Walking in high heels, running, and exercising (not to mention cold, dry weather) can leave your feet in need of some serious TLC.
If you’ve ever wondered how do salons do pedicures step by step?
Here’s how to do a pedicure professionally at home to show your feet a little love.
Your At-Home Professional Pedicure Tools
- Cotton balls
- Polish Remover
- Nail clippers
- Emery boards
- Basin
- Bath salts or Epsom salts
- Essential oils
- Sloughing paddle
- Foot file or pumice stone
- Large towel
- Cuticle remover
- Foot cream
- Toe separators
- Polish
Pedicure How to: Luxury Pedicure Steps
1. Remove old polish.
Remove old nail varnish using nail polish remover and a paper towel or cotton balls. Both are better than tissue, offering more friction. Always try to use a non-acetone polish remover, as it’s less drying to nails and cuticles.
2. Clip and shape nails.
Using nail clippers, cut toenails straight across to your desired length.
3. File your nails with a fine-grain file.
Use the shape of the nail bed as your guide to creating the best shape for your feet.
The general rule: Leave about an eighth of an inch of white showing. Shape nails into ovals by rounding the corners slightly — overfilling your nails is an invitation for ingrowns.
4. Buff and smooth noticeable ridges.
Gently skin a fine-grade buffer on the tops of your toenails in the shape of an X. Use only three to five strokes per nail to smooth. If your nails become hot after buffing them, you damaging your nails.
5. Soak your feet.
Fill a small basin or footbath with warm water. Add bath salts or Epsom salt, and a few drops of your favorite essential oil.
Allow your feet to rest in the water for 10 to 15 minutes. The warm water will soften cuticles, calluses, and rough skin on your heels.
6. Remove your feet from the footbath.
Rinse with lukewarm water. Dry your feet with a large, clean towel.
7. Dry feet and apply cuticle softener.
Apply a cuticle remover to soften and dissolve dead cuticles to avoid damage to living skin and exposing your feet to infections.
Then wipe away dead skin with a moistened washcloth. Push cuticles back with a dampened orangewood stick. Snip bits of skin that stick out with a cuticle clipper. But, trim your cuticles carefully to prevent damage and bleeding.
8. Apply a foot cream.
Or use an exfoliating scrub to a loofah, wet pumice stone, or sloughing paddle to remove dead skin. Gently rub the rough patches on the heels and balls of the feet. Scrub around the feet and under the toenails with a nail brush.
9. Perform a spa foot massage.
Working one leg at a time, circle each foot around the ankle and flex each foot up and down. Curl your toes into a tight ball, and then stretch them as far as you can.
10. Moisturize with foot creams and oils.
Massage your feet with a moisturizer or thick foot cream to smooth and refresh your skin. Apply the oils or lotions all over the foot, into the toenail cuticles and in between the toes.
11. Separate your feet using toe separators or cotton balls.
Dip a cotton ball in polish remover to clean the entire surface of each nail. The nail polish will not adhere smoothly to a nail bed that has any residue from lotions and oils.
12. Paint, polish, and protect your nails.
Apply one thin coat of your base coat polish. A base coat holds the polish in place and makes it last longer. They are usually clear or slightly colored and help strengthen the nail to avoid breakages.
13. Give your toenails time to dry.
Follow with two thin coats of your polish and a top coat. Dry your nails for 10 minutes.
Who Should Not Get a Professional Pedicure?
People who have had a lot of foot surgery, such as toe amputations, or those who have diabetes. Also, pregnant women should avoid nail polish brands that contain toluene, dibutyl phthalate, or formaldehyde.
How to Do a Pedicure Professionally at Home: Do’s and Don’ts
- Use a fine-grained foot file to remove dead skin and refine the texture of your feet.
- If possible, leave your shoes off for at least an hour to allow the polish to thoroughly dry.
- A great at home pedicure soak recipe is to mix 1/2 cup fine sea salt or Epsom salt and 8 to 10 drops of your favorite essential oils ( like eucalyptus) with hot water.
- Make your own foot scrub by mixing a paste of baby oil and sea salt.
- Do not trim the edges of your nails with a nail clipper as this may cause painful ingrown toenails.
- Lavender or sage oils are also popular relaxing oils for spa pedicures.
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