Grubby hands?!

[Earthymama]

Please help!! My nails and cuticles are grubby all the time. I scrub them with a nail brush but can't seem to keep them clean
can you recommend anything? Perhaps a barrier that would miraculously stop the grot sticking?
My nails don't lie flat, they stick out and that doesn't help.
I do use gloves but can't resist opportunistic weeding!!

Its the opportunistic weeding thats getting you!
I read somewhere that if you gouge some soap, so it goes under your nails it will act as a physical barrier and cleanser. Dont know how practical this really is.

make some bread by hand

PoP, don't tell anyone but that really does work doesn't it?

gs, I'm off to the allotment and won't be able to resist so I'll give the soap a try.

I just hate it when I glance at my hand and recoil in horror, heaven help anyone else who notices as I'm dishing up their tea.

Tell you what. Attach two cotton gardening gloves together with a long piece of cord and thread it up through one sleeve and down the other. Then, when you fancy a bit of weeding, no problem. Dragons Den... it's a winner.

Lol, GES, I do that in winter for the little ones, I can see it setting a gardening trend!
Maybe Gardeners World will do a feature and you and I will get to meet Monty and Carole!
(wanders off to crochet a string before soaking in bath to remove today's accumulated debris

I saw Carole in the toilets at the Chelsea Flower Show. Lovely lady.

1. dose of fattiest hand cream before going out, particualrly around nails, to stop earth getting a grip

2. when you come back in, get a blob of a rough body scrub, currently I have a Boots botanics one on the go. rub it into DRY hands to loosen the heavy dried on stuff, then rinse as clean as you can

3. have shower and wash hair, the shampoo & conditioner loosens the last bits. USe nail file in the shower to poke out any last gritty bits & get nails white

4. then finally use a soapy nail brush to scrub all around the nails for a final once over, should be nothing left by this stage

Cat, I love the detail!
Have copied and printed the instructions to pin up near the back door.
I'm away next week but this will be the future, lovely clean hands!!

I have recently discovered castor oil as an amazing moisturiser.it may work for you. Boots don't sell it ( pr'aps they think we all want to swallow it to loose weight!) but you can get it in independent chemists. It's the only moisturiser that has smoothed my dry heels!!