<p>The thing about setting goals for yourself is that even the simplest ones end up requiring more work than you initially expect. I submit my <a href="http://www.everydaytreats.com/2010/10/10-on-101010.html" target="_self">ridiculously simple goal of painting my nails black</a> as an example.</p>
<p>My hands currently have the texture of sandpaper -- it goes with the territory when you live with forced air heating and you have dishes to wash ALL FREAKIN&#39; DAY (thanks a lot, kids!) -- so I diligently slather them with hand cream when I can.&#0160;</p>
<p>But whenever I sat down to paint my nails (I mean, come on, it&#39;s not rocket science we&#39;re talking about here) it came out looking terribly, even tragically, wrong. I couldn&#39;t figure out why.</p>
<p>Eventually I realized that the problem was that my cuticles were ragged things and that no self-respecting manicurist would even attempt to paint nails in that sorry condition.</p>
<p>(I did not take pictures of my cuticles. You are welcome.)</p>
<p>So I did a little research online and found that there are two types of people in the world...of people who do their own nails: Lemony Flutter people and Sally Hansen people.&#0160;</p>
<p>What camp would I fall in? I wanted to find out for myself, so I went shopping.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f48e970c-pi.jpg" style="display: inline;"><img alt="DSC_0087" class="asset  asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f48e970c" src="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f48e970c-500wi.jpg" title="DSC_0087" /></a></p>


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The contenders: <a href="http://www.lushusa.com/shop/products/body/hand-body-creams/lemony-flutter" target="_self">Lush Lemony Flutter ($14.95)</a> and <a href="http://www.walgreens.com/store/catalog/Treatments/Cuticle-Massage-Cream-with-Apricot-Oil/ID=prod10525-product?V=G&amp;ec=frgl_&amp;ci_src=14110944&amp;ci_sku=sku310525" target="_self">Sally Hansen Cuticle Massage Cream ($5.49)</a>
<p><a href="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e0198bb3970b-pi.jpg" style="display: inline;"><img alt="DSC_0091" class="asset  asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e0198bb3970b" src="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e0198bb3970b-500wi.jpg" title="DSC_0091" /></a></p>
<p><strong>Initial impressions</strong></p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Lemony Flutter</span>: The smell is <em>very</em> lemony, almost overwhelmingly so. It reminds me of dish soap. In fact, I was worried that it would hurt when I applied it -- like when you cut lemons and you have a hangnail. Ouch.</p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Sally Hansen</span>: It has a very pleasant but plasticky apricot scent. It looks shiny in the tub, like those fingertip moisturizers that secretaries used when they had to sort paper, <a href="http://www.leibarbados.com/office-supplies/Moisteners/2323.htm" target="_self">remember those</a>?</p>
<p><a href="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f34f970c-pi.jpg" style="display: inline;"><img alt="DSC_0097" class="asset  asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f34f970c" src="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef01348975f34f970c-500wi.jpg" title="DSC_0097" /></a></p>
<p><strong>Texture</strong></p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Lemony Flutter</span>: Easy to spread and very creamy. A little goes a long way, so you end up using it on dry spots everywhere -- on your elbows, heels -- anywhere you have awfully dry skin. Very nice. It&#39;s a little greasy at first, but it absorbs rather quickly.</p>
<p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Sally Hansen</span>: When I first tried to take some out of the tub it wouldn&#39;t come out. It was like a solid mass of plastic! I don&#39;t know if it&#39;s too cold at my house (unlikely) or if I have old product (more likely) but I had to scrape some out and then really work it in. Not the end of the world, but annoying. And you end up with a solid piece when you&#39;re done, so I threw it out. It felt wasteful. However, I must say that once you have it on it&#39;s not as greasy as the Lush product and it feels very nice.&#0160;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e01f40c0970b-pi.jpg" style="display: inline;"><img alt="DSC_0106" class="asset  asset-image at-xid-6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e01f40c0970b" src="http://www.everydaytreats.com/wp-content/uploads/6a00d8341db04e53ef0147e01f40c0970b-500wi.jpg" title="DSC_0106" /></a> <br />&#0160;<br /><strong>Results and Verdict</strong></p>
<p>I wore both products overnight (on different hands) and both made my cuticles smooth and healthy looking overnight. So in that sense they are both winners. Yay!&#0160;</p>
<p>However, how lame is a battle that lacks a winner? So I&#39;m giving it to the Lemony Flutter because it&#39;s a better value (it costs less per ounce than the Sally Hansen and you can use it all over) and a more luxurious experience (it&#39;s made out of natural ingredients) -- whenever you have luxury and a bargain you have a winner.&#0160;Good work, Lush.</p>
