On Wednesday night, Madonna arrived for the UK premiere of her new film W.E. elegantly attired in a black evening gown, towering heels ... and what looked like red, leather golf gloves.
Bizarre though the get-up may have been, it's hardly the first time she has accessorised one of her outfits in this way.
In recent years, the Material Girl has gone to ridiculous lengths to ensure that the backs of her hands are never exposed. And who can blame her?
The occasional glimpse of them in the past has revealed that her hands don't appear to match her fresh, unlined face.
Madonna, 53, has spent most of her adult life following a strict, low-calorie, protein-based macrobiotic diet and working out for up to four hours a day. It's an exercise programme that has given her the buffed and toned figure of a woman half her age but, unfortunately, it's also given her the unsightly hands of someone far older.
Strenuous exercise is known to increase blood flow which, in turn, makes the veins on the hands and arms much more pronounced. Also, as we age, fat that is under the skin disappears, leaving the bones and blood structures more visible.
Given Madonna's apparent mission to strip every ounce of fat from her body, it's no wonder the effect on her hands is especially apparent. She's also suffered from the ageing effects every woman sees on her hands.
The skin is always thin, but gets thinner still with age and is constantly exposed to the elements Ñ meaning hands can easily suffer from wrinkles and sun-induced age spots. Of course, there are solutions -the treatments that de-age the face, such as fillers, peels and lasers, can do the same for hands.
But, as Madonna has discovered, donning a pair of funky gloves is a far more convenient and less painful alternative.
