Do we really want dry, hard fingertips when we play the lute? I always soak
mine in soapy water to soften them and put a little shea butter on them to
moisten them before I play in order to get a warmer sound.
-----Original Message-----
From: Gordon Gregory
Sent: Tuesday, January 03, 2012 11:28 AM
To: Lute List
Subject: [LUTE] Re: Witch hazel.
I used to use methylated spirits or surgical spirits (externally!) to harden
my feet for hiking. I imagine it would work the same on finger tips.
Gordon
-----Original Message-----
From: lute-...@cs.dartmouth.edu [mailto:lute-...@cs.dartmouth.edu] On Behalf
Of theoj89...@aol.com
Sent: 03 January 2012 17:05
To: wa...@physics.utexas.edu; lute@cs.dartmouth.edu
Subject: [LUTE] Re: Witch hazel.
As a physician, I doubt it would do anything for the fingertips because
players fingertips are calloused, and astringents (such as witch Hazel) work
to constrict softer and less keratinized tissues, such as the face, or
especially mucous membranes. trj
-----Original Message-----
From: Herbert Ward <wa...@physics.utexas.edu>
To: lute <lute@cs.dartmouth.edu>
Sent: Mon, Jan 2, 2012 3:47 pm
Subject: [LUTE] Witch hazel.
I have a bottle of "witch-hazel", a topical medicine
available in any drug store. The label says that it
is an "astringent".
The Wikipedia ariticle on astringents says that they
"dry, harden, and protect the skin".
This makes me wonder whether there are circumstances
under which witch-hazel might be beneficial to our
fingertips. Does anyone know enough dermatology to
give us an opinion?
To get on or off this list see list information at
http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
--
