When we write about hand beauty from the sixties onward, the first question we ask is "what for". Not to look younger: a goal like that tends to discourage people before they begin. Care in the sixties, as we see it, is for keeping hands that have worked a long time comfortable, and for enjoying the days still to come.
Hands that have been at work for sixty years carry a history. Children raised, housework repeated, tools gripped, letters written. It is also the decade in which many people notice that those hands dry out more readily, and are more easily hurt, than they used to be.
In this final article in our series by decade, we look at ways of washing suited to hands that dry more easily, at the frequency of moisturising, at the idea of one bottle shared by a household, and at the gestures that shape the impression the hands make. We will try to avoid stating anything more firmly than it deserves.
Hands that dry more easily, and gentler washing
With age, the skin is said to hold less water, so it dries out and feels rough more readily. The back of the hand has little sebum and thin skin to begin with, so this change shows there first. Tightness after washing, rough fingertips, stiff knuckles on a cold morning. If such sensations have become more frequent, it may be time to look again at how the hands are washed.
Four things are worth checking. Use lukewarm water, since hot water strips sebum. Choose a gentle soap that is not overly strong. Rinse thoroughly, because soap left on the skin causes irritation. When drying, do not rub; press gently with a towel and leave no droplets behind.
None of this is new, but the habits of decades continue unnoticed. Turning the tap a little cooler, replacing the towel by the basin with a softer one: small adjustments of this kind reach hands in their sixties surprisingly well.
Bathing deserves the same attention. A long soak in hot water is pleasant on a cold evening, but it does to the whole body what a hot tap does to the hands. Keeping the water a little cooler, and moisturising the hands as soon as they are dried, lets the bath remain a pleasure without leaving the skin tight afterwards.
Frequency over quantity, and gloves
The question most often asked about moisturising is "how much should I apply". For hands in their sixties, we believe the better question is "how often". After the morning wash, after work in the kitchen, on coming in from outside, after the bath, before bed. A small amount added as soon as the hands are dry keeps the skin more comfortable than a large amount applied once.
During the day, a serum that leaves no stickiness; at night, a cream layered over it. When the hands are badly chapped, moisturising before bed and then sleeping in cotton gloves is one approach. Put the gloves on only when the hands are completely dry, and prefer a powder-free pair to limit irritation.
For gardening and washing-up, wear working gloves. Soil, detergent and hot water dry the skin, and gloves alone change the burden considerably. And sunscreen should not be forgotten. Watering the garden, hanging out the laundry, a daily walk: the more time is spent around the house, the more sun the backs of the hands receive. Beginning the morning habit of sunscreen on the backs of the hands is considered worthwhile at any age, the sixties included.
One bottle for the household
Many hands gather at a basin in one's sixties. The hands of the family at home, the small hands of visiting grandchildren, hands washed again and again in the course of caring for someone. Rather than a separate product for each person, a single bottle anyone may use fits the shape of the house better.
A gentle formula suitable for sensitive skin and children can be shared by the whole family from one bottle at the basin. A soap for both hands and body serves the washstand and the bath alike. A design that suits any age or gender lets a couple use the same bottle. If a product does not agree with the skin, stop using it, and consult a dermatologist if a symptom persists.
When care shifts from "mine" to "the household's", it tends to last. A grandmother smoothing serum into a grandchild's hands after they have been washed: a scene like that is itself part of hand beauty.
The impression that lives in gesture
The impression the hands make is not decided by the skin alone. The angle of the wrist as tea is poured, the way the fingers come together to offer something, the hands resting in the lap while listening. Hands that have lived a long time have a composure that younger hands do not.
Soie calls the practice of making every movement beautiful, applying, touching, offering, the aesthetics of gesture. Cared-for hands look natural in motion. When the knuckles feel tight or a fingertip has split, a person stiffens the hand without noticing, and the stiffness is felt by the person opposite. Keeping the hands supple is also a way of keeping gesture supple.
None of this requires that the hands look young. A hand with visible veins and a lifetime of small marks can still be a beautiful hand to watch, if it is supple, moist and unhurried. That is the kind of beauty hand care in the sixties is for.
Common questions about hand beauty are gathered in our hand beauty Q&A.
What it means to keep going
Soie's Moist Fragrance Hand & Body Soap moisturises with every wash, can be used on the hands and the body, and suits the role of a shared household bottle. Enlight Hand Serum is a beauty serum designed only for the hands; it leaves no stickiness, so it can be used as often as needed during the day, and it can be used on the elbows and knees as well.
Hand beauty from the sixties onward is not about recovering anything. It is about accompanying the days ahead with hands that feel comfortable. Moisturise today the hands you washed today. That repetition is what shapes the hand that offers something tomorrow.
