How are you holding up? I am hoping you are feeling better and better as they days go by with the healthy food and home remedies I have been sharing. One of my good friends asked if I had any tips on dry nails and hands, here they are! There is nothing like a Wisconsin winter to give you extremely dry, chapped hands, along with cracked and peeling nails!
I came across this recipe in the book the Natural Home Spa by Sian Rees. I just had to try it. It sounded so easy.
I started with an anti-fungal treatment.
A hand soak in hot water feels great and relaxes the body. I added a few drops of tea tree oil to the water for it's anti-fungal properties. My son has been struggling with a fungus on his hands for several days. Fungus is a masquerader for dry skin. If you have what seems to be perpetually dry, peeling skin on your hands, it may be a fungus. Soaking in warm water with tea tree oil for about ten minutes a day will clear it up in no time.
Then we moved on to pushing back the cuticles with a cuticle stick. My son was rather put out by this procedure. What can I say, he's twelve. I offered to paint his nails like I did when he was 3, but he refused. Don't you miss those days? Darn. Girl things are such a foreign commodity at our house. I tried to explain that women pay big money for treatments like this at the spa and he should be grateful for getting a free treatment, but he failed to see my point of view.
Meanwhile, I spooned 3 tablespoons of almond oil into a small glass bowl. It smelled wonderful.
Then I put the bowl into a double boiler and warmed it. After it was warm I added 1 tablespoon of the Burt's Bee's Hand Salve and melted it into the almond oil. The recipe calls for bees wax which you can purchase at health food stores. I used the hand salve because it contained bees wax and I didn't want to make another trip to the store. Alternatively you could use wax from a bees wax candle or even regular paraffin. Then I added 3 drops of lemon essential oil to the mix, and the stuff smelled good enough to EAT.
When it was warm and well combined, we dipped our hands in it. It feels amazing.
We covered our entire hands with it.
Then we put on cotton gloves. These are from Bed, Bath and Beyond, and are specifically for wearing while you sleep at night. I often apply heavy moisturizer and put them over my dry hands. They work incredibly well. You can give your feet the same treatment, and then put on some cotton socks while you sleep.
I packaged my leftover oil in this cute little jar for the next time. I am sure I will use it up before the winter is over!
Today's Linkup:
Designer Mom
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