On the day a first hand serum arrives, most people apply it once, note the feel of it, and put it in the bathroom. What happens next is the question. Within about two weeks, a first bottle of hand serum goes one of two ways: it is used to the end, or it is forgotten half full.
The fork in the road has less to do with the product than with how the first bottle is approached. What to expect, what to look for, where to keep it. This article follows the timeline from the day a first hand serum arrives to the day, about a month and a half later, when the 30 mL bottle is empty, and sets out what is worth knowing at each point along the way.
Day one: three things to check on the back of the hand
On the first day, try a small amount on the inside of the arm, and then check three things on the back of the hand.
- How fast it settles. Take one pearl-sized drop on the back of the hand, bring the backs of both hands together to spread it, and count the seconds until the skin feels dry and smooth.
- The state of the palms. Once the serum is worked in, is there any film on the palms? Pick up a sheet of paper and see.
- The reach of the scent. Lift the back of the hand to the nose immediately after applying, and again after thirty minutes. At what distance is it noticed?
Remembering these three on day one gives a baseline for the judgements of week two and beyond. A hand serum is not checked in a mirror, as a face serum is; it is checked by touch. If it does not agree with the skin, stop using it.
Week one: what to expect, and what not to
A week does not turn the hands into different hands. What a hand serum, as a cosmetic, can do is give moisture, smooth the skin and keep it from drying out. In the first week, look not for change but for differences in feel. Does the tightness after washing pass more quickly? At night, has the dry feeling when the knuckles bend eased?
There are also things not to expect. Lines already set in the skin and colour already deepened do not go back because of a bottle of serum. Holding that line from the start avoids the path on which, in week two, nothing seems different and the bottle is set aside. A hand serum keeps the feel of the hands by being continued; it is not something that makes anything happen in a short time.
Week two: the slump, and moving the bottle
In the second week, days begin to appear on which the serum is forgotten. This is not a failure of will; it is a question of placement. The spot chosen on the first day is usually the one that looks good, not the one the hands pass after they are washed.
The remedy is simple. Think of where the hands were washed yesterday and move the bottle as close to that place as it will go. Not in front of the bathroom mirror but beside the tap; not at the back of the desk drawer but next to the pen holder. Three forgotten days in a row is the signal to move it. Settle the place during the first bottle and there is no hesitation with the second.
One month: a single review of the method
After a month, check the method once. One drop or two? Thin in the morning and more at night? Is it reaching between the fingers and around the nails? After washing, is the order of drying first and applying second being kept?
The rate at which the bottle empties is the gauge. A 30 mL bottle lasts around a month and a half for someone using it several times a day. If more than half remains after a month, one of the turning points is being missed: morning, before going out, on coming home, before bed. Put a bottle at whichever of the four is missing. Amounts, order and timing are brought together in our hand serum guide.
The empty bottle: choosing the next one
At around six weeks the bottle is empty, and only now can the first bottle be judged. Has applying after washing become something done without thinking? How do the backs of the hands feel compared with that first day? And is the scent, at every application, still one you like?
The third question looks the lightest and turns out to be the longest-lasting reason to continue. If the scent is liked, the second bottle can be the same; if it has begun to pall, a different fragrance for the season. A hand serum can be chosen afresh each time a bottle is finished, and in that choosing the right distance between a pair of hands and their serum settles into place.
In Soie's hand serum
Soie's Enlight Hand Serum is a 30 mL beauty serum made only for the hands, with EGF and KGF (skin-conditioning ingredients), five ceramides and peptides (moisturising ingredients) and more than twenty botanical extracts. It is designed to leave no stickiness, so the three day-one checks show as a quick settling, palms that feel dry and smooth, and a scent that stays close to the hands. The formula is gentle enough for sensitive skin and children, but anyone using it for the first time should begin with a small amount.
A first bottle is not there to complete a routine. It is there to measure the distance between you and your hands. By the time it is empty, the hands feel a little different, and the standard for choosing the next bottle is already in them.
