What's the proper way to take care of your cuticles? I know I'm not doing a good job with mine. I don't soak them or anything, or know the proper way of soaking them (in plain water?). I do use Burt's Bees Cuticle Cream almost every night, but that's about it. I push them back (which hurt a lot cause I do it dry) and use a nail clipper to cut them off when I do my manicures (which isn't often now). So basically I don't do anything except use cream on them.

How do you guys take care of your cuticles? What's the proper way? What tools and products do you use? TIA. :)

I guess I don't know the "proper" way. On my fingers, I always push them back with my own fingernails (no tools) when they are moist from a shower or if they've been wet a while some other way (cleaning, etc). I make sure they are actually wet & moist so they are soft...not just an obligatory quick wet.

Yeah, and I make sure I get hand lotion on them when I apply it at night.

As for my toes, I use a Sally Hansen gel cuticle remover, let it sit, soak my feet in a bowl of warm water for a while, then use a push tool. That works great.I don't do this on my fingers because I think it is a little harsh.

I alway find it amazing how nice my hands & cuticles can be, then do some sort of "strenuous" hand activity like cleaning, moving, paper handling, and the hand oils are gone and my hands look trashed. Takes a few days to get them back to being pretty.

I have acrylics, and I get pedicures in the summer, but when I'm grooming my own toes in the colder months I use cuticle oil and a push tool.

You should definitely be soaking your cuticles before you try to push them back. If you don't want to use water, you can use a special oil which softens them up like water. You should be using either small scissors to cut them or special ones like a manicurist does. Plus keep your hands moisturized!

Yeah, I realize that soaking them is best thing to do. I did my nails yesterday, and I soaked my fingertips only, in a small dish for a few minutes. It worked perfectly, and my cuticles pushed back easily. I was just afraid of getting my hands dry in water, but I didn't think about just soaking my cuticles/nails only. :)