Beauty Culture (Woodbury)/Chapter 1

Since manicuring (which signifies "care of the hands," and not, as popularly understood, of the nails alone) is in greater demand than any other operation in Beauty Culture, and since it is the simplest of the processes, it is expedient to begin our treatise with its discussion.

Anatomy of the Hand.—First of all, it is necessary to learn the anatomy of the hand in general, and that of the finger and nail in particular.

The hand consists of the digits or fingers, and the metacarpus or palm, which is connected with the forearm by the carpus or wrist.

​In Figure 1 will be found the names and locations of the various fingers, fleshy protuberances, lines and folds, etc.

Differences Between the Fingers. The different lengths of the fingers are explained by Gall Humphrey, M. D., of Cambridge, England, by their adaptation to

Fig. 1.THE PARTS OF THE HAND

1. Pollex, or thumb. 2. Index, or forefinger. 3. Medius, or middle finger. 4. Annularis, or ring-finger. 5. Auricularis, or little finger. 6. Thenar eminence, or ball of the thumb. 7. Hypothenar eminence, or heel of the hand. 8. Linea vitalis, or line of life. 9. Linea cephalica, or line of the head. 10. Linea mensalis, or line of the heart. 11. Linca fortunæ, or saturnine line. 12. Rasceta, or wrist markings ("bracelets"). 13. Nodes, or finger knots. 15. Interdigital folds.

From the Standard Dictionary. By permission of Funk & Wagnalle.

Thus the middle finger is the largest, its metacarpal being the most fixed. The forefinger ranks next, its metacarpal being more movable. Then the ring finger and the little finger come next in size and in the mobility of the metacarpal. The thumb, shortest, has its metacarpal much more movable.

"Observe," says Dr. Humphrey, "that when the fingers and the thumb are spread out, the space between thumb and forefinger is considerably greater than the space between the other fingers. Then, by a slight movement, the thumb takes a position in front of, or opposite to, the fingers. In grasping any substance it has to antagonize the pressure exerted by all the fingers. Hence it needs to be much stronger than they are, and to be wielded by more numerous and powerful muscles."

"The forefinger has the greatest range of independent movement," Hence it is used to point with (or beckon with), and is called the index or indicator, more commonly the former.

"The ring finger cannot be bent or straightened much without being accompanied in movement by one or both of those next to it. This is partly because the extensor tendon is connected," says Dr. Humphrey, "by means of a hand of fibres with the tendon on either side." In other words, there is a remnant of the webbing, so curiously found still persisting in the toes of the Russians as will be hereafter noted in the discussion of chiropody.

This finger with less independence of movement was not chosen on that account, as might be humorously imagined, to bear the ring that symbolizes that state in which men and women generally lose their individual mobility, but it was probably selected because the enforced com​panionship of the other two fingers, when it moves, gives it a comparative immunity from injury, which is further increased by the general, though not universal practice of selecting the ring finger of the left hand. Possibly, however, the fact that the heart is on the left side had much to do with the choice of the left hand as the bearer of the engagement and the wedding ring.

It is well for the manicurist who may be called on to treat the whole hand as well as the nails of a patron to understand thoroughly the bony and muscular structure and the varying degrees of mobility in the fingers and their relations to each other, particularly, for instance, the special connection between the ring finger and its "side partners," so that, in massaging or in casual manipulations of the joints and tendons, the operator may avoid rubbing or pulling against the grain, so to speak, and so setting up a sensation of slight lameness, instead of restfulness, in the delicate hands of a patient.

Since the right hand is more in use than the left, it follows that nail growth and texture is more subject to accident; although the nail, partaking of the condition of the skin of the hand, might be firmer. If the patron has any manual occupation, is, for example, one who uses the pen constantly or any tools that tend to flatten the tips of the fingers and to spread the nail, extra attention to the manicuring of the nails of the hand most in use will be indicated, in order that this tendency may be held in check.

Temperature of the Hand. Temperature of the hand is a matter to be noted by the manicurist, especially that of her own hands, since a cold or damp hand is unpleasant to a patron and might suffice to drive some away after one sitting.

​Where coldness of the hands or feet or both at once is chronic, it is because the blood is not circulating properly through the system, a condition which the manicurist should seek to overcome or prevent in herself and strive to overcome in a patron, by suggesting regular exercise of the fingers and wrists, or exercises of the arms, both mild and persistent, or, in extremely obstinate cases, by advising her to consult a first-rate physician. Most cases, however, can be easily cured.

Exercise of the Hands. Since the functions of the hand are prehension, or grasping, and testing by the sense of touch, which is specially developed in the finger tips, the manicurist should take care not to impair these functions, but rather to develop them. The muscles should be rendered strong and flexible by exercise, either with gymnastic appliances, such as the gripping and wrist machines, or by exercise without apparatus, as described in books and magazines relating to physical culture. In gripping there is a striking difference between the masculine and feminine hand, the power of the man increasing with each successive trial until the maximum strength is exerted at the fourth or fifth trial, and thereafter diminishing, and the power of the woman beginning with the first trial as the maximum and thereafter decreasing. This shows greater initial nervous energy in the woman and less staying power. Women, therefore, should strengthen the hand by gripping exercises until the power shown in the first trial continues undiminished for several repetitions.

Massage of the Hands. Plumpness and shapeliness of the hands, as well as their flexibility can be greatly increased by massage, the general principles of which will be presented later in the discussion of Facial Mas​sage. The student is to understand that massaging of the hands runs on an exactly opposite line to the direction given for the massaging of the face. The movements are to be mostly downward toward the finger tips, with intermediate light strokes or gentle pulls and pinches across the back of the hand, and only a few very delicate upward strokes toward the finish. The inside, or palm, is to be massaged toward the fingers also, with interspersed rotary movements toward its middle point.

In this massaging, the use of a little pure olive oil will be found helpful.

Enlarged Joints. Massaging is especially helpful in treating enlarged joints, not so much in actually reducing their size as in building up the other parts of the hand and so giving it a symmetrical appearance.

Enlarged joints are more frequently noted in men than in women. They are often accompanied with pain or an annoying numbness.

The causes are various, and, therefore, various treatments or combinations of treatments must be undertaken.

Where the enlargement is due primarily to a person's former or present occupation, nearly always the most that can be done is by long-continued massaging of the adjacent tissue, as well as by gentle manipulation of the joints themselves, to bring out the rest of the hand to such a fulness of contour that the enlargements do not seem quite so prominent.

If the chief enlargement is that of the first joint of the thumb—a very common disfigurement—the problem is to build up the tissue between the thumb and forefinger especially, and to some extent on the outer side of the thumb, where it joins the wrist.

In this case the patron should be made to hold out ​the hand as straight as possible, with the thumb close to the forefinger or slightly curving under it. The operator then, putting her middle and ring finger in the palm of the patron's hand, maintains a firm but slight pressure upward and a little outward toward the offending joint, and with her thumb softly pushes the flesh on the back of the hand; that is to say, the little hillock that is formed between the thumb and the knuckle of the forefinger.

These pushes never should be hard, and at the first operation from twenty to thirty are enough. By practice on her own left hand the operator will readily catch the mode of doing it.

In manipulating the smaller joints, care should be taken not to use much pressure or you may enlarge them still more. A continuity of gentle movements is far more effective finally than vigorous manipulation.

Some of these cases will demand weeks of treatment to overcome or to lessen the deformity. The time spent on each treatment should usually be not more than half an hour, and at the first few sittings not more than a quarter.

Where the enlargement is due to chalky deposits, it is apt to be painful, rendering the person extremely nervous or "fidgety." Such cases you should turn over at once to a physician for internal medication, simultaneous with your scientific massaging.

Tartar-lithine tablets act with good results in less severe cases, but in many persons a long course of internal medication, coupled with great care as to one's diet, the cutting down of meat, especially beef, to a minimum, abstemiousness in the use of coffee or tea, and absolute abstention from all drinks that contain alcohol, will be found necessary to effect a complete cure.

​Twitching Hands. Massage is also beneficial in the case of twitching hands. Many persons who otherwise exhibit no special sign of nervousness have hands that twitch noticeably, without their being always aware of it and of the effect of awkwardness that such a manifestation of misplaced energy produces. Others have a trick of twiddling their thumbs, which may be excellent exercise for those valuable members, but is not a pleasing sight. Massaging of the hands tends to eradicate both of these forms of abnormal activity, and also tends to check the flow of unusual perspiration that often accompanies the twitching habit. After thoroughly massaging hands of this kind, a little very fine cornmeal or rice powder should be rubbed on them. The patron should repeat this rubbing just before going to bed.

Hardened Hands. Sometimes even the best-kept and handsomest hands quite unaccountably show a disposition to harden and take on a rough, coarse feel. In such cases olive oil or cocoanut butter, rubbed in twice a day, will generally restore them, but for softening them, in cases of persistent hardening, the following formula is recommended to be used twice a day for a week and then once a day till relieved:

Peeling of the Hands. Persons with very delicate or with very active skins are occasionally afflicted with periodical Peeling of the Hands. Sometimes this begins with small water blisters, but is often quite dry, the scarf skin turning white in small patches.

It may run up under the sides of the forefinger and ​at times appear on the outside about the nails, with some inflammation of the adjacent skin, and a slight prickly and burning sensation.

It may occur only twice a year; then again as often as every three months.

A week of simple treatment usually suffices to banish it, but the fact of its periodicity indicates a constitutional condition, or an idiosyncrasy, that makes advisable, in most cases, constitutional treatment by a physician.

The simple treatment which the manicurist may give, in connection with gentle massaging, is first a washing of the hands in soft water, moderately warm, careful drying with the softest possible towel, and then a rubbing in of olive oil or of a little lanolin. The lanolin should not be rubbed on the back of the haud, as it has a slight tendency to stimulate and to darken a growth of hair.

Then the patron should be advised to wear a somewhat loose glove, never a tight one, and at night, after a careful washing of the hands with warm water and castile soap, to rinse them twice or thrice in warm water, dry them and anoint them with olive oil, wearing to bcd a loose glove that has the finger tips removed.

If the peeling is accompanied with much inflammation about the ends of the fingers or in the crevices of the joints, the patron must be advised to have a physician prescribe some internal treatment or some special salve, probably one of a mercurial kind.

Simple vaseline, which is often used by persons themselves who do not wish to bother with special treatment, does not appear to have any particular penetrative or curative potency, but simply prevents temporarily an irritation of the exposed surfaces by particles of dust getting into the crevices.

​Capsicum vaseline, on the other hand, may have some stimulating effect; but, unskilfully applied, is likely to prolong the condition.

Chapped Hands. Every one who does anything in winter that exercises the hands outdoors, whether wearing gloves or not, is liable to chapping. To find the right blend for cleansing and softening the hands without making them too tender for active use in cold air has been for centuries the dream and aim of soap makers. Chapped hands are in reality soiled hands; hands where the dirt has worked in and set up irritation. Many a toilet table, by the variety of "lotions" it displays, proves how hard its owner has tried to find just the one most effective. Once in a while, for a while, a lotion will "fill the bill," but it may be so continuously costly as to be deterrent.

There is, however, a thing so simple and cheap as to be within reach of all—cornmeal. The Indians used this centuries ago, and New England country women have done so for two hundred years, substituting milk for the grease—bear's grease—added by the aborigines. Oatmeal would do fairly well, but cornmeal is better.

Mix it with a little fine soap (castile) and warm water. After a thorough washing, rub in a little olive oil or lanolin or vaseline and then wipe off. With half a dozen nights of such treatment even the chapped hands of a devoted golfer will usually heal. Should they still be obstinate, rub in at night a little lime juice or lemon juice to complete the process of healing. Night is the best time, because the hands then have a longer exemption from exposure to cold and so the healing process has a better opportunity to take hold.

Always wipe hands perfectly dry after washing them and press down, and gently back, the skin around the ​nail with the towel. This last will prevent the development of hangnails.

After the cornmeal washing with warm water at night, a cornmeal wash with cold water in the morning is advised. On general principles, after ordinary washing in warm water, cold should be used to harden the hands and enable then to cope with cold air. Wash for several minutes in hot water after the oil, lanoline or vaseline has been rubbed in. Then dry carefully.

Meal does by mechanic action what soap does by chemic, and does not burrow into the flesh like most soaps. The practice of greasing the hand under the notion that it feeds it is one of dubious value, but the occasional rubbing in of olive oil—absolutely pure—is beneficial in many cases, both to nails as well as hands, and will do much to prevent their chapping. Plump hands, however, rarely need such treatment; their supply of natural oil is abundant enough.

The wearing of the same pair of gloves for more than a week, unless these are turned inside out and chemically cleaned, tends to render the hands soiled in grain, and hence liable to disease. Gloves accumulate dirt even from hands kept immaculately clean, as can be seen by a cursory glance at their insides after they have been worn for several weeks.