The key to dead-skin removal is exfoliation. Buffing away dry skin cells on your hands and fingers reveals the softer skin underneath. Moisturizing with shea butter immediately after exfoliating and cleansing helps to retain moisture in your skin. Author Sade Oguntola, writing for "The Nigerian Tribune," touts the healing powers of shea butter, an African beauty secret. Many women in Africa keep their skin soft and smooth with black soap, made from shea butter and plantain skins, and rub in raw shea butter afterward.
Step 1
Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of baking soda into the palm of your hands just before you go to bed. Make a paste with warm water. Scrub your hands for one minute and rinse with warm water.
Step 2
Lather your hands with a small chunk of African black soap. The raw soap is dark brown and very soft; choose it over hard-milled soap that is actually black in color. Keep massaging your hands until all the soap is dissolved into a rich lather. Rinse with more warm water.
Step 3
Place a 1-inch-by-1-inch chunk of shea butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave it on high for 30 seconds or until almost liquefied.
Step 4
Rub the warm shea butter into your hands and pull on a pair of cotton gloves.
Step 5
Leave on the gloves overnight to allow the shea butter to soak in. In the morning, wash with black soap again and massage in a pea-sized amount of shea butter. Rub the chunk between your palms to liquefy.
Things You'll Need
- Baking soda
- African black soap
- Shea butter
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