Few body parts go about revealing your age quite like your hands, and while one glance at them can make you fondly reflect on all the hard work, family-raising, and adventuring you have done in your life, they can also be a source of regret or pain.

Don’t miss this quick guide to understanding how and why your hands age and what you can do to turn back the clock.

Why Do Hands Change as You Get Older?

In addition to the natural wear and tear your hands experience over the decades, other factors can change the look of your hands as you age:

• Sun exposure can result in sun spots, also called “liver spots,” on your hands and arms.
• Your skin finds it harder to lock in moisture when you get older which can contribute to wrinkles, dry, flaky patches, and a loss in elasticity.
• As your soft tissue volume reduces with age, including collagen and fat in your hands, your veins and bones naturally become more prominent. Your hands are one of the most visible places where this happens.
• Your nail bed doesn’t hold your nail plate as strongly as it once did which can lead to an increase in nail brittleness and breakage.

Other changes in your hands that you may experience over 60 include decreased grip strength, tremors, joint inflammation, and pain (typically associated with arthritis).

Dark bruising may also more readily occur on your hands as you age, even from a small impact, because your skin is thinner or if you take blood-thinning medications like aspirin.

Luckily, there are plenty of steps you can take to improve both your hand function and appearance!

What Can Make My Hands Stronger?

Want to make sure you don’t have any problem opening jars, texting, driving, or tossing the ball with your grandkids as you get older? Then work at making your hands and forearms stronger now.

You can use simple tools like stress balls, grip strengtheners, even tennis balls to squeeze to the tone and strength you need in your hands and arms. Hobbies like knitting, sewing, crocheting, playing musical instruments, and cooking can also help you maintain strength and dexterity in your hands.

If you experience any pain in your hands and wrists as a result of using them, check with your doctor to make sure there isn’t a more serious underlying cause.

Sometimes your hands can simply get sore from overuse. Chronic pain and discomfort that could affect your independence, however, should be addressed sooner rather than later.

What Can Make My Hands Look Younger?

Turn back the clock and prevent future damage to your hands with these helpful ideas:

Wear Sunscreen

The American Academy of Dermatology Association shares that applying sunscreen to your hands every day can help prevent excessive wrinkling later on.

Your hands get more sun than you realize, especially when you are driving. Get into the habit of applying sunscreen (SPF 30 or higher) when you head out of the house and save yourself from unsightly sun spots later in life.

Moisturize

In addition to staying adequately hydrated yourself, make sure your skin gets all the moisture it needs to retain its youthful elasticity and prevent dryness or wrinkling. Applying lotions before bed with retinol or glycolic acid in them may help address wrinkles you currently have on your hands too.

Protect Your Hands

Cleaning, gardening, working outside… your hands come into contact with not just the sun but harsh chemicals that can strip your skin of its natural oils.

Make sure to wear gloves, preferably with a breathable cotton lining, to protect the skin on your hands from damage that could take long time to repair.

Eat for Your Skin and Nails

Consume a balanced diet rich with nutrients that support healthy skin and nails as you age, like Omega-3s, B vitamins (including B7 – biotin), vitamin C, antioxidants, and protein.

If you have existing sun spots, super prominent veins, or mild joint deformity, talk to your doctor or dermatologist about conventional treatments like chemical peels, laser treatments, and filler injections.

These could both improve the look of your hands as well as make you feel more confident and functional.

What changes have you noticed in your hands after age 50? What steps do you take to prevent sun spots and wrinkles on your hands? Please share below!

Ariana Madix’s Snake Print Top on Instagram

Vanderpump Rules Instagram Fashion 2020

Ariana Madix’s snake print top on Instagram is not only super cute with it’s multicolour pattern, puff shoulders and button front, but will cost you less than $100. That is only if you click “add to bag” on this one, because we have a feeling that like what appears to be the case with Ariana, the polka dot version may just slither it’s way in there too.

Fashionably,

Faryn

Click Here to Shop Her AFRM Bodysuit in Snake Print or Polka Dot

Photo #1: @DanicaDowww

Photo #2: @SarahElizaOfficial

Originally posted at: Ariana Madix’s Snake Print Top

Kenya Moore’s Tuxedo Jumpsuit on Watch What Happens Live

Watch What Happens Live February 17, 2020 Fashion

Kenya Moore’s tuxedo jumpsuit on Watch What Happens Live is yet another one piece that the Atlanta beauty has worn on this show that costs a pretty penny. While the last one she wore cost $2600 and this one is one sale for a little over 1k, which I’m sure you rich b*tches will be happy to hear. As for the rest of us, there are some amazing Style Stealers that will leave us looking clubhouse chic for far less cash.

The Realest Housewife,

Big Blonde Hair

Click Here to Shop her Galvan Jumpsuit

Originally posted at: Kenya Moore’s Tuxedo Jumpsuit

Tanya Sam’s Leopard Metallic Trim Blouse

Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 12 Episode 14 Fashion

Tanya Sam may arguably be the sweetest Georgia peach on the Real Housewives of Atlanta, her wardrobe always carries the meanest price tags. While her leopard metallic trim blouse may have originally retailed for $1,195, it’s sold out so on the bright side you just saved yourself over a grand. And an entire meal filled with the maximum amount of anxiety about spilling on your gorgeous top.

The Realest Housewife,

Big Blonde Hair

Click Here to See her Dolce + Gabanna Blouse

Click Here to Shop it on eBay

Originally posted at: Tanya Sam’s Leopard Metallic Trim Blouse

I can remember learning to knit as a small child and being delighted when I produced a hideous scarf, full of holes and dropped stitches and strangely wider at one end than the other.

Can You Recall Learning to Knit, or Your First Knitting Project?

My real passion for knitting began when I was about 14, and Twiggy was the style icon of the day. She was photographed in a short Shetland wool sweater and every teenager wanted one.

Luckily, a pattern was available, and along with a group of friends, we started our projects. We used bright colours of beautifully soft Shetland, double knitting, and we would smuggle our knitting bags into school so we could knit and natter during our lunch break.

Whilst most of my friends gave up after that flurry of activity, I have continued to enjoy knitting to this day.

After the Twiggy inspired sweater came a huge and colourful cardigan for my would-be husband, copied from one worn on the TV series Starsky & Hutch. It was, if I am honest, a terrible fashion mistake, but it did get a bit of wear before disappearing to the bottom of the cupboard.

Then came a useful cricket jumper for the same lucky man, knitted whilst flying to the USA, when knitting needles were still permitted in the cabin.

Knitting for the Family

Marriage and babies came next, and I was in my element making delicate lacy jackets and shawls, followed all too swiftly by hand knit school sweaters and chunky arans for weekend wear.

If I could persuade my husband to mind the children, I would slip off to the local wool shop and browse the pattern books for hours on end.

To be without a project was like being deprived a cigarette (I imagine!) as I hated to have a pair of idle hands and loved to knit whilst watching TV or listening to the radio.

But before long, my girls had minds of their own, and their tastes didn’t run to hand made anything. So, I turned back to myself.

Oddly, nearly everything I make for me never seems to turn out right and goes to the charity shop. I stuck to baby clothes for a while, using much loved patterns. A favourite pattern was for a blanket that would wrap around a new-born when in a car or carry seat. I must have knitted dozens.

Experimental Knitting

Do you find yourself going back to old favourites that you know will turn out well, or do you prefer to experiment with new projects?

When my mother died, I kept her knitting needles and patterns – some patterns going back in time to my childhood. When you start to look at old patterns, you realise nothing much has changed in style – just a wider range of yarns and colours are available now.

I have been fascinated by the craze for ‘colour bombing.’ This is an art form where a town is transformed by knitters decorating railings, gates and lampposts with pieces of knitting in order to cheer up everyone.

I joined a colour bomb challenge in my home town. We knitted strips to wrap around a model replica of our famous ‘Beachy Head Lighthouse’ and raised money for charity.

Colour Bombing

Have you come across ‘colour bombing’? Maybe your town would benefit from some knitted decorations!

Inevitably, over the years, all my projects resulted in a huge stash of left over wool – just bits and pieces and oddments. Nothing of much use, or so I thought.

Now that we have the Internet, the days of lingering in the local wool shop are long gone. I went online for ideas for unwanted wool and found two projects that caught my interest.

One used all my baby wool leftovers – knitting little hats for premature babies. Many of our hospital prem units are crying out for these in a variety of colours and styles as each baby keeps their own hat, and they are only used once.

The second project is knitting ‘twiddle muffs’ for people with dementia. I had never heard of them before, but after some online research I found a pattern and am looking forward to getting stuck in.

The idea is that the patient can put their hands in the muff and fiddle with all the embellishments that I will add. Dementia patients are soothed by touch so adding ribbons, beads, knitted flowers etc. all give interest.

A knitted pocket can be useful for small items such as a hanky. This is a project where you can let your imagination run away with you!

I shall carry on knitting for as long as I can, and I intend to use my stash of wool before I buy anymore!

How important is knitting in your life? Have you come across any knitting for charity projects that you have enjoyed? Please share any exciting knitting projects you have created!