Bui Thi Thu Tuyen, 30, grew up in a farming family. From childhood, she handled cooking, dishwashing, cleaning, and farm work. In high school, living away from home, she became more independent.

People often praised her slender, elegant hands, but Tuyen had no means to pamper them. She simply thought: "hands are for work—beautiful or not, they must engage in labor."

Only after graduating from university and becoming a screenwriter did Tuyen realize that her long, graceful hands were a "heaven-sent gift."

"I learned about hand modeling from mass media. I saw my hands were decent, but I never dared dream of it. In mid-2022, while seeing an ad from a friend’s company, I decided to seize my chance," Tuyen recalled.

Noticing flaws in the model’s hands, she messaged the company, offering to model for free. After one photo, they hired her as an official hand model for food product ads.

"I love subtly expressing emotions through hands, so when the opportunity came, I jumped in," she said.

The job seemed simple, but diving in, Tuyen found countless challenges. Early on, she struggled to pose her hands soulfully and convey a product’s essence.

To keep her hands from getting stiff when filming, Tuyen searched for images and videos of hand models around the world, learned how to pose her hands to be soft and flexible, cultivated her visual thinking skills, and learned how to feel objects with her hands.

In the last three years, Tuyen has worked as a hand model for many brands. She needs to pose properly to match the product’s vibe. For videos, her hands have to move constantly, gracefully, and flexibly.

"Each job and script demands a different approach. High-end products require more skill to capture their spirit," she explained.

The hand modeling craft isn’t as easy as people think. Working under powerful lights for hours leaves her hands sore. Holding poses for hours tires her body.

Yet, for her, every job has hurdles, and loving it is the only way past them.

Preserving hands at all costs

Her biggest challenge is the job’s lack of formal recognition. Many don’t realize hand modeling demands not just beauty but strict standards.

This leads to "awkward" moments—being undervalued or lowballed on pay.

"Some say, ‘we’re just filming hands, no big deal,’ and offer extra-actor rates. Of course, I refuse these deals," Tuyen said.

Another hurdle is low recognition—only hands, not faces, appear in ads or clips, making it tough for hand models to build personal brands and catch brands’ eyes.

"I build my ‘brand’ on social media—shooting stunning hand photos for Facebook groups or starting a TikTok to share hand care tips. People follow me first for my hands, then for self-care stories. By growing sustainable value, I boost my hands’ recognition, tying my image to those shared values," she said.

Hands tie to most daily tasks, so hand models face inconveniences. Since starting, Tuyen can’t use her hands freely anymore—they’re always in "safety mode."

She once loved doing everything herself, but lately, she’s had to avoid chores and ask others to open bottles or lift heavy stuff.

Hand skincare is a daily ritual—moisturizing, exfoliating, masking at home, and weekly spa deep treatments.

In all activities, she’s ultra-careful to avoid hand injuries.

"I also watch my diet for healthy, fair skin—hand health follows. Hand modeling uses the whole arm, sometimes shoulders and neck, so full-body care matters," she said.

She earns VND300,000 to VND1 million per filming hour. Depending on the brand and script complexity, a job can net her VND1-5 million.

"But work isn’t steady—sometimes I’m swamped, sometimes a month passes without offers. For hand modeling, I say: as long as it’s fun, I’ll keep going—and it still is," Tuyen says.

Thanh Minh