Within the past couple of months I stumbled upon products that have been downright magical for my hands and feet. Two different items providing two fantastic solutions, and this is me shouting it from the rooftops… I feel extra excited to share the moisturizing lotion because it helped me in a completely unexpected way.
Foot Mask
I don’t have a regular foot care routine, but when I feel like my feet need some exfoliation, I’ll reach for one of our DIY foot scrubs:
- two rosemary-scented options
- lemon + sugar foot scrub with sand for extra grit
- mint salt & sand scrub (my favorite!)
This spring I felt like my feet were more callused than usual, so before reaching for a scrub, I thought that I’d try one of these exfoliating foot peels. It worked like magic!
As suggested in the instructions, I soaked my feet for about an hour before putting on the booties (which contain the mask). I kept the booties on for another, and then washed off the mask. Like clockwork, about a week later, the skin on my feet started peeling!
The peeling doesn’t hurt, and it basically looks like peeling skin after a sunburn. My feet have been peeling for close to a week now, but this is the last of the dead skin, and feet are looking and feeling so soft.
I like to walk around barefoot, and I was curious if the newly uncovered skin would be more sensitive, but fortunately it’s not. It’s just baby soft and not looking so “rugged”.
Moisturizing Lotion
This magical (not-nail-or-hand-specific) lotion has nipped my nail-biting habit in the bud! How could that be? Let me explain.
Over the years I’ve come to realize that my nail-biting doesn’t have to do with fidgeting, wanting to put things in my mouth, wanting my nails to be short, etc…
It has to do with one thing: when my nails are chipped, splitting, or peeling, it drives me crazy and I want to “smooth” them out. So I do that by biting them, which makes the problem worse, then I bit them some more. And this sadly this applied to the skin around my nails too. It would be dry and peeling, I’d pick at it, the cycle would repeat itself.
Over the years I’ve tried a number of solutions. I used to paint them religiously (see photo above!) because this would make them less prone to drying out and damage, but as the polish peeled off, I would then start to bite them.
I’d use gloves when washing dishes to minimize drying, but it still didn’t solve the problem. I’d put all sorts of salves on my fingers (plenty of them were homemade!). But alas, nothing stopped the nail biting. UNTIL NOW!
Long story a little bit longer: we got this lotion because hyaluronic acid has great reviews for moisturizing skin, plumping it up, reducing wrinkles, etc. After we got the lotion, I was putting a little bit on my face each night before bed. After a few weeks I realized that my hands, specifically my nails, were looking fantastic!
It took me a day or two to realize that the only change in my routine was the lotion. It’s now been close to two months, my nails are so strong, there’s no dryness, and I’m completely hooked. I still just put the lotion on my face and rub it into my hands before bed. I can’t tell if it’s made much of a difference to my face, but given how well it’s worked on my hands, I’m not going to stop any time soon.
There are many hyaluronic acid lotions and supplements out there. I linked to the exact lotion that we’re using, and because it’s working so well, we haven’t tried anything else.
So, if your nail biting habit is anything like mine, give this lotion a try. I’d love to hear if it works for more people!
