How to DIY a Super Effective Hand Soak for Dry Cracked Hands

Tools and materials:

• Milk 
• Honey
• Cooking spray
• Measuring cup
• Spoon
• Towel 
• Paper towel
• Coconut oil
• Cuticle oil

Let's take a quick look at my hands and nails. I do use cuticle oil and hand lotion very frequently, so they're not very dry right now, but you can see some susceptible areas.

The skin between my thumb and index finger tends to get the driest, and my right hand is showing more evidence of that than my left.

My nails look pretty good, but there are a few drier areas. The cuticles on my thumbs and middle fingers are usually the driest. Now let’s make the soak!

1. Heat up milk

Measure out one cup of milk in a bowl and pop it in the microwave for one minute or so until it's very warm. 

2. Mix in honey

Grab a tablespoon and sprayed it with non-stick cooking spray (this is the best hack ever when cooking or baking, it helps ingredients slide right out of your measuring cups), and then fill it with honey.

Add it to the warm milk and then measure out and add a second tablespoon of honey to the mixture.

Stir until the honey is completely dissolved.

3. Soak hands

Once everything is combined, place the bowl on top of a towel and then lower your hands in.

Rub your hands together and take turns soaking each one in the bowl. You want to do this for about 10 minutes to experience the most benefit.

This particular soak is great for people with dry nails or hands because milk contains vitamin D, which is very good for the skin. It's anti-inflammatory, and it also exfoliates.

Honey is a great addition because it's moisturizing as well as antibacterial.

I've never soaked my hands in milk, and while it may seem odd, it feels fabulous. It is much richer than water, and the milk and honey aroma is calming and smells absolutely delicious.

4. Dry and rinse hands

Once you're done soaking your hand, shake off any excess and pat your hands dry. I'm using a paper towel because I don't want milk on my bath towel.

Once they're patted down, rinse them under clean water because they do get a little sticky in this soak, and we don't want to walk around with sticky fingers for the rest of the day.

After drying your hands, you will notice an immediate difference, your hands will be freakishly soft. All the dry areas will be completely rehydrated.

5. Apply coconut oil

You don’t have to do this, but I wanted to moisturize to help lock in that new rich hydration. I grabbed my coconut oil and massaged a tiny bit all over my hands, fingers, and up my forearm.

Applying coconut oil to freshly soaked hands will leave them feeling like butter.

6. Apply cuticle oil

The very last step is to grab some cuticle oil, apply a little bit to each of your nails and massage it in for some additional targeted hydration.

DIY hand soak for dry cracked hands

After this two-ingredient soak, my hands feel absolutely incredible, even many hours later.

I think I'm going to do it again on my feet because it was so luxurious, and I can't stop touching my hands.

If you experience dry hands or nails, especially this time of year, you definitely need to try this out. Comment down below to let me know how you get on.

You might also find my post on How to Shape Your Nails Like a Pro helpful, so check that out!