Absolutely, I get them! Mine are on my thumbs and knuckles, and I've been told I don't drink enough water and keep my hands in soapy water too long. I use that udder hand cream, which works for me. If I put Argon oil in my bath water, that helps, too.

Thanks - I'll definitely look for the Nexcare. I often get the little skin cracks in the winter and there are times when I go to bed with 4 or 5 fingertips covered in neosporin with bandaids on top.

My skin does not crack, but I read online a group of spinners who had problems with their hands snagging the wool. They recommend Working Hands by OKeefe. I find it at Lowe's in the paint department, where the clerk who helped me find it says that they cannot keep it on the shelves. You can also get it online. Great on feet and heels too. It comes in a screw top jar, and you don't use a lot for an application.

Best thing ever is O'Keefe's Working Hands cream.
I buy it at our local Ace Hardware.
Take a look at O'Keefe's website....their product is guaranteed.
I also use the one for foot care....amazing stuff.

Ditto what Carol said. I learned about Working Hands on this forum, and am on my second jar. Gave some to my kids, who feel the same way about it. So do the friends I've recommended it to.

I also use liquid bandage on the smaller cuts.

I don't usually have that problem. I did buy all the men some of the O'Keefe's one year for Christmas. My husband couldn't remember what he did with his, he probably threw it away, Grrrr.

Sue

ditto on the Okeffe's my husband has real problems with his hands and feet and he used both the hand and foot cream from them. Now they have it at Bed Bath and Beyond before that we got it at Lowes.

Here is a link that might be useful: okeffes

An easy aid when you're out and about during the day...Chapstick! The cracks on my thumbs get so painful during the winter months. I can't keep up with skin care applications 24/7 to alleviate the problem so now, I never leave home without a tube of Chapstick in my bag...and I apply it liberally throughout my time away from home. It works like a charm and is so easy to keep with you. Not only does it soften the skin...it reduces the pain.

Anne

Yes...and I read once and I think it was on this site that chapstick works...tried it and it did work for me...

Thank you for posting about this, dbfirewife. I have terribly dry hands and the skin breaks easily. I'm going to try working hands!

Ditto (tiny little cracks and roughness), and I've never thought I have really dry skin.
I have a few tubes of Neosporin/pain relief that helps, but it always happens that soon after I put it on, I'm in the loo and need to wash up!

And yes, it's not even really cold out yet!

I think I'll check out these other products you're recommending.

I used to get those all the time in the winter in MI working in the grocery store. They hurt so bad at times. I don't get them anymore now here in Florida. I used to wear bandaids on my thumbs all the time!

I was a florist and always got them especially around Valentines Day while dethorning all the roses. I would put super glue on them, it burned a little but sealed them over so it didn't hurt. I'd get the cheap kind from the $ store 3-4 tubes per pack. I had to re apply it frequently but it sure made my life easier during the holidays. Also thick lotion/shea butter with cotton gloves overnight helps with the dry hands issues.

I have a terrible time in the winter. And it's especially bad when I'm doing a lot of quilting (working with cotton dries out your hands). I use udder cream and bandaids.

There are two products that make Okeafes working hands look like silly putty by comparison, but when I tell you what they are, most will turn their nose up and cope an atttitude....well, if you don't beleive me, ask your pharmacist, doctor or dermatologist...in fact, Jans dermotologist has written her prescriptions for both...

what are they?

"Corn Huskers Lotion" or "Bag Balm"

Those of you who live in or near farming communities throughout the midwest probably alread know about them.

Corn Huskers lotion was originally made for just what the name implies, farmers who were husking corn. Nothing dries your hands out like handling wet cornstalks all day. The moisture floats the essential oils up and out of your skin and the cornstalks absorb it until your hands are so dry they will literally split just from flexing a finger.

Bag Balm was originally formulated to apply on the teats & udders of milk cows so they wouldn't dry out and bleed in winter. Bag balm is basically a blend of vasoline and pure lanolyn and it has some antibacterial stuff in it..

The udder cream that Glenda mentioned is a milder form of bag balm that is made by a cosmetic company,but if you want the real thing, as your drugist,,,I guarantee they have it on the shelf in your drug store.

Thanks for the tip about O'Keffe's and Bag Balm. I did see O'Keffe's in Home Depot the other day. I will get some of it for my son in law. I will also pick up some bag balm... might as well add both of them to my collection! I was able to do an entire days work yesterday without my thumb hurting from the splits. I wish I had found the Nexcare for skin splits a long time ago.

There are two products that make Okeafes working hands look like silly putty by comparison, but when I tell you what they are, most will turn their nose up and cope an atttitude....

Lazypup, it's just remarkable how you consistently know so much more than the rest of us. I can think of no other explanation for your endlessly condescending air.

As for Corn Huskers and Bag Balm, I've tried both and rate each a big fat zero. They were a complete waste of money.

My thanks again to Carol and the other KTers who recommended O'Keefe's Working Hands.

My absolute favorite is Burt's Bees Hand Salve. I don't get splits as much as snags around my nails, but the Hand Salve works amazingly well for me. They make my hands look like whole new hands! :)

Having a bad day...are we, Alisande.

Anne

Not at all, Anne. In fact, I'm feeling happy that the deer damage to my car is in the $50 range--much lower than I'd anticipated.

I have used Bag Balm and I have used Corn Huskers lotion but nothing works as well as O'Keefes....and it is guaranteed.

lazypuup - why would Jan need a prescription for those - aren't they OTC?

"As for Corn Huskers and Bag Balm, I've tried both and rate each a big fat zero. They were a complete waste of money."

Ditto for my husband! Will be trying the O'Keefes.

Marie- You are correct, they are OTC but Jans dermatologist wrote a prescription so her insurance would pay for it.

I first tried Corn huskers lotion some 30 years ago, still swear by the stuff.

You were right, lazypup, most did turn up their noses.

Carmex for fingers and corn huskers for rough feet.
Works for me

My husband use to work in the paint department a company that manufactured and painted automobile parts and the only thing that worked for his rough hands was Corn Huskers. It would not wash off when his hands were exposed to paint thinner. As for the Bag Balm, he had an itchy rash on his leg and his Dr prescribed meds that he used for weeks and the rash did not heal. The only thing the prescribed medicine did, was relieve the itch. He decided to use the Bag Balm and within less than a week, the rash was gone. And to this day, has not returned.

The Corn Huskers and Bag Balm does work good for rough dry and cracked skin on the hands - but it doesn't do much for those painful splits down the fingers are a whole different thing. Oye - they hurt! Mine are usually on my thumb too.

I will look for the Nexcare Skin Crack Care - sounds like something good to have on hand. I have even used super glue once in a pinch. It helped - but sting! Yes it did!

dbfirewife -- I'm glad that you brought this up. I have a split on my thumb from doing too much cleaning and housework.

I got some Mr.Clean gloves, which I like, but I keep forgetting to put them on before I start cleaning.

When I worked in an appliance and hardware store, there was always a container of Bag Balm on the shelf in the lunch/lounge room in back - one never knew what they might get their hands into, even if just mountains of drying filing and paperwork :)

For those really painful actual cracks and cuts though (and I was the one shuffling papers so I had to be clean during the day and not leave fingerprints anywhere), I would squeeze out a couple of tablespoons of Neosporin, the ointment not cream product, massage it into my hands at bedtime and put on a pair of cotton gloves. If I was lucky, I didn't pull the gloves off during the night (since I'm also the one who washes sheets) and next morning my hands would be about 90% better.

So far this fall I have had two of those painful cracks on my thumbs. I had bought a container of "No Crack" cream last year but 'of course' had not thought to start using it, so had to use cloverine salve & bandaid until they were healed. If the 'No Crack' cream doesn't work, then I will look into these other products. It doesn't help that I wash my hands a million times a day!

I have really bad psoriasis. I told my husband to stop by Lowe's on his lunch break or on his way home and see if they had O'Keefe's Working Hands. He brought me 2 containers of it! I immediately put some on my elbows, hands and feet. (he didn't see the one for feet/heals). I put some more on after my shower and my hands feel so much better! My heals split something awful because of psoriasis on my feet but this stuff makes them feel better! Thank you so much for mentioning this product!!!

Deb

Soooo Painful I finally figured it out what causes my fingers to split seemingly over night. ARE U READY FOR THIS? Antibacterial soap!

The pharmacist recommended something called Zinn's Crack Creame a couple of years ago and it seems to work very well. The first year I bought it they carried it at the Giant and they ordered it for me last winter without any problem

Yep, Chapstick for me too. When Burt's Bees lip balm contained comfrey, the cracks healed really fast. Now that they've taken out the comfrey it's no better than any other lip balm. I get cracks along the nails and oh do they hurt if you bump them. I get them wet and then apply the Chapstick and keep it on. I like Udderly Smooth. Working Hands is great too.

Chapstick. Easy to carry and you can control where it goes. The plain Chapstick in the black tube.

It's probably not the antibacterial soap. It's the preservative in many liquid soaps,shampoos even baby and adult wipes. Methylisothiazolinone (MI) is the often the culprit. Switching to bar soap is easier than reading labels. But otherwise read the labels on liquid cleansing products,wipes etc. It is even found in some make-up, hand lotion, body creams etc.

I'm glad this one came back from the grave because I've been needing something for my dry hands. I'm pretty sure I've read this one but have forgotten it all.

Well, where was I 2.5 years ago? I have dyshidrotic excema (allergic to water) mostly on my hands and the winters are the worst. I have to keep my hands as dry as possible, getting them wet a lot is the worst thing I can do. Fabric usage is bad, too, when I sewed all day every day, that was really hard on my fingers. I found things with glycerin to be the most helpful. I also tried all the above mentioned things and have the barely used jars and bottles to prove it. ;)

Amlactin is fabulous. By Upsher-Smith, it's a bit hard to find but the stuff in the big tubes is sooo good for my hands, and for cracked heels, too. Sometimes I find it at WalMart.

Read somewhere recently that castor oil rubbed into those cracks will help a lot. At least it's pretty cheap so worth a try.

If the chemical does that to your nails, what do you think it is doing to your lungs. I was stripping wood one time with open windows and a mask and all of a sudden I was congested. I ran outside for fresh air. I never worked with that stuff again. Scary...

normally no...but this week has been a killer...my lips are chapped and hurting...and my thumbs both have splits...I usually lather on Lanolin grease I got thru Amazon and sleep in gloves...that clears it up in a couple of days...Hubby ordered four huge bottles of Amlactin for Christmas...he uses it and we sent a bottle to his Mother and gave the other ones to the kids...it doesn't work for me...I got a bottle subscribed a few years ago and hubster ended up using it...Now that its on Amazon he loves it!

There is a lanolin grease called Lansinoh you can find at some drugstores and also back in the baby department at Walmart...its sold for nursing mothers...lather some of that on your hands and sleep in gloves...you'll be amazed at the results! I think every one of our bodies are different and you just have to keep searching till you find what works for you!!

I use Gloves In A Bottle as a preventative. It's effective against moisture and household chemicals. It's a go-to product for me.

Way old post, but I'll play.

I bought DH the Working Hands after reading about it here. He is very happy with it!