Comparing Hand Creams: Soap & Glory, Curel, Fruits & Passion and Live Clean

When it comes to hand creams, I’m a demanding consumer. I have very dry hands with flaky patches and peeling cuticles, so I’m constantly looking for THE CREAM that will magically address all my issues and leave me with plumped & glowing skin.

I’ve tried popular favorites such as Kiehls Hand Salve & L’Occitane Shea Butter – but they are not strong enough to address my dry skin concerns. I’ve previously reviewed my hand cream collection in this post. I’ve used up most of those creams and am now switching between these 4 tubes:

Live Clean / Soap & Glory / Fruits & Passion (Cucina Range) / Curel

I thought it would be interesting to create a chart to compare how they ranked in the qualities that are most important to me. (My indicator for the “Present After 1-hour Test” was if my dry & whitish patches reappeared or not.)

MY THOUGHTS: 

In terms of fragrance, nothing comes close to the AMAZING citrusy grapefruit scent of the Fruits & Passion Cucina al Fresco hand cream. If this came in perfume form I’d wear it ALL the time! However, for my dry hands I prefer the Fruits & Passion hand butter range (their Avocado Hand Butter is my most favorite hand cream EVER!).

The Live Clean range is famous for their eco-friendly products: paraben/preservative/phthalate-free, completely vegan, 98% plant ingredients with no animal products or testing. I used their Baby products A LOT for my kiddies. This cream is the perfect choice if you apply hand cream constantly and worry about absorbing harmful chemicals.

The Curel and Soap & Glory creams both perform EXCEPTIONALLY well. Their hydration levels are SO high that they manage to moisturize the dry skin on my knuckles and make them appear lighter. And their effects are long-lasting – I only need to apply the cream 3x a day to keep my skin smooth and my cuticles healthy. If I had to choose between them, I prefer the packaging and scent of the Soap & Glory – and although the Curel is 50% cheaper, a little goes a long way with both creams so they’ll last you a long time.

Have you tried any of these hand creams? Which one is your favorite?

DISCLAIMER: The Live Clean and Fruits & Passion hand creams were sent to me for review, the Curel came in a Glossybox and I purchased the Soap & Glory cream. As always – when I review a free item, I consider it as if I paid the retail price…and evaluate it objectively. Gifted or not, I blog to share my true feelings and help my readers

25 Comments

  1. Schnelle
    April 22, 2013 / 2:45 pm

    Great review! I love the Curel cream. My mom bought it got me as part if my bday gift (she made a pampering basket for me) and it works wonders. My hands are always so dry from always washing them & from washing bottles! I wish I could still get soap & glory but they stopped selling it (temporarily, I think) here. I love their packaging.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:18 pm

      Love the idea of a pampering basket! Glad the Curel works wonders for you too 🙂

  2. KDot
    April 22, 2013 / 3:16 pm

    Thanks for the reviews. I've seen the Soap and Glory brand at Shoppers and have been tempted to try it just based on the cute packaging. Knowing that it works great has convinced me to give it a try as I am always battling dry skin.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:19 pm

      Glad you liked the reviews KDot – I had read raves about the Soap & Glory cream for a while – especially about the scent…I'm so glad I decided to try it!

  3. Sam
    April 22, 2013 / 3:22 pm

    I don't suffer from dry hands all year round but when it happens it's horrible and annoying. I'm always looking for a good hand cream so I appreciate the reviews! I also use the Soap & Glory and love it 🙂 Also, how cute/funny is their packaging?!http://theworldfrommystilettos.blogspot.ca/

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:20 pm

      Dry hands are such a pain…I have oily combo skin elsewhere LOL – wonder why my hands are so dry? Love the bright pink packaging – it's so cheerful!

  4. Jill-O
    April 22, 2013 / 3:53 pm

    what a great chart! I thank you for this because I am always on the look out for new hand creams.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:21 pm

      Glad you liked it Jill 🙂 I'm the same – I can never have too many hand creams or lip balms LOL!

  5. Carrie
    April 22, 2013 / 4:52 pm

    Great review, and such a useful chart! I love Hand Food, it is a handbag must have for me, but I've recently started using The Body Shop's Almond hand and nail cream, and love that too!Carriexxxxhttp://carriebrighton.blogspot.com

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:21 pm

      I'm going to add the Body Shop Almond cream to my to-try list…I've used their Almond cuticle pen before and I loved it – thanks for the recommendation!

  6. Beautygirl24
    April 22, 2013 / 6:16 pm

    Great post! I love the chart as well, very helpful! I have very dry skin too. It's beyond annoying – it actually hurts sometimes! I haven't tried any of these but I just saw the soap and glory in sephora so I might pick it up. I've been using helping hands by lush and that is some powerful stuff! It's great for dryness! I just wish it wasn't so greasy

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:24 pm

      I find LUSH greasy too (I have Lemony Flutter). I liked how easily these creams absorbed. Definitely give the S&G a try 🙂

  7. Jessica
    April 22, 2013 / 7:43 pm

    Thanks for this post! I too suffer from extremely dry hands and splitting cuticles. I think it's partially my fault. I have a disabled son and lets just say that causes me to feel the need to use hand sanitizer constantly! I am going to the store today to try the curel!

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:29 pm

      Hand Sanitizer wreaks such havoc on my hands too – I hope the Curel cream works out for you 🙂 I think keeping it next to your hand sanitizer and using them one after the other will definitely help you…aren't splitting cuticles the worst? So painful!

  8. Skylette from Sequins & Stilettos
    April 22, 2013 / 7:54 pm

    I seriously love the fact that you charted this out! My cuticles are always needing help so this is great info!

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 22, 2013 / 8:30 pm

      Awww – glad you liked the chart – it helped me keep all my thoughts organized LOL! I own several cuticle creams – but I like hand creams that moisturize EVERYTHING in one step – so much simpler 🙂

  9. Kristen
    April 23, 2013 / 12:57 am

    great review! i have such dry skin, i use jergens, curel, and aquaphor.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 23, 2013 / 2:59 am

      Thanks Kristen! I haven't tried Jergens yet – I came across a pinterest recipe for super-moisturizing hand cream made by mixing Vaseline, Vitamin E cream & Baby lotion – I plan on trying that soon.

  10. Mai
    April 23, 2013 / 2:12 am

    Wonderful review, and very informative chart, loved it. I was never aware of the live clean brand, really good to know..will like to try it out. I am always in search of a good cuticle cream. have you tried lavanilla products for kids? would you mind doing a post on products you have used for your kids, when they were very young. I have heard a deal about burts bees, but not sure of any others.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 23, 2013 / 3:02 am

      For my kids I used a mix of the natural ranges (Live Clean & Burts Bees) along with some Johnsons Baby (their oatmeal & lavender body washes smell SOOOO good) and Aveeno (very soothing – especially if your child has dry skin/eczema).

    • Mai
      April 23, 2013 / 5:10 pm

      Thanks Ella! hope your feeling better. Will you have any spring/summer outfit ideas?

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      April 24, 2013 / 3:45 am

      Will definitely post some spring/summer ideas soon – thanks for asking Mai 🙂

  11. HereIAm
    June 13, 2013 / 8:49 pm

    My hands and cuticles are also horrendous! I have just ALWAYS had very dry cuticles and the skin on the back of my hands is not only very thin and delicate but super dry. And I have to wash my hands a lot during the day (studying in a healthcare profession). I have finally found 2 items that actually work for me (one I make myself). I get consistently good visible results from Shea Moisture baby ointment used as a hand cream. Or I use an oil I make myself (equal parts extra virgin olive oil, canola oil, and vitamin E oil)- I mix equal parts in a travel bottle and shake up. Works wonders on hands and feet and absorbs rather quickly so there's not a lot of oiliness. Glad to finally find something that works! But I appreciate these reviews and may try one of these if I need something not so rich.

    • Ella Pretty Blog
      June 14, 2013 / 2:04 am

      Isn't it wonderful when we FINALLY find moisturizes that help our dry hands? I've heard really great things about Vitamin E oil – I'm tempted to pick some up to mix in with other products I use…but first I have a LOT of other creams to use up LOL!

  12. TDL Hygiene
    April 7, 2017 / 9:38 am

    Really great very nice blog post, Thanks for sharing this interesting and very informative content. Always keep sharing. cheap hand soap refill bag

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