Keeping your hands soft – Gloves in a Bottle and glycerin
Whilst looking up ways to prevent the skin around my thumb from cracking painfully, which it has done every winter for the last couple of years, I came across Gloves in a Bottle. I didn’t think much of it at the time until I also came across it on a polymer clay related blog (can’t find it again now of course) as something people used before working with polymer clay to protect their hands.
I found out that my local chemist stocked it so I went a got some to try. After one application my hands looked less dry and rough. I have now been using it a couple of times a day (they say to reapply every 4 hours) for the last month and have had no more cracked skin – hurrah!
If you have dry hands it might be worth trying too.
Another tip I have just picked up from Nena at Katherine Art Jewellery is using glycerin in your sanding water to help keep you skin soft. I have a whole heap of sanding to do (I am thinking of getting a rock tumbler) so I am going to try this out. I’ll report back of course.
Cara, thanks for the tip about the Gloves in a Bottle. I’m having a terrible time with my hands and polymer clay. I use a lot of corn starch when rolling beads and I think that dries them out too.
If you get a chance to get a rock tumbler you should. I have two going all the time. I hate sanding especially little stuff so I throw it in the tumbler for 3 or 4 days and it buffs up great. If you don’t want to buff it I put Varathane on after tumbling and they look great too. You will love having a tumbler.
I know of a few people who tried the gloves in a bottle and I have considered getting some as I get very dry hands as well in the winter. I finally resorted to some good hand cream along with special gloves at night while sleeping. My hands are nice and soft and smooth by morning. Only have to do it now every so often.
Hi Cara,
thanks for spreading a word. It really works.
I sand everything I make using 400-2500 grits of sandpaper. My hands use to hurt after a day or two of sanding.
Now, with just few drops of glycerin in sanding water they are wet but stay soft.
Glycerin is one of the main ingredients of every hand cream.
Enjoy!