Raise your hand if you know how to use a cuticle nipper. OK, for the two of you who can, we're impressed. For the rest of us, Sarah Gibson Tuttle (founder of Olive and June salons and quite possibly the most nail-obsessed person we have ever known) has a foolproof method for keeping them in check without ever having to cut them again.
Ready for it? While you're in the shower, use your right thumbnail to gently push back the cuticles on your left hand. Switch hands and repeat on the other side. Then, immediately post-shower (aka while your skin is still soft and pliable), lightly buff them to remove any excess skin. Finish with a thin layer of cuticle oil or serum to hydrate and you're done.
Is that really all we need to do? Yup. In fact, most manicurists and dermatologists we've talked to agree: You should be gentle with your cuticles. They're there to protect your nails and surrounding skin from infection, so cutting them (or even jamming them back with a metal pusher or orange stick) is unnecessary and potentially even harmful.
After a dry winter, our cuticles were in particularly rough shape, but a week of concentrated care and they've never looked better.
