Factors
If you have talked with any number of guitarists and looked at or noticed their finger nails, even looked at different photos of guitarist, you may have noticed a wide variety of shapes, sizes and other differences between their nails. I have been around enough guitarists to know that just about anyone can get a decent sound out of their nails if they work at and learn how to work with the nails that they have. Yet, any kind of aid that we can find to help maintain or improve the quality of our nails can be useful. Of course, one of the big issues is preventing breakage. There's nothing more frustrating than getting your nails in great condition only to break one of them accidentally during your daily routine. This is where we as guitarists share some of the same concerns as the cosmetic industry and some of that industries products may come in useful.
Oils, Lotions, and Creams
If you have read Rico Stover's excellent book on finger nail care, you will have encountered several good suggestions. One of these recommendations is Onymyrrhe (an ointment). I have read several excellent reports of this substance but have not tried it yet due to the price. And since Rico's book was published, he has discovered another product called Flexnail which apparently he recommends even more highly. But it is even more expensive and, since I am not that desperate, I have not tried it yet.
But I have recently found a product which I find helpful and is a much less expensive choice. That being Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Creme (big title). This product contains many of the natural ingredients suggested by Stover in his book. For example: Almond oil, lemon oil, cocoa butter, sunflower oil, beta carotene, to name just a few (there are more). I picked up a container of this product a couple of months ago. I think I paid about six dollars (US) for it. I like to apply it after taking a shower or bath especially. But as I used it and saw that it seems to last quite a while (still haven't used it up in two to three months), I have started applying it both after a shower in the morning and at least once before bed. I don't have any hard statistics on nail growth but it does seem to make my nails healthier and also seems to help avoid breakages. It generally promotes good, healthy nails by keeping them moisturized with seemingly essential natural ingredients.
Conclusion
So the conclusion is that this product might be considered for the award of best bang for the buck nail product for guitarists. Is it a better choice than the two I mentioned above? I guess it all depends on the factors involved. How bad are your nails? How much are you willing to pay in order to make them better? These are valid things to consider of course. But I think I can say that at the very least, and especially in the dry winter months, Burt's Bees Cuticle Creme is a worthy addition to your finger nail tools for promoting and maintaining healthy nails for guitar playing.
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