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Beauty
By Sophie Shaw, CNN Underscored
9:09 AM EDT, Fri June 7, 2024
What's in this story
- How to prepare your feet for an at-home pedicure
- Other pedicure tools and products
- Home pedicure kits
- Frequently asked questions
I love a relaxing pedicure at the nail salon as much as the next gal, but I’m also committed to maintaining my foot care in between visits — which means I’ve made doing an at-home pedicure a regular thing too. This way, I get to completely tailor the experience to my needs. Sometimes there are some extra calluses or cracks to tend to, and other times I might need to pay extra close attention to trimming my toenails. Plus, adding an at-home pedicure to your nail care will help prolong your professional pedicure when you do visit the spa.
Here, I speak to three nail and foot care experts — medical nail technician and owner of Medi Pedi NYC Marcela Correa, director of service operations at MiniLuxe Donna Charloff and nail lead at Chillhouse Molly Romah — about how to give yourself a great pedicure at home. As someone that’s super picky about their feet, I can attest that following their steps will give you professional-level results.
The first lesson? When it comes to pedicures, nail polish is just the cherry on top. The real focus is on the treatments and foot care that leave your nails and feet healthy, smooth and hydrated.
How to prepare your feet for an at-home pedicure
Remove toenail polish
To get started with your at-home pedicure, first clean your nails of any existing polish. “Remove your polish with non-acetone nail polish remover,” Charloff suggests.
A non-acetone polish is less drying and better for overall nail health. Reviewers rave about this formula that leaves nails clean without the harsh chemical smell.
Clean and soak your feet
Once you have the polish off, Charloff says to “clean feet in the shower or bath with soap or shower gel and a gentle nail brush.”
If you have the time to indulge and relax, a foot soak makes a great addition. “Start by soaking your feet for at least 15 minutes in warm to hot water,” Correa says. “This softens the nails making them easier to manage, and is especially important for those dealing with nail fungus, which can harden your nails.”
If you're short on time, you can just give your feet a good scrub in the shower. This body wash creates a thick, foamy lather and is packed with nourishing ingredients.
To spice up your foot soak, add some relaxing epsom salts to ease tension and soreness.
Having a collapsible foot bath basin makes an at-home pedicure so much easier. No need to teeter on the edge of your tub!
Trim, shape and buff your toenails
Once your nails and skin are softened, you can get to work. You’ll want nail clippers, a nail file and a buffer to shape and shine the nails. “When cutting your nails make sure to cut and file them straight across,” Correa says. She doesn’t recommend cutting the cuticles at home, because it “can open your skin and lead to a serious infection.”
This best-selling set of nail clippers includes two sizes. Use the bigger one for better leverage on toenails, which can be thicker and more difficult to cut.
A glass nail file allows for precise and smooth filing. Plus, it's a reusable option so you don't have to keep tossing out dull emery boards.
Each side of this buffing block serves a purpose: file, remove ridges, buff and polish and shine.
Cut your cuticles
This step is optional, but if you are comfortable with trimming your cuticles at home you can grab a pair of cuticle nippers to carefully cut away the excess skin at the base of the nails. Cuticle nippers are designed specifically for this, so it’s worth investing in a pair. Some nail techs advise against cutting your own cuticles as it can be tricky to maneuver and if you accidentally cut yourself, it’ll be uncomfortable and you may even draw blood. A safer route might be to use a cuticle remover gel or cream that lets you gently wipe away your cuticles without any pain or precision.
Easily trim away dead cuticle skin with this ergonomic nipper. The grips on the handles give you better control to help avoid over-cutting.
Editor Favorite
I prefer using this cuticle remover gel because it couldn't be easier. You just need a small dot of product on each fingernail and then you can easily push your cuticles back and wipe away.
Remove dead skin from your feet
Once your feet have soaked for 15 or so minutes, the skin should be soft enough to make it easy to gently slough away dead skin with a foot file, pumice stone or even just some body scrub.
“It’s important to file away the skin in an up and down motion as opposed to straight across and back and forth,” Correa says. “When filing up and down you are following the natural cracks of the skin as opposed to potentially making a crack worse.” Correa suggests weekly exfoliation, but Charloff says gentle daily exfoliation is beneficial too, depending on the condition of your feet.
These dual-sided foot files can tackle calluses and tough skin.
Romah likes to use this pumice stone with a grip, so it’s easy on the hands.
For those concerned about hygiene, Correa likes this stainless steel foot file. “It’s more hygienic than traditional pumice stones, using disposable exfoliating stickers successfully prevents cross contamination,” she says.
For a targeted treatment, this callus remover spray and foot file set will help you get rid of rough patches and cracked heels.
Massage your feet with lotion
The next step is to dry off your feet and then moisturize them with lotion. You can use your favorite body lotion, or pick one up that’s extra-rich and made specifically for the feet. For an extra boost, Charloff recommends mixing a foot cream with cuticle oil. Moreover, Correa says to pay extra attention to your heels during your foot care routine, as they tend to dry out faster. “I suggest using asilicone heel protectorwith a cream at night to make sure some extra moisture seeps into the skin and not your sheets,” she explains.
After exfoliating and shaping the nails, Romah likes to use this moisturizing cream for extra-dry skin to keep feet hydrated. It is made with a soothing oat complex, ceramides and emollients to nourish the skin.
Correa’s favorite is this milk- and honey-infused foot cream that contains urea. “Urea is known for breaking down the protein keratin in the surface layer of your skin,” Correa says. “This reduces dead skin buildup, cutting down your filing time.”
Charloff recommends MiniLuxe's foot balm, because it contains refreshing menthol and eucalyptus, as well as “shea butter, which has anti-inflammatory properties that helps to reduce redness of dry, cracked feet.”
My own nail tech introduced me to this top-rated cuticle oil a few years ago, and I love how quickly it sinks in. It’s lightweight yet super nourishing with jojoba oil and vitamin E.
Apply base coat to your toenails
Before a nail tech paints your toenails, you may notice that they wipe down the nail bed with alcohol or acetone — this is to make sure it’s clear of any oils left behind from your foot cream or lotion that could effect the longevity of your nail polish. You can do the same step at home, and then go in with your base coat. A specialized base coat can infuse your nails with strengthening ingredients or fill in any ridges, while a basic one will simply give your color polish a better surface to adhere to and also prevent it from staining.
This base coat is a 10-free formula, made with up to 90% natural origin ingredients. The strengthening base coat helps fortify nails and provide a smooth base for your color polish.
A drugstore brand that's always reliable, you can't go wrong with Essie's Here To Stay base coat to protect your natural nails and prime them for polish.
Paint your toenails
Once you’ve picked your preferred shade, it’s time to paint your toenails. The experts recommend going as slow as you need to, and to start with thin coats, allowing them to dry a little in between layers. This will help the polish last longer.
Sundays has tons of non-toxic color options to choose from. At the moment, we're loving pastel shades and especially this pretty lilac color.
Fans of Essie's famous Ballet Slippers will love this sheer, shimmery polish from Manicurist. It'll give your toes a pretty shine without looking glittery.
Apply top coat
After the color polish, seal your pedicure with a top coat to protect against chips and add extra shine.
Editor Favorite
A top coat so good I actually recommend getting the 2-pack, this quick drying top coat gets your polish completely dry in record time and extends the lifetime of your polish.
No need for the awkward toe separator waddle as your pedicure dries with these special flip flops. The toe separators are built in so you don't need to worry about smudging and moving around.
Romah recommends doing a hydrating foot mask, daily or as often as you need it. These ones come in a convenient slipper that delivers a moisturizing essence to your feet. They work best on moist skin, so we recommend popping them on after a shower or following a foot soak. There’s enough product within the slippers that you can even massage the extra essence into your calves and legs.
Editor Favorite
The one product I can't recommend enough for dry, cracked feet, this overnight ointment deeply nourishes the rough areas of the feet and leaves them feeling softer by morning. I use it several times a week to maintain my pedicures. For an even quicker fix, Kersal's Nighttime Intensive Foot Repair Masks can revive callused feet in under an hour.
Similar to a sheet mask you would put on your face, this mask lays over the tops of your feet. The hydrating mask is infused with gold, peptides, hyaluronic acid and other skin care superstars to really give your feet some TLC.
If you need an ultra-powerful exfoliation to eradicate calluses and cracked feet, Baby Foot’s cult-favorite treatment will definitely do the trick — but be warned,the process is a bit disgusting. Several days after soaking your feet in the glycolic and lactic acid gel, you can expect the skin on your feet to begin peeling away like a reptile shedding its skin. Ultimately, this results in fresh feet that are smooth and soft.
Read our review
This stick makes it easy to target your cracks and calluses. It's made with petrolatum, shea butter and coconut oil to seal in the moisture.
Home pedicure kits
This foot care kit includes all the essential tools for an at-home pedicure. You get a nail clipper, cuticle nipper, nail file, four-way buffer, foot brush and pumice, cuticle pusher and cleaner, foot file, toe separators, wood manicure sticks and a travel pouch, all for under $15.
Available in scents like lavender and cucumber, or for specific treatments like charcoal detox and vitamin recharge, each version of this four-step kit includes a salt soak, sugar scrub, mud mask and massage butter to cover all the bases for an at-home pedicure.
Frequently asked questions
A pedicure is a treatment inclusive of cleaning the feet, trimming and shaping the toenails, exfoliating and moisturizing. If you go to a nail salon or spa, you can also expect a foot massage and nail polish application.
There are also medical pedicures, which are focused on treatment and prevention of nail and foot conditions (such as ingrown nails, nail fungus and more), according to Correa. Medical pedicures are done by certified medical nail technicians, follow medical-grade sterilization procedures and prioritize the health of your nails and feet, rather than aesthetics. Foot massages and nail polish are excluded from medical pedicures. “The detailed at-home plan on how to treat any conditions found, as well as tailored education on how to prevent any new developing ailments, is a huge benefit currently not found in your normal nail salons,” Correa says of medical pedicures.
Whether you opt for a spa or medical treatment, the experts recommend getting a professional pedicure once a month. Charloff also notes that you may want to get a pedicure more frequently in the summer months, “as exposure to the elements, wearing sandals and going to the beach can lead to dryness.”
While hot water alone can do the trick, adding in epsom salts or your favorite bath soak or oil can add extra benefits like aromatherapy or skin-softening ingredients.
Foot peels have become popular products to tackle dead skin and make feet super soft. With products like the viral Baby Foot Original Foot Peel, which causes intense shedding, it’s best to let the dead skin come off on its own or use a physical exfoliant to encourage it to come off. If you have tough calluses, you can use a foot file to gently remove the dead skin. It’s best to avoid pulling or peeling the dead skin in case it pulls healthy skin with it.
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Note: The prices above reflect the retailers' listed price at the time of publication.
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