Emma Green's hand cream is easily absorbed as well, and has a subtle smell.
By EVA BEN-DAVIDcream 88(photo credit: Courtesy)
Winter is when we should pamper our hands a bit more, since they're exposed to the cold and extreme temperature changes. A good hand cream is a must, and Avène Cold Cream for hands, containing Avène thermal spring water, does a wonderful job getting you smooth and soft hands again, and will ease chapped or irritated skin. The cream is very rich, so you need to apply only a small amount, otherwise it takes time to rub it in; a good time to apply this cream is before you go to sleep, letting the cream work overnight. The scent is fragrant, though not overbearing. Avène Cold Cream is NIS 50 for a 75-ml. tube.
Crêma Spa has two new aromatic hand creams with the scents coconut-vanilla and patchouli-lavender. This hand cream is less rich and is absorbed more easily, and the patchouli-lavender fragrance is definitely mood-enhancing. The coconut-vanilla got less positive reviews from our test subjects; the coconut smell was thought to be too dominant and it lingered a little too long. The creams are enriched with chamomile, which has soothing qualities; a 100 ml. tube is NIS 20. In the Crêma Spa series you can find matching body washes as well.
Emma Green's hand cream is easily absorbed as well, and has a subtle smell, which was to the liking of the person who tested it, since a hand cream shouldn't be more dominant than a body lotion or perfume. The cream contains beeswax, sea algae extract, rose oil and coconut oil. The product looks pretty, and makes a nice gift. A 100-ml. tube, sold at the Emma Green stores, is NIS 44.
Estee Lauder's Mani-Pedi is a hand and foot cream-in-one, offering a soothing manicure and pedicure treatment. If you massage the cream on your feet at night before going to sleep, you will wake up with soft and smooth feet. The fragrance is very subtle, hardly noticeable. To pamper your hands, you can massage them with the cream, any time you feel like it, or before going to sleep. For this luxurious treatment you pay a bit more: NIS 135 for a 200-ml. tube.
To keep your hands clean and germ-free at all times, Dr. Fischer's Hygienic Hand Gel does a great job. This gel is quickly absorbed, kills 99.99 percent of the bacteria and is a good alternative for when there is no water and soap available. The gel now comes in small bottles you can put in your purse or the car, with three different fragrances: peach, apple and kiwi-lemon. The fragrances take the edge off of the alcohol smell, and are rather pleasant; a 60 ml. bottle is NIS 10.
Revlon has a whole series of products for hands and feet to help you take care of nails and skin, so you can skip the manicure/pedicure and save yourself the money. The four steps to healthy nails consist of a nail prep, a cuticle moisture cream, a nail growth treatment and a nail enamel. We tried the nail growth treatment, which supposedly increases nail moisture and encourages longer, stronger nails, something I'd like to have. The treatment is a kind of oil that has to be applied to bare nails and cuticles; it is easily massaged in and absorbed, so you can follow immediately with your nail polish, if you wish. The prices for Revlon Nail Care products vary from NIS 40 to NIS 90, and prices for Revlon Beauty Tools such as nail clippers, cuticle cutters, etc., vary from NIS 18 to NIS 99.