You know that time of the year when the heating goes on and the leaves begin to fall? Well as soon as Autumn hits, my hands seem to go through their very own metamorphosis and begin their descent in to eighty-year-old woman status. Now we are nearly done with Winter my hands have had more hand cream applications than I’ve had cups of tea.
In the past I have suffered from painful eczema on my hands and legs which was aggravated by anything perfumed or chemical based. Every cloud has a silver lining though and the lovely boys that I lived with at uni took pity on me and did my washing up for a whole year(!) These days I seem to have the eczema under control but I like to keep a stash of hand cream with me at all times to keep my mitts super nourished and soft.
Vaseline Intensive Rescue Soothing Hand Cream | £3.74
Don’t be fooled by the Vaseline name, there’s no thick style petroleum jelly here. This cream is heavy duty but in a delicate formula and cleared up Charlotte’s dry hands after just a couple of applications.
Avon Care Cocoa Butter Rejuvenating Moisture Hand Cream | Around £1.75
Although I do some consultancy work for Avon HQ, I promise I wouldn’t recommend a product if I didn’t love it to bits. The whole Avon Care range is cheap as chips and so you can afford to have one in your bag, on your desk and by your bed. The range is quickly absorbed and the new cocoa butter one smells divine!
Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Concentrated Hand Cream | £3.85
A teeny, tiny tube of Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Concentrated Hand Cream will last you a while as you only need a smidgen of this to sort out chapped hands. As it has a slight gel like consistency it can be a tad greasy but definitely does a great job of healing weather beaten skin.
L’Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream | £19.00
L’Occitane’s Shea Butter Hand Cream is one of their bestsellers. Although it’s on the pricey side it protects and moisturises to the max and smell pretty good too. It’s not greasy at all so you don’t end up with an oily residue on your keyboard after applying.
Soap & Glory Hand Food™ Hand Cream | £5.00
Macadamia and Marshmallow? Yes, please! This stuff has the distinctively delicious Soap and Glory scent and a light consistency. Probably one of my all time favourite creams. It doesn’t last as long as other formulas but nourishes my hands almost immediately.
So that’s my five choices for super soft hands. I’d love to know your suggestions?
Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners’ Therapy for me, every time – and it smells lovely. In my handbag always 🙂
I’ve pretty much tried every handcream ever made it feels like. The best ever is Lavera basis – its so good. Organic too. Can’t recommend enough.
I’m always always trying handcreams and find it hard to get one that is as good as the Aveda or Origins one, but I got a small tube of the Lavera basis one in my glossybox or birchbox and it’s amazing! I love it! Sinks it, soothing, organic and lovely. Otherwise I recommend getting one with an SPF in it as our hands are the part of us which age the most – Eve Lom do a great one.
It probably won’t come as a surprise that I am a massive fan of Avon Care hand cream…my hand get so dry in the winter that I tend to have to have a moisturiser in my bag, by my bed…just about everywhere! So the fantastic price tag means I am not too worried about bulk buying.
I also love Vaseline’s healthy hand and nail conditioning lotion…not only does it keep my hands moisturised, it also helps my nails grow (really, it does)! xx
This Winter I discovered Aveeno’s hand cream which is amazing. My partner (a mechanic, his hands are in a dreadful state especially in winter) was advised to use it by his friend (a landscape gardener who also suffered in winter). I know, can you imagine 2 blokey blokes at the pub comparing hand creams?! I bought him some and it is wonderful. I now use it and have never found anything to beat it. Everyone I have recommended it to has tried it and stuck with it. About £5 per tube and often on offer, I have seen it discounted at Superdrug and Sainsbury’s recently! OK, so it is not a glamorous brand in slinky packaging, but it does an amazing job so I don’t care!! I highly recommend it. x
I swear by the Aveeno cream for my face Sara, I’ve tried all sorts of fancy brands (yep, even £100 type face cream) have you tried this? I do alternate the Aveeno hand cream with the vaseline one above, both are non greasy. I just find the Vaseline one more moisturising for my type of skin I think.
Hi Charlotte, ** warning. Totally non-glam post coming up! ** I remember you writing about Aveeno’s face/body cream. I now use this on your recommendation as in Winter my poor face becomes very sensitive. It still flares up, but Aveeno doesn’t make it any worse which other pricier brands did. As for the hand cream, my partner’s hands used to be dreadfully cracked in Winter and always ingrained with brake dust etc from his job. I don’t know how he put up with it. The Aveeno is a great moisturiser and barrier cream. His hands aren’t pretty, but they are a great advert for Aveeno!! My hands are less of a challenge for any product but I find with Aveeno it is non- greasy and I don’t have to keep reapplying which is good as I always forget to! It is surprising how good an inexpensive, low profile (it’s probably cheaper as they don’t blow the budget on elaborate promotion!) brand can be. And yes Lauren, try it! x
Oooh, I’ve never tried Aveeno. I might give it a go x
I second the Aveeno hand cream! I too have discovered it this winter and it is super awesome for my hands.
Being a terrible nail bed picker here, (yuck) I am all about the Lucas pawpaw ointment! Use it for EVERYTHING but works best for softening my cuticles. Takes a while to absorb but is worth it!
Peem! I have this but have never used it for my cuticles?! Thanks for the tip – mine are SHOCKING at the moment, they peel until they bleed 🙁
I’m a bit in love with the L’occitane hand cream…it’s like a treat though as it’s so pricey and I savour every last morsel! xxx
I find it last ages through so well worth the investment 😉 x
Although I love the smell of posh hand creams, the winner for me has to be Neutrogena. It’s like a magic potion – it never fails to sort my mitts out when too much washing up (boo) leaves them cracked and flaking.
In October we were in Bristol airport about to fly to Italy and I realised I didn’t have any hand cream with me so purchased a copy of company magazine (it was cheaper than buying a hand cream) and it came with a tube of L’Occitaine subtle violette hand cream – I have been in love ever since. It’s such a lovely smell, moisturising and doesn’t leave a greasy residue at all – I’m a bit gutted as this fragrance is limited edition so I will have to try another when I run out 🙁
Mr H also suffers from really bad eczema and it has worked really well for him too (he’s a bit adverse to smelling of parma violets though so we have invested in the shea butter one for him) xx
Ha ha ha parma violets! it’s funny, I suffer from eczema and there is a general rule you should avoid fragrance yet I can get on well with fragranced products and then break out after using some hypoallergenic “fragrance free” products. I find essential oils of lemon, grapefruit, orange (basically anything citrus!) play havoc and make my eczema flare up.
Violets however…..sounds lovely. Why do they make all the best stuff limited edition?!!!!
I absolutely love Crabtree & Evelyn ‘Somerset Meadow’ hadn therapy. It smells amazing!
My favourite is Pai’s Fragnoia and Sea Buckthorn Instant Hand Therapy Cream
I love Clarins Hand and Nail Treatment Cream makes your hands super soft and the smell is lovely! A little pricier than some hand creams but you only need a little bit so it lasts a long time x
If you are suffering with sore cuticles I can really recommend Burt’s Bees cuticle balm and their hand cream is also fantastic. I love the fresh lemon smell and it’s super hydrating. The balm comes in a little tin which is great for chucking in your handbag xx
I absolutely adore Lush ‘helping hands’ cream. It’s made especially for nurses who have to keep washing their hands and using alcohol gel (which really dries your hands out!) so it is super moisturising. It has really gentle soothing products like chamomile to soothe irritated skin and cocoa butter to moisturise, I’ve heard it’s also suitable for people with excema on their hands. My hands get so dry in winter they crack and bleed but I swear by this stuff. Plus it lasts ages!! X
I haven’t visited Lush in so long! Will have to check it out x
I absolutely love L’Occitane. Your right it is pricey but a little goes a long way and it smells amazing!
I use the L’Occitaine hand cream and its gorgeous, i also reccommend the L’Occitaine foot cream which is great for getting your feet ready for the flipflop wearing months! xx
Hopefully we’ll be needing to get our feet in flip-flop wearing condition very soon Laura! x
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