a rare "beauty" product endorsement

[lagilman]

For years - YEARS, people - I chewed my fingernails down to the quick. And even after I stopped that, I'd still chew on the cuticles. And I hated that, because ragged bloody fingers do not give a good impression. So the trick was to make sure I didn't have cuticles to chew on. But manicures aren't cheap (not good ones, anyway).

So I've tried a lot of home care products. And most of them...meh. But last month I picked up a pot of Sally Hansen cuticle massage cream, because hey, a $6 experiment.

Best $6 I've spent in a long time. The skin around my nail bed is smooth and healthy after just a week of use, and I can't swear it's related, but my nails are stronger, too. The product feels a little waxy at first, but it massages into the skin easily, and has a nice smell (sort of orange-y) that fades quickly. And even though the pot is tiny (.4 oz), you use so little each time, it lasts much longer than you'd think.

The one drawback is that the plastic protecting the contents is a bitch to get off. Don't try to pull it off - cut it away with a paring knife or scissors.

Comments

[irishkate.livejournal.com]

I have a similar problem - I shall investigate..

Only difficulty is I buy these things and then forget to use them.


aka Thanks

[janetl.livejournal.com]

Waxy? A friend recommend hoof treatment. Yes, for horses. Her manicurist confessed that the little pots of cuticle cream that she sold to clients were hoof treatment. She'd buy a big bottle, then decant it into cute little jars and sell each jar for about what she paid for the whole bottle. I bought some, and one of the ingredients is beeswax, so it feels waxy. A big bottle of this is clearly not a practical solution for an apartment dweller. For a house owner with a garden, it's great to slather on your hands before putting on gardening gloves. You don't get blisters, and when your (inevitably) take off your gloves to do something fiddly, then dirt doesn't get ground into your skin. Note that hoof treatment comes in different formulations, some more aesthetically pleasing than others.

I solved my fingernail chewing problem in an unusual way. I needed crowns on my two front teeth, and I specified that I wanted them to NOT meet my bottom teeth in a scissors bite suitable for fingernails. Now I literally cannot bite my nails.

[lagilman]

Hoof and mane treatments have been a Thing in salons for a while, yah. My skin is annoyingly sensitive, so I have to be careful and read the ingredients before I buy anything new....

and that is...a rather extreme, if practical solution!

[http://users.livejournal.com/la_marquise_de_/]

I like the Sally Hansen stuff for strengthening nails. And, I have to say, my new best cosmetic friend is Plantur 39 shampoo, which is remarkable: it doesn't flatten my hair at all.