"A lot of [hand model] girls wear white gloves everywhere," says Jacobson. Light-colored gloves are a great way to reflect light, warm and dry hands that are slathered in oil and moisturizer, and protect skin from the sun and nails from snags. Jacobson, who lives in the Los Angeles area and is facing triple-digit weather this weekend, admits that the heat is one reason she's not a card-carrying member of the glove club.

Covington, a New Yorker, is. "I do wear gloves often. Walking down the sidewalk in New York can be treacherous ... an out-flung hand with a ring on it or a briefcase that brushes by too closely can cost a hand model a job."

Jacobson practices similar caution in other aspects of her daily routine. "If a job is coming up, I'll forgo washing dishes ... heck, to be honest, I don't need a modeling audition to skip out on housework. But I am more careful about little things, like putting my seatbelt on, shutting doors and even opening the mail or reading a book," she continues. As silly as it sounds, in this line of work, all it takes is a little snag in a fingernail or a paper cut for an agency to pass you over for the next girl.

Though a relaxing mani/pedi is how we unwind on a Sunday afternoon, to Jacobson and Covington, getting their nails done is just another day at the office. "I never let anyone touch my hands except for on-set nail techs. I have yet to find a manicurist who can get the shape of my nails just right," says Jacobson. Covington entrusts her hands to Jin Soon's salons in New York and manicurist Chantalynn Huynh in Los Angeles.

Covington's advice for a manicure that lasts: Dehydrate your nails. "You don't want your nails absorbing any water before the polish is applied ... that will shorten the length of time your manicure will last," she explains. She suggests IBD Dehydrate, $15.50, before applying a good base coat like her personal favorite, Patricia Support Nail Lacquer Base Coat, $9. Wait three minutes before applying the polish color over your base coat, and apply a clear top coat every other day to prevent annoying nicks.

If you're going to the salon, Covington says to steer clear of two things: having cuticles cut and soaking your hands. "Always ask the nail technician to push [cuticles] gently back after applying a cuticle softener ... the cuticle softener will replace the need to soak your nails."

While we're all focusing on arm flab, thigh jiggle and abs (or lack thereof), hand models are making sure their hands also break a sweat -- figuratively speaking.

To keep your own hands strong and limber, try Covington's pitcher workout. "When I pour my glass of lemonade to have with my lunch, I often pour with my left hand for practice and then try pouring at various heights to keep in 'hand shape' on the days that I'm not working," she says. She also recommends squeezing a stress ball, touching your thumb to each finger or spreading your fingers as wide apart as you can multiple times a day.

One of the benefits of being a hand-model: no falsies or waterproof mascara to painstakingly remove at the end of the day. "A lot of times when I show up on set, people assume I'm a bike messenger, because I look nothing like a model -- only from my shoulder to the tips of my fingers," says Jacobson. "My hands are wearing a lot of makeup, but I don't have any on my face. My arms are waxed smooth, but I haven't shaved my legs in almost two weeks. My fingernails are fresh, but my blowout definitely isn't," she explains. And yes, washing makeup off your hands is a thousand times easier than using stingy makeup remover to take off stubborn eye shadow.

You may not need to smolder and "smize," but beauty still means pain in the hand model world. Jacobson is 5'2" with a wingspan of 5'6" (long arms and fingers are a big plus for a hand model, FYI), but she still needs to have that model height, even if the majority of her body isn't in the photo. "I have to stand on boxes and wear high heels to make me look taller, which after several hours, you can imagine gets really uncomfortable."