Soie — Hand Beauty

Hand Care Steps: A Timetable for Morning, Daytime and Night, Plus a One-Minute Minimum

Search for hand care steps and the answers are mostly about products. What actually decides the state of your hands is when, and in what order, you attend to them. Here the day is divided into a timetable.

Hand care steps look like a lot to remember, but there are only three actions in the whole routine: wash, moisturise, protect. Once each of the three has a fixed place in the day, hand care stops being something you think about and becomes something you simply do.

The reverse is also true. The finest products will not be used if they have no place and no time attached to them. Unlike the face, the hands are washed and dried many times a day, so a face routine cannot simply be transferred to them. The hands need a timetable built around their own day.

This page sets out three things: the basic morning, daytime and night sequence, a one-minute minimum for days when the timetable collapses, and a ten-minute version for once a week. The thinking behind hand care itself is on our page on what hand care means.

Hand care steps come down to three actions: wash, moisturise, protect

Washing removes dirt and, with it, the film of sebum that covers the skin, which is why the way you wash decides how rough the hands become: lukewarm water, a gentle soap, a thorough rinse and pressing dry rather than rubbing. Moisturising replaces the water and lipids that washing has taken, and the moments straight after drying are the ones that count. Protecting keeps the hands away from daytime UV and wet work, and sunscreen and gloves are its tools.

The three are not independent. Wash, then moisturise; moisturise, then protect. If the order breaks, doing any one of them carefully will not bring the hands into good condition.

The rules of order

Water-based moisture (a serum) goes on before an oil-based cover (a cream).
Moisturiser first, then sunscreen once it has settled. On returning home, wash the sunscreen off before moisturising.
Put gloves on only when the hands are completely dry, and moisturise when they come off.

The hand care timetable: morning, daytime and night

Fix each action to a time of day. Every sequence is short, and together they add up to a few minutes.

Morning (last step of getting ready, two minutes)

Wash in lukewarm water and press dry.
Take one or two pearl-sized drops of moisturiser on the back of one hand, spread over both hands, and work between the fingers and around the nails.
On days you go out, once it has settled, apply sunscreen to the backs of the hands too.

Daytime (every time you wash, thirty seconds)

Wash the hands, or wait for sanitiser to dry.
Apply a small amount of a non-sticky moisturiser from the backs of the hands to the fingertips. Choose something light enough to return straight to a keyboard or paperwork.
When outdoors, reapply sunscreen roughly every two hours.

Night (end of the day, three minutes)

Wash away the day's grime and sunscreen with soap, and press dry.
Work moisturiser carefully from the backs of the hands to the fingertips and nail contours, stroking each finger in turn.
In dry seasons, layer a cream on top.

How many daytime applications you need depends on how often you wash. The more you wash, the more the thirty-second step decides how the hands feel by evening. How much to use, morning and night, is discussed in our journal.

The one-minute minimum for busy days

Everyone has days when the timetable falls apart. Rather than abandoning the whole routine, decide in advance what the minimum is: thirty seconds in the morning and thirty at night, one minute in all. This is the line you do not go below.

Thirty seconds in the morning: wash, press dry, one application on the back of the hand, rub the hands together, interlace the fingers, done.
Thirty seconds at night: after the last wash, repeat the same movement. If there is time, press around each nail a few times with the thumb.

The secret of the minimum version is not to multiply products. A single non-sticky moisturiser that serves the backs of the hands and the fingertips alike needs only one place to live. Once the one-minute version has held for a few days, add one daytime application and build from there.

The weekly special: ten minutes to let the hands rest

On top of the daily timetable, once a week, give the hands ten minutes of their own in the evening. The night before a day off, when the hands will not be rushed into use the next morning, suits it well.

Wash: lukewarm water and a gentle soap, then press dry.
Moisturise generously: more than usual, over the backs of the hands, the palms, between the fingers and around the nails.
Stroke each finger: from base to tip, with a light pull, drawing small circles over the joints with a fingertip.
Press around the nails: with the pad of the thumb, either side of each nail and at its base.
Sleep in cotton gloves: in dry seasons, put on cotton gloves after moisturising so that nothing escapes overnight.

If your moisturiser carries a fragrance, these ten minutes are also a time to breathe it in. The overnight method is described in our journal. If roughness or redness persists and moisturising does not change it, consult a dermatologist.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a hand care routine take each day?

About two minutes in the morning, three at night and thirty seconds after each daytime wash: a few minutes in all. On busy days, thirty seconds morning and night is enough. Timing matters more than duration; moisturising straight after drying does more for the hands than a long session later.

Which goes on first, hand serum or hand cream?

The serum, which supplies water-based moisture, goes first; the cream, which covers with oil, goes on top. Work in the non-sticky serum, and on dry nights or in dry seasons layer a cream over it. By day, the serum alone keeps the hands light; the cream is for the evening.

How many times should I moisturise during the day?

There is no fixed number; the number of times you wash or sanitise is the guide. Ideally a small amount after each one, from the backs of the hands to the fingertips. If that is too much to begin with, fix three points, before and after lunch and before leaving work, and start there.

When should I use gloves?

Gloves are recommended for washing up, cleaning, gardening and any long contact with hot water, detergent or soil. Put them on only when the hands are completely dry, and moisturise after taking them off. In dry seasons, cotton gloves over night-time moisturiser are another option.

What does the weekly special version involve?

Ten minutes in the evening: wash, moisturise generously, stroke each finger from base to tip, press around the nails, and sleep in cotton gloves. Choose a night before a day when the hands will not be rushed. It adds to the daily timetable rather than replacing it.

Soie's approach: one bottle for washing, one for moisturising, placed in the timetable

Soie (pronounced swah; French for silk) makes only two products: Moist Fragrance Hand & Body Soap, which moisturises with every wash, and Enlight Hand Serum, a beauty serum made only for the hands. Placed in the timetable, the soap takes the morning and evening wash, and the serum takes every moisturising step, morning, daytime and night. The serum combines EGF and KGF (skin-conditioning ingredients) with five ceramides and peptides (moisturising ingredients) and leaves no stickiness, so the same bottle serves the one-minute minimum and the thirty-second daytime step alike.

The hand soap by the basin, the hand serum within reach. In the same fragrance, every point in the timetable returns the same scent to the hands.