Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Perfectly Painted Pedicure

Hello Darlings,

With the arrival of summer comes the arrival of strappy sandals, peep-toe pumps, and open-toed heels; a quick good-bye to boots and sneakers and a cheerful hello to summer footwear. Just as accessories add that perfect touch to a chic outfit, a pedicure is needed to add that extra vah-vah-voom to those shoes.


I recently rediscovered this cute little how-to guide called The Thrifty Girls Guide to Glamour:Living the Beautiful Life on Little or No Money when I was cleaning out my desk drawers and they give a great tutorial as to how to give yourself a perfect pedicure without going to the nail salon. Usually, I just give my toenails a quick sweep of nail polish but this how-to is great if you have want to pamper yourself.



  1. Remove any old nail polish .

  2. Trim toenails and smooth edges with an emery board.

  3. Soak feet for ten minutes in a bath basin filled with warm water and one cup of scented bath salts.

  4. Take foot file or a pumice stone and gently follow the outline of the feet, concentrating on smoothing rough areas.

  5. Wet a nailbrush (or a toothbrush) with the and gently clean the toenails and cuticles with the brush.

  6. Pat dry and then coat the cuticles with cuticle oil; push the cuticles back with an orange stick.

  7. Apply a small amount of body scrub to each foot and massage gently. Rinse in the tub and then pat dry.

  8. Massage feet with moisturizing cream until fully absorbed.

  9. Soak a cotton ball in polish remover and apply to nails to re-cleanse them and remove any excess moisturizer from them.

  10. Separate the toes with a tissue so that the toes will not smear each other.

  11. Apply a base coat and allow to dry for three minutes.

  12. Apply two coats of your favorite nail polish and allow to dry for four minutes between each coat.

  13. End with a shiny topcoat to protect the nails and will help the polish last longer

  14. Wait at least one hour before putting socks or sneakers on; consider wearing flip flops if footwear is needed.
The nail polish color that I used for my toenails was Sally Hanson Chrome Nail MakeUp in 14 Moonstone Chrome and Revlon ColorStay Sealing Shine #2. I also used St. Ives Apricot Scrub and Victoria's Secret Moisturizer. I have never used an orange stick to push back my cuticles and usually just end the paint right before they hit; I'll be honest with the fact that I fear of cutting my cuticles by accident so I've never been dissatisfied with the way they have turned out.

Source: The Thrifty Girls Guide to Glamour:Living the Beautiful Life on Little or No Money by Susie Galvez

Thank you all for your great suggestions regarding my Summer Reading List; I will definitely be spending a lot of time flipping through pages and sipping some lemonade.


Have a Great Wednesday!

17 comments:

Maddy said...

Lol! This reminds me that I'm in desperate need of a pedicure!

Barbara von Enger said...

I have an appointment for a pedicure next week. I love indulging so I treat myself to one at the salon. Happy weekend, dear!;)

Ashley said...

Now you've got me wanting a pedi! Great post though! :)

-Ashley
http://breakfastatsaks.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

We're approaching the middle of winter, chipped nail polish ahoy!

Unknown said...

sure we will remove nails haha

lovly post


have great weeken

Rebecca said...

haaa, my feet will remain hidden throughout Summer, not my best feature!
Maybe if I follow your tips they might be getting an airing...

http://itscohen.blogspot.com/

Karolina said...

You're great ! My feet are kinda disgusting right now, and I need pedicure haha.
kisses

Leah said...

That's great... I love taking care of my feet but I can't apply polish myself since I don't know how. I go to the salon to have my polish done. I'll try putting mine using your suggested tips. Thanks a lot! xoxo

Couture Carrie said...

Beautiful, darling!
Fab pointers!

xoxox,
CC

Connie @ Sogni e Sorrisi said...

I'm never able to do good manis and pedis on myself.

Clare said...

This post is awesome. Simple because I am literally incapable of giving myself a pedicure like at all. I am going to try your tips :)

Cafe Fashionista said...

LOVE this post! Pedicures are an absolute summer essential!! :)

Viva La Fashion said...

i <3 pedicures. :)

Leia said...

thank you for your pedicure tips! yours looks great :D

Sherin said...

Yay: I love bringing out my summer shoes and putting away my boots!]And thanks fr sharing the pedicure tip!

Valerie said...

Great post! I always do my pedicures myself because I don't like anyone touching my feet. But it also saves so much money! Hope you had a great weekend.

Valerie

Unknown said...

Gorgeous tips for a pedicure! Haha ever since my first trip to a salon when I was seven, I've been obsessed with having the supplies at home. I basically have an arsenal of nail polish supplies! You pedicure looks gorgeous, and flipping through pages, sipping lemonade sounds heavenly!