My cuticle treatment routine

Since my obsession with nail polish began, I was totally jealous with all these gorgeous hands and cuticles I saw on many nail blogs, and I decided I had to have great cuticles too!

I always thought I had nice cuticles, but only when I took a closeup of my nails I saw all the flaws I wasn't aware of and I decided I want to perfect them.

I have to admit I'm a real newbie to the cuticle treatment but I would love to share with you the products I use to get nicer cuticles.

Basically for a long long time I was one of those girls who had no idea that having a manicure is much more than just paint your nails with a nail polish. I wasn't even aware of the fact that you have to use clear base coat to protect the nails from getting yellow and weak.

My nails are pretty strong and grow fast, rarely break or split, and I'm really thankful for that.

I've done my homework and looked up some products, and finally decided to purchase Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover. I've also read lots of good reviews on Burt's Bees lemon butter cuticle cream and I was about to purchase it but then Amber sent it to me along with the nail polish swap from the previous post. So I got some orange sticks online (have no idea why they called like that. It's a plane wooden stick) and I that's my beginner's cuticle treatment kit :)

I have to admit I was a bit scared to use the Sally Hansen Instant Cuticle Remover because there were some reviews I've read that said using this product got their nails weaken and split, but then I've read that they've probably didn't use it right and left it on the fingers for too long.

It is a matter of seconds I guess and so far I used it twice according to instructions and it looks ok.

When I use this I prepare a bowl of warm soapy water, a brush and an orange stick. I apply the gel on the cuticles of one hand and wait for 15 seconds. Then I push the cuticles back and remove the gel from the fingers and wash the hand in the bowl I've prepared. I repeat these steps with the second hand and when I'm finished with the cuticles I put some gel under the nails and wait again for 15 seconds and remove it. Of course I wash the nails again.

I'm just too afraid to leave it on for too long so I wash it really quickly. I find it a bit hard to push the cuticles back on the right hand, but I'm getting better.

I can't say it's a miracle, the cuticles don't instantly dissolve and disappear as I thought they would. They do get softer and it's easy to push them back and it does remove some thin skin. I guess after few more times using this products I will see more results but I'm quite happy with it so far.

The second and really wonderful product is the Burt's Bees lemon butter cuticle cream. I use it almost every night for few weeks now (there are times I'm too tired and I just forget) and I'm really pleased with the results.

I really love this product for few reasons - first it smells really good! I love that lemony scent! It's really hydrates the cuticles and the skin around the nail, and it's not too oily. I find it most useful to put it when I go to bed because I don't have to use my hands then, so that gives the cream some time to absorb into the skin and cuticles.

When I wake up I have hydrated and nice cuticles. I've noticed that when I don't use it my cuticles become a bit dry again, so I guess you kind of have to be addicted to it to have nice cuticles all the time.

This tin is pretty small and contains 8.5 g. I've already used quite a lot of it, so I guess I will buying a new tin sometime soon. There is a larger tin that contains about 17 g, so I guess that will be the smarter choice for me. Problem is, that's not a product that I can get here so I will have to buy if online for outrageous price (including shipping fee).

Overall I'm really happy with this product and I instantly got great results.

I would totally recommend these two products to anyone who's looking to keep their cuticles in a good shape. I really like them and it seems they are actually work.
I wish we could have a larger selection of these kind of nail treatment products in local drugstores here in Israel. It's not so easy getting them online either.

Do you use any of these products? Do you have another products you would recommend me to use for my cuticles? I would love to hear your thoughts. Please feel free to share it with me.

xoxo
Natalie