Product Review: The Handmade Soap Company Hand Cream

As mentioned in my last post ( click this writing to be magically transported to the last post! ) I recently got a bunch of gorgeous producst from an Irish artisan company called The Handmade Soap Company.
Upon arrival, one of the first things I took out of the box of goodies was their hand cream:

(I've used it daily since I got it hence some is missing in this photo!) 

My mum was with me when I first opened this and I was at risk of never getting it back from her for review as she fell in love with it at first touch and smell! However, I personally wanted to give it a long run in order to give a more rounded review of it. Being a barber I use hand cream several times a day to keep my hands hydrated, so this cream as been my daily go-to for the last two weeks or so. I put a spoonful into a small 7gram jar I keep in my handbag and I keep the regular size jar (which is a good sized 50ml I should add) beside my bed.

The jar itself comes in a pretty box and I love the Handmade Soap Company packaging as I've mentioned previously. On the lid it says 'with aloe vera gel and golden jojoba oil', however this cream smells just like refreshing lemon sherbet! Here's a photo of the ingredients list and I'm guessing it's the lemon myrtle that gives it this scent. 

So, despite smelling delicious and fresh (there is nothing artificial about this lemon scent thankfully, as faux-lemon reminds me of kitchen cleaner), how does this perform? Well I'm (possibly unsurprisingly) very picky about my hand creams and own several. 

I like something with a bit of thickness to it, hence I like a cream over a lotion

I like a cream that doesn't leave oil or reside on my skin (thus marking anything I touch like my phone etc.)

I like a cream that I can feel has moisturised my skin and stays moisturised

Luckily, after extensive testing - this cream does all of that! Now I genuinely did want to nit pick about this cream and thought there would be at least a few things to grumble about but I can find very few. It rubs in quickly and you can feel the hydration for ages yet there is no clammy or oily reside. There is a slight lingering scent but nothing overpowering and it complements my natural body heat wonderfully (which is good as I've previously used a lemon balm on my hands that made my boyfriend gag as he said it combined with my body heat to become repulsive!). The texture is similar to a thick, smooth, mousse. You can see the indentations in the first photo of where I've taken some. You only need a pea sized amount for the whole hands and I can see this tub lasting a long time.

The price point of €11.95 does seem a little steep, however it will last ages and is handmade. It might be too much for some people, however as I use a cream so often, having a good one is important to me so I do think I would buy this having now tried it. (It would be too much for an unknown gamble). 

The only other downfall for me is that it's not slightly waterproof. However were it, that would make it a different type of hand product; a balm or butter rather than a cream, and as a cream I have to say it's virtually faultless. For something thicker during work (where my hands get wet and dry frequently) I will still use a heavy balm, but for morning and night time use this one will be putting all the others back in the drawer and taking proud place on my bedside locker! (You can find the product online here!)

- BE