upside down bottle of aesop hand cream

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Few things are more romantic than intertwining fingers with your significant other under the dinner table, right? Or how about the comfort and closeness of holding your kid’s hand on the walk to school? What about that burst of energy you get after a firm shake with a potential new work client?

Your hands work hard for you all year long — expressing love, providing guidance, exuding confidence!

So this time of year, when cold, dry winter air exacerbates flaking, cracking, and rough patches on your precious paws, give them some TLC in return!

C’mon, you know they deserve it.

Yep, it’s time for a dedicated hand cream.

Or, a balm! A salve, if that’s your thing. Just call it a lotion if you need to.

Keeping your hands looking and feeling good throughout this season will pay off in dividends. Will those around you notice that your hands are smooth and soft? Well, your kid? Maybe, maybe not. But I can guarantee the woman in your life will notice if those mitts are bone dry and icky to touch!

Thankfully, this is an easy problem to solve…although it’ll take more than whatever body lotion is already in your bathroom (but be sure to use that, too!).

Toss a travel-size container in your office desk or gym bag. You can stealthily apply before your first meeting of the day, or after a workout!

Or, if the idea of moisturizing in public freaks you out, stash a good-smelling hand cream by your bed and give your paws a l’il spa treatment before lights out.

Ahead, Team SG has rounded up five effective hand creams that will keep your mitts in respectable, hand-hold-able, get-the-big-account-ready condition until the spring thaw.

upside down bottle of aesop hand cream
hand cream in a white and blue bottlehand cream in a white and blue bottle

Best drugstore hand cream for dry hands:

La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Hand Cream, $10

Add the brand with the fancy French name to your cart the next time you re-up on paper towels.

What we like

  • Instant, long-lasting relief for dry hands
  • Thick formula (almost like ointment) without being greasy
hand cream in a white and yellow bottlehand cream in a white and yellow bottle

Best clean ingredients hand cream:

Beekman 1802 Pure Goat Milk Hand Cream, $12

The goat milk formula delivers surprisingly deep hydration to relieve dry, cracked hands.

What we like

  • Supporting a small biz that’s made it big
  • Safe for sensitive skin
hand cream in a bright green bottlehand cream in a bright green bottle

Best heavy-duty hand cream for dry hands:

O’Keefe’s Working Hands Cream, $8

Dry, cracked, and rough hands have no chance against this classic hand cream.

What we like

  • Works on the most extreme cracked and callused hands
  • Fragrance-free
tub of ointment with a small picture of white cotton gloves in the cornertub of ointment with a small picture of white cotton gloves in the corner

Best overnight hand cream for dry hands:

Aquaphor Healing Ointment 14 oz jar, $26 with cotton gloves

When all else fails, slather on some Aquaphor, pull on a pair of cotton gloves and hit the pillow. In the morning, your mitts will feel brand-new

What we like

  • One jar lasts forever
  • Machine wash the gloves and use them again

More grooming stories from SG HQ

4 Steps to Protect Your Skin From Winter

What Are You Waiting For? Go Get Botox In Your Forehead

Treat Yourself to a Really Good Shampoo

It’s Time to Try the “Everything Shower”

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