# Stained fingers



## Alix (Aug 7, 2006)

OK, tis the season of stained fingers for me. Scraping potatoes, peeling apples, you know what I mean. Does anyone have a surefire method for keeping your fingers from getting stained? Or how about removing the stains from under your fingernails?


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## pdswife (Aug 7, 2006)

rubber gloves... or bleach.  That's about it.


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## licia (Aug 7, 2006)

Handwashing dishes is usually good for removing the damage after the fact. I have to do that sometimes if I have gardened a lot and stained my hands. You can always make yourself a scrub for your hands, either salt and olive oil or brown sugar and olive oil. That makes them feel sooo good - also for feet.


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## middie (Aug 7, 2006)

I sometimes use lemon juice for my nails. Or you may want to try a pumice based soap that mechanics use to rid their hands of grease and oil.


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## Dove (Aug 7, 2006)

Good idea Middie.
Marge


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## middie (Aug 7, 2006)

Thanks Dove. My dad was a mechanic so I've seen him use pumice soap thousands of times lol.


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## Constance (Aug 7, 2006)

I had my hands in the dirt for 22 years, and they were calloused and stained all the time. I used to scrub them with a soapy hand brush, then pour Clorox over the brush, and go for it. It does the job under the nails...just be careful not to splatter the bleach in your eyes. Stings like the devil.


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## Alix (Aug 8, 2006)

I usually use lemon juice, but honestly, nothing seems to touch under my nails. I am going to try the Clorox trick on the nail brush. 

No one has any helpful tips on preventing the staining in the first place? Rubber gloves are just too cumbersome pdswife, thanks though.


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## GB (Aug 8, 2006)

Try dipping your fingertips in oil first. That might help prevent the staining.


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## Alix (Aug 8, 2006)

Um...duh. Why didn't I think of that? LOL, thanks GB.


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## GB (Aug 8, 2006)

I hope it works


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## Gretchen (Aug 8, 2006)

Bleach, I think. But what stains about apples and potatoes?


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## Constance (Aug 8, 2006)

I used to use a silicone base hand cream (made by Avon) before I went to work in the greenhouse. It didn't really keep my nails clean, but it helped keep my fingers from cracking open. When that happens, scrubbing with Clorox really stings. 

There's a sweet little story behind the Avon. Kim's Pop was an avid ameteur horticulturist, and spent a lot of time with his hands in the dirt. He got liver cancer when he was 79, and only lasted a few months. 
One day, toward the last, I was wheeling him around for a little fresh air, and he took my very calloused, rough hand in his and muttered, "Avon". I had no idea what he was talking about, and thought perhaps he needed some lip balm for his chapped lips. By then he wasn't able to put words together very well, but he kept holding on to my hand exclaiming, "Avon! Avon!"
After he passed, I was going through his things, and found a tube of the Avon silicone hand cream. I always used it after that.


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## pdswife (Aug 8, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> I usually use lemon juice, but honestly, nothing seems to touch under my nails. I am going to try the Clorox trick on the nail brush.
> 
> No one has any helpful tips on preventing the staining in the first place? Rubber gloves are just too cumbersome pdswife, thanks though.





Alix... I found some at home depot that are pretty thin but tough
that fit my hands perfectly. Not like the old RUBBERMAID kind. They don't last forever but..they do help.


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## Alix (Aug 8, 2006)

Gretchen said:
			
		

> Bleach, I think. But what stains about apples and potatoes?


 
Gretchen, have you never had your fingers stained after peeling apples or scraping new potatoes? Its some enzyme in them that turns your skin very brown. 


Pdswife, they make rubber gloves that thin? Hmmmm...worth a looksee. 

Constance, Avon is a staple in our house too. Several different varieties of lotion, we all like different ones. LOL. Currently though I am into Glysomed. Its thick but boy does it do the job.


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## GB (Aug 8, 2006)

Alix, try these gloves. They are great. These are what they used in the hospital when my wife was giving birth. Somehow the box ended up in my bag


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## Alix (Aug 8, 2006)

Hey GB, we have those at work!! I never thought about using them in the kitchen though. *forehead slap*


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## Half Baked (Aug 8, 2006)

Alix:  





> Pdswife, they make rubber gloves that thin? Hmmmm...worth a looksee.


 
I used to be a funeral director and we used gloves like doctors in the operating room  They were very fitted...like a 2nd skin.  I'll try to remember the brand but that's been quite a long time ago.


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## amber (Aug 8, 2006)

Gretchen said:
			
		

> Bleach, I think. But what stains about apples and potatoes?


 
That was my thought too, no stains with apples and potatoes.  Dont use bleach on your hands though!  It burns your skin, I've done it


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## amber (Aug 8, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> Gretchen, have you never had your fingers stained after peeling apples or scraping new potatoes? Its some enzyme in them that turns your skin very brown.
> 
> 
> Pdswife, they make rubber gloves that thin? Hmmmm...worth a looksee.
> ...


 
I've never had that happen with apples or potatoes.


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## Alix (Aug 8, 2006)

amber said:
			
		

> I've never had that happen with apples or potatoes.


 
Really. Weird. I must do a lot more than other folks. Whenever I make applesauce or do a lot of new potatoes (not peeling, scraping them) it happens.


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## bjcotton (Aug 8, 2006)

I buy boxes of surgical gloves at Costco.  Usually go through lots in the summer months.  When I pick tomatoes, I wear a long sleeved shirt and gloves, I hate that smell from the tomato bushes.  If you saw my tomato garden, you'd know why.


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## bethzaring (Aug 9, 2006)

GB touched on one of my solutions. I pre-fill my skin nooks and crannies with either oil or soap. If I am digging in the dirt, I will scrape my finger nails over a bar of soap to stuff under my nails with soap.  If I do not want soap on what I am handeling, I douse my hands with oil. I also use the tight fitting disposable gloves.


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## GB (Aug 9, 2006)

I have never experienced that staining either. Maybe it is a Canadian thing 

bjcotton I LOVE the smell of my hands after handling my tomato plants. My wife must think I am weird because I sit there and sniff my hands for a while after playing in the garden. OK that is not the ONLY reason she thinks I am weird


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## DKD (Jul 19, 2022)

*hand staining*

I have friends with smooth skin who do not stain from peeling potatoes and apples. Any of us who rough up our skin from any reason, experience the staining. Anyone who has rough skin on their hands will find that the dead skin bits (no matter how small of an amount) will take on the stain. I presume the fresher layer of skin has natural oils that protect it from stain. This would be why oil is a suggestion for protection from staining. I just find that as much oil as I would need would make my hands too slippery to hold on the potatoes and apples. I have easily damaged skin that is ALWAYS rough and when dry it can really be scratchy to anyone I touch. The Avon silicone is a great suggestion. It would get all over those callouses and stick and be protective. But does silicone make your hands too slippery when trying to peel your potatoes? And does it rub off onto the food?


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