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Gardeners hands! Best cream?
bekkie hughes
Posts: 5,294
Hi all 
My hands are in a terrible state, partly from my preffered gardening gloves (the streatchy ones with rubber on the fingers and palms) and partly because i wash my hands too much (another story!). I think ive tried everything, but its got to the point where my skin cracks and bleeds, can anyone reccomend anything please?
My hands are in a terrible state, partly from my preffered gardening gloves (the streatchy ones with rubber on the fingers and palms) and partly because i wash my hands too much (another story!). I think ive tried everything, but its got to the point where my skin cracks and bleeds, can anyone reccomend anything please? 0
Posts
Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners hand cream. Pricey but worth it.
My hands are the same- absolutely terrible. The skin cracks on every joint.
I wash my hands a lot too which takes away the effect of any hand cream, even though I apply it several times a day.
Sometimes I lather my hands in sudocreme and put a pair of gloves over the top and wear them to bed which counters some of the drying...
I never wear gloves unless I am cutting bramles and only use something cheap from Avon.
If my hands were as sore as yours, I would smother them in vasaline and wrre a pair of cotton gloves, just at night. I have done this before and it works.
Dont wear gloves with any rubber in them, just cotton ones.
Also have them bigger so there is an air flow.
I have the same problem but discovered "gloves in a bottle" It's in a narrow blue plastic bottle and you put it on before you do anything dirty, it's a sort of barrier cream. It works quite well for me and a little goes a long way.
All natural and made here in Cornwall.
They do a gardeners hand cream and a 'healing' hand cream. Both are great and my husband and I both use them. They also do a gardeners soap and lots of other goodies.
Susie, I agree 'gloves in a bottle' is good, but pricey and I often forget to put it on. When my hands are badly cracked I use Germoline as hand cream, then cotton gloves at night or elastoplast during the day over the cuts. When they are getting better, I use Aqueous Cream about £4/5 in any chemist for a large tub, again with gloves on for first 10 mins. Also use it as general moisturiser especially good for the feet after wearing sandals and gardening. I add a few drops of essential oil as it is scentless.
Had a relative who worked in 'Lush' and she recommended 'Happy Hands'. The stuff is great for me because of full-time caring for other half and the gardening. My hands are in and out of water a lot and I get a real mess in the garden. I can't always afford their products but because they are hand made and have no chemicals etc it really helps my skin. Happy Hands is described as 'a nurturing almond, cocoa butter and chamomile hand cream to give back some of what life and washing has taken out...invented to help nurses and people who have really, really dry overwashed hands'.
Sorry if it sounds like an advert for Lush - but it's the only cream (and you only use a little) which has ever made any difference to my hands and leaves them lovely and soft and feel great.
I've just remembered a good way of cleaning gardener's hands; mix 1 tsp of sugar with a little liquid soap and rub it well in. It gets rid of all the ground in dirt
I once knew a builder whose hands were always cracked from using cement etc - we discovered that applying Germolene New Skin over the cracks really helped them to heal and keep them free from infection.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.