nail Refiner. The SH scrub loosens everything and then this stuff gives it the last push to detach from my nail beds. It has a brush like the nail colors but it also comes with a dropper. You can either brush it on, drop it on, or put a few drops in warm water and soak your nails. I've done all except the last. It's not messy at all and it has no smell. I think it's pretty moisturizing. My cuticles definitely do benefit from it.

This guy over here is Lippmann's Rehydrating Base Coat. It contains aloe to help nails stay well hydrated. I know their nail colors have bitotin in them but I could not find anything that said if this did or not. I've been using this as a base for all my manicures for about 3 weeks now. My nails are definitely stronger (except for the one I jammed and it now has a tear very low down) and they aren't at all stained from all the dark shades I've been wearing. I always see a "Do not get on skin" caution on nail polish and I never understood why. Well now I do, this is super drying to my cuticles and the skin around them. I have to be very careful to make sure I leave a gap or else I am plauged with dried out yucky looking skin for a couple of days. The upside to that though is that I remember to use my CND Cuticle Eraser and LUSH Lemony Flutter.

I would reccomend both of these products. I am sure that there are cheaper alternatives to them though. For cuticle removers I really like Orly Cutique and a lot of ladies over at MUA rave about a Sally Hansen one in a blue bottle. I haven't tried that one. As for the base coat, Sally Hansen makes a hydrating base coat call Nail Quencher, I actually picked it up at Wal Mart for $2 the other day. These two products are worth it for me but since everyone is different you really have to try different things to see what works for you.

Perfectly Polished Tips 04 - LUSH Lemony Flutter

My manicure routine would be incomplete with out this product. It moisturizes like no other cuticle cream or balm I've ever used before. This product contains a mixture of beeswax, shea butter, avocado oil, and a fresh lemon scent among other things. It has a nice texture, it does not stay greasy or slimy. A little bit definitely goes a long way. At first I could not stand the smell, it reminded me of my son's diaper rash cream. After a few tries though the smell didn't bother me, and I found that it did not linger, especially if you followed it up with your favorite hand lotion.

LUSH Lemony Flutter can be found on www.lush.com.

A few of my other favorite cuticle products include:
Burt's Bees Lemon Cuticle Creme.
Seche Soft Cuticle Softener
CND Solar Balm

For removal I like Orly Cutique, which works as a cuticle remover and nail stain remover in one.

Perfectly Polished Tips 03 - CND Cuticle Eraser

This is another holy grail product for me. I was introduced to it by the lovely ladies on the Makeup Alley nail board. This product contains alpha-hydroxy acids or A.H.As which exfoliate and condition your cuticles to help prevent hang nails & messy cuticles. I try to use it at least twice a day, usually I only get it on once right before bed. Even using it once a day still helps a lot. Before finding nail polish and the desire to keep my nails and hands looking nice I was a big nail biter, cuticles and all, so this product helped clean me up so there was nothing to bite.