Let’s be real: Your feet can get pretty dirty and gross. And while a salon pedicure can save the day, you unfortunately don’t have access to one at the moment. This leaves you to deal with your cracked heels and sharp claws, all by yourself. So, if you haven’t already, it’s high time you do.
Steps To The DIY Pedicure
You Will Need
- Acetone or Nail Paint Remover (alcohol-free, if possible)
- Cotton ball/pad
- Nail cutter
- Nail File
- Nail Buffer
- Cuticle Oil & Stick (Optional)
- Hand and Foot Scrub or Bath Soak
- Epsom Salt (Optional)
- Tub of warm water
- Foot Scrubber or Pumice Stone
- Body Butter or Moisturiser
- Essential Oil (Optional)
- Choice of Nail Polish
How To Do A Pedicure At Home
1. Clip, File & Buff
- Using a nail paint remover, remove the old nail polish with a cotton ball/pad.
- Then, clip your nails using a nail cutter, but make sure you cut across straight. Don’t cut corners too deep, or you will end up with painful ingrown nails.
- Decide the shape of your nails (square, oval, pointed, or squoval) so that you can file them accordingly.
- Use a nail filer to shape the nail to the desired shape. Do the filing with enough force to reshape the nail, but be gentle enough not to weaken them. Resist doing the back and forth motion across the tip of the nail, as it will weaken them. Instead, file in a single direction to get the desired shape.
2. Soak Your Feet
- This is probably the most relaxing bit of the pedicure. Soaking your feet in warm, fragrant water is a great way to relax and unwind after a stressful day. This is what you need to do –
- Fill up some warm water in a tub to cover your ankles. If you want it plain and simple, you can just add shampoo and a few crystals of rock salt into the liquid. But, if you want to go all the way and give yourself that ultimate pedicure, this is what you should do –
- Add half a cup of Epsom salt to the water. This will soften and soothe inflammations, reduce any kind of pain, and reduce roughness. It also acts as an exfoliator.
- Add the juice of an entire lemon, and a drop or two of shampoo as well.
- You can also add a few drops of essential oil if you have any at home. These usually calm the nerves and give your feet the spa treatment they deserve.
- To turn your home pedicure experience up a notch, you can also add smooth pebbles to give your feet a gentle massage.
- Sit comfortably and soak your feet for a good 15-20 minutes. Don’t forget to put on some soothing music while you do this. It will act as a perfect stress buster.
- Dry your feet with a towel.
3. Do A Scrub & Tend To The Cuticles
- Once your feet are dry, massage a little cuticle cream on the base of your toenails. While the cream softens the dead skin, scrub your skin using a pumice stone. You can also use a foot file instead of a pumice stone. This will remove the rough, dry, and dead skin. If you do not remove this from time to time, the skin will harden, causing cracks and infection. Be firm, yet gentle – you want to remove all the skin, but you don’t want to hurt yourself.
- Once this is done, remove the cuticle cream, and push your cuticles with an angled cuticle pusher. Cuticles are the soft skin at the bottom of your nail where the fingernail cartilage and skin meet. With the help of the cuticle remover cream, remove the cuticles. Never cut your cuticles. This removal of the cuticle helps your nail grow and promotes healthy nails. Make sure you are gentle. Scrub your nails using a nail scrubber. Quickly wipe your feet with a towel.
- Now, use a scrub to exfoliate your feet. You could use a foot scrub or a face scrub for this. Scrub your heels, soles, and don’t forget the areas between your toes, and the sides of your feet. Scrub your ankles too.
If you don’t have a cuticle cream at home, here is a quick recipe to make one.
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp olive oil/almond oil
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tbsp glycerin/essential oil (of your choice)
Directions
- Heat the olive oil in a double boiler, or in the microwave.
- Add the coconut oil and the essential oil or glycerin to this.
- Your cuticle cream is ready. Allow it to cool and store in a bottle.
If stored well, this could last for a long time.
You can also make a scrub at home. Here is how –
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tbsp oatmeal powder
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp olive oil
Directions
- Mix the oatmeal and the sugar together.
- Add the lemon juice and honey to the oatmeal mixture, and mix well.
- Add the olive oil and use.
4. Moisturize Your Feet
Finally, your feet are sparkling clean! However, to make them super soft too, you must remember to moisturize. Any heavy moisturizer should do. Massage your feet, ankles, and calves, for a good 10-15 minutes.
You can also use a mixture of almond oil and olive oil to massage your feet post the cleaning process. A teaspoon of each mixed with a few drops of your favorite essential oil serves as a great foot massager. Be generous as you apply it, and massage your feet. Regular massages stimulate your nerve endings and enhance blood circulation, therefore nourishing the skin and invigorating the foot muscles.
5. Get Pretty
Once you are done with all the above steps, you can polish your nails with a nail color of your favorite shade. You may or may not follow this step as it’s optional. You can either apply a normal nail polish or even wear French tips.
For Normal Nail Polish
- Apply a base coat on your nails first. You can also apply a transparent nail polish as the base coat.
- Then, apply the shade of your choice and let it dry for some time.
- Apply another coat over it and once the second coat also dries out, seal it with a top coat. This will enhance the appearance of your nails.
For French Tips
- Apply a transparent base coat on your nails and let it dry for some time.
- Apply a white nail polish on the tips of your nails.
- Allow it to dry for a couple of minutes.
- Now it’s time for the second coat. This will make the white color appear less splotchy and more attractive.
- Let the white coat dry for some time.
- Then, apply a single coat of clear nail polish on your nails. Try to keep your stroke as smooth and even as possible. And voila! Your nails are as fresh as dew.
More Tips
- If you don’t have time to go through the entire scrubbing process regularly, you can scrub your feet with the pumice stone twice a week, while you are having a bath, to clear off the dead skin.
- Make sure you give your nails some breathing time by keeping them free of nail polish from time to time.
- If you notice any infection or blackening on your nails, consult your doctor immediately.
Now that you know how to do a pedicure at home, what are you waiting for? When you meet someone new, one of the first things they do is to look at your shoes. Ever wondered what if you are not wearing shoes? First impressions are always lasting ones, so you want your feet to look pretty always.
Caution
Make sure you don’t indulge yourself into those fish pedicures as the reports have come out that they are not safe and could possibly increase the risk of Hepatitis C and HIV.
