Heavy Duty Hand Cream

[girlfriday]

I live in Canada and our winters here can be really harsh. At the moment we are sitting -26'C but it feels like -37'C with the windchill. My problem seems to have just creeped up on me this year, one I suppose I can attribute to age as well as weather.

I am in need of some serious heavy duty hand cream. I'd prefer it if it weren't too greasy or if it absorbed quickly, but I can also apply at night before bed, if that's the only option.

Your rec's are much appreciated!

Thank you!

 

[JennsJewelz]

I don't know how "heavy duty" it is, but I really like Bliss High Intensity Hand Cream - I find it absorbs quickly and keeps my hands soft all day, and it's especially helpful in this cold Canadian weather!! It's a touch expensive, but I find it's worth it. I have a large bottle by my hand soap in the bathroom, and I keep a travel-sized one with me in my purse. You can purchase it at Sephora.

You might want to try moisturizing before bed and putting on some cotton stretch gloves to help lock in moisture to help reduce any discomfort in the beginning. I've also used L'Occitane products in the past and really liked them, although it's been a long time since I've had any on hand. There are a couple free-standing stores in Toronto, and I believe you can also pick these products up at Sephora.

My mom has severely dry hands which crack, and she swears by the Glysomed products. Bonus points for being able to grab them at Shopper's Drug Mart! I like these ones as well, but I find they feel greasier and take longer to soak in than the others.

Hope this helps you out!

 

[Hilde]

I like L'occitane's shea butter hand cream. It says it's for dry skin on the tube, but I only have slightly dry hands sometimes. If you need healing you might want to try eucerin's aquaphor or nivea creme at night.

 

[MzzRach]

*moving to skin & bodycare*

 

[MzzRach]

My faves are Ahava hand cream and Aveda's Hand Relief.

 

[Zephyra]

I hear you....I am currently living in a place with extremely dry winter air and I work in healthcare so I wash my hands constantly. I've tried lots of stuff--Neutrogena, L'Occitane 20% shea butter, Aquaphor, Philosophy, local products. The best thing I've tried so far is a homemade remedy a machinist/massage therapist made that had a lot of lanolin in it (and consequently smelled like sheep). The best thing I've found so far has been the EcoTools bamboo gloves, because they're thin enough that you can still turn the pages of a book or use a laptop trackpad after putting them on, and consequently I don't mind sleeping with them on and they don't make my hands sweat excessively. It's definitely an improvement on traditional cotton. My current favorite lotions at bedtime are bath & body works "Glove Me Tender" and plain old Neutrogena Swiss Formula original--I load up my hands until they are totally coated and sticky and put the gloves on over. I like the smell of the L'Occitane 20% shea butter and keep it in my bag and desk for during the day because its very subtle, pleasant smell is good for work, but it hasn't been strong enough for what I need otherwise. I just ordered some of the Qtica cracked hand therapy lotion from Art of Beauty because I have their Intense Lip Repair Balm and it is fantastic and true to its name, and I've heard good things about their other intense repair lotions. I've been giving the EcoTools gloves to everyone this winter...they're really what's keeping my hands from splitting open and otherwise being consumed by raw, flaky patches of irritated skin right now. Not sure if you can get them in Canada, but perhaps there is something similar? They're $4 at the drugstore here. If you find something fantastic, please let us know!

 

[kanne]

What about The Body Shop hemp hand cream? Definitely amazing after spending all day in hospital washing my hands (nurse), but I have to say, I'm not a fan of the smell. I also love Clinique's Deep Comfort hand and cuticle cream which smells better but is probably a little bit more pricey.

 

[Prise1031]

I've been having the same problem! UGH! I tried everything... L'occitane is pretty good for daily use... At night I was trying aquaphor and vaseline and they worked OK, but I did find something that worked even better! It's actually from Bath & Body Works it's the True Blue Spa Lay it on thick, it's a body moisturizer but it works awesome on the hands. I've been slathering it on at night before I go to bed and my hands actually feel very soft now! I know it contains shea butter, but I'm not sure of the percentage. But wow, it's amazing and a small tube of it only costs 6 bucks!

 

[antigone21]

My mother has really bad hands, she has a ton of huge, extra-dry cracks that bleed. I bought her a tube of The Body Shop's Hemp Hand Protector and this stuff has done miracles not only to her dry, bleedy, disgusting cracks but to my elbow that for some unknown reason had a weird scab on it that would crack and bleed whenever I folded my arm and therefore never healed after a whole year (!!!). I thought it was either caused by exzema, stress or an allergy to some food I was in contact with at my new job at a coffee shop because it appeared on my first day. Anyway, that gross thing never healed and I didn't want to sit 6 hours at the clinic just for a scab but when I applied that hemp cream on it it was magically GONE the next day.

 

[LMD84]

i used to get extremely dry hands when working in a coffee shop (all the chemicals used to clean with did it) and i swore by the body shop hemp cream. super thick and it really does soothe and make your hands feel soft again. now i like to use the l'occitaine shea butter hand cream which comes in a silver tube. that is nice to use before bed and when i wake up my hands are always soft