Achieve beautiful hands and nails that say what you want about you!

With the winter fast approaching the need for greater seasonal hand and nail care is essential. Do you suffer from dry skin, dehydrated cuticles, hang nails, flaking, brittle and discoloured nails? If you do then keep reading for beauty cubes ‘back to basics’ tips on all round hand and nail care.

TIP 1 - ‘beauty comes from within’ - review your diet

Are you getting enough vitamins, minerals and protein? The essential ones for skin, and nails are A, C & E along with calcium, selenium and essential fatty acids, otherwise know as omega 3. These will all maintain overall skin and nail health, and good sources of these to include in your diet are:

• low fat dairy products. i.e. natural yoghurt
• cereals (sugar free variety)
• carrots, leafy greens - spinach is excellent & broccoli too
• sweet potatoes, excellent baked or roasted
• forest fruits, i.e. strawberries, blackberries & blueberries
• mixed nuts such as brazils, almonds, walnuts & pecans (unsalted)
• cold pressed vegetable oils i.e. extra virgin olive, add to salads and soups
• poached salmon, grilled tuna, roast turkey
• raw seeds such as pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and poppy seeds, add to salads and/or dressings

Tip 2 - ‘water alert’ - choose your fluids wisely

Cut down if you can on caffeine and alcohol, which naturally dehydrate and draw nutrition away from the skin and its associated cell membranes. Opt if you can for antioxidant rich beverages such as green and white tea, and naturally sweet antioxidant rich fruit juices such as pink grapefruit, orange and apple.

Tip 3 - ’smooth your troubles away’ - gentle exfoliation is key

Use a good exfoliator once a week, to slough away any dead skin cells that make the skin look dull and slow down cell renewal. Gentle stimulation of the skin will improve circulation, and ensure a speedy delivery of nutrients to the cuticle and nail bed areas. This weekly treatment will also allow a greater absorbtion of any hand cream applied thereafter on a daily basis. The product ingredients will penetrate deeper into the base cells, which in turn will ensure the best results from your selected hand treatment.

Tip 4 - ‘a girls best friend’ - crystal files are your secret weapon!

These really do work! They seal the end of the nail free edge, and keep nails looking tidy and neatly shaped if used correctly. Its best to file in one direction in 3 simple steps, side to middle to side, up, across and down. For a natural look shape in an oval finish, and for a more polished and professional finish go for a square shaped look. Remember to always file first before immersing the hands in water or applying any topical treatments.

Tip 5 - ‘the final finish’ - pure white

For natural looking, white nail tips, use a slice of lemon or the juice on a regular basis as a add in treatment, to soak the nails in a small bowl of lukewarm water. Do for a maximum of five minutes, which will ensure that its gradual, and natural whitening effects over time will result. The water will also soften the cuticles, before any exfoliation or treatments to follow this take place.

Dont forget - ‘a girls golden rule’…

Always apply a good quality hand cream daily, ideally first thing in the morning to protect and last thing at night to repair. Watch this space for beauty cubes review of the best hand creams available. Pair with this another handbag essential, a white nail pencil to use under the free edge of the nail. These are great while you are on the go and my best revealed secret yet for naturally healthy looking nails. With this you wont need to apply varnish again, unless for a special occasion, and your nails will be in a much better condition as a result. The chemicals in nail polishes can strip the nail of natural oils, causing dry and brittle nails over prolonged use with time.

and finally…

beauty cubes top tip: apply hand cream before applying those marigolds and washing up! The heat from the water will allow for greater absorption of your products ingredients, also a great ritual for those that easily forget to apply their hand care daily! Alternatively invest in some natural cotton gloves, and use with your favourite hand cream while watching tv, doing the housework or whilst asleep etc… zzzZ..girls get your beauty sleep too for improved results!