If your toes are missing a salon pedicure then follow my step by step guide to Tip Top Toes.
1. Before you give your feet a lovely soak remove old polish with nail varnish remover and use your foot file or pumice stone over all the areas of hard skin. I find they work so much better when the feet are dry.
2. After you’ve given your feet a nice well deserved soak its time to cut and shape the nails. Cut them as straight as possible to prevent ingrowing toenails using nail clippers or nail scissors. Then with a good file using log strokes to even them all out so they are the same length and shape.
3. Next comes those troublesome cuticles! Don’t even attempt to push them back without a softening product on them. You can use cuticle oil, almond oil, coconut oil or try soaking your nails in an apple cider vinegar and water solution. If the cuticles are softened they will push back much easier using an orange wood stick or cuticle pusher. Only trim the cuticles if you have cuticle nippers not scissors!
4. Next give your feet some love and massage in heel balms, foot and leg lotions or a rich body cream. Better still get someone else to do this bit for you! Get into the habit of leaving the foot cream by your bed and rubbing some in at night and in the morning – it really is the only way to stop those heels from cracking!
5. Buff over the toes if you have a buffer or soft file to remove any ridges and smooth the surface ready for polish.Then remove any grease and dust from the toenails with a small amount of nail polish remover and twist a tissue to use to separate your toes.
6. Now we come to polishing! my top tips are:-
- Make sure you have good lighting
- Make sure you have some nail polish remover and an orangewood stick ready to correct mistakes
- Make sure you have a glass of wine and a magazine (we’ll come to this later)
- Make sure you haven’t just eaten and have a loose waistband!
You might laugh at the last point but painting your own toenails is not the easiest task in the world and anything that makes it a more comfortable job helps!
7. Start with applying a base coat, to prevent staining. Leave it for just a minute or two to set. Then apply your first coat of polish. Pick a nice new or runny polish as thicker ones make it much harder work!
You may be able to apply the polish in 3 strokes on your big toe but the rest will only need 1 or 2 strokes to cover the nail.
Don’t keep going over the first coat, it doesn’t matter if it’s not perfect as the second coat is always easier to apply. Tidy up as you go by dipping your orangewood stick into nail polish remover (no cotton wool needed).
Apply your second coat and try and cap the ends of the nails with polish for a more professional finish.
Leave for a couple of minutes then apply a top coat to add shine and protection
8. Finally SIT STILL!! You’ve gone to all this trouble to make your toenails look beautiful don’t let impatience ruin them.
This is where the wine and a magazine come into there own!
Enjoy smiling every morning as you admire your happy toes 🙂
