How to Give Yourself a Pretty Pedicure

A pretty pedicure at home is cost friendly and creative.

When you give yourself a pretty pedicure you are able to customize the products you use and the length of time you spend on your feet. Knowing how to give yourself a pretty pedicure gives you the ability to beautify and soften your feet with pampering ingredients and products in the comfort of your own home environment, as well as save a lot of money.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic soak tub (3 gallon)
• 1 cup sea salt
• 2 gallons distilled water (hot)
• 1/16 oz. spearmint essential oil
• Extra moisturizing lotion
• Terrycloth towel
• Cuticle stick
• Colored nail polish
• Clear nail polish

Instructions

1. Prepare your foot soak by adding the salt and spearmint essential oil to two gallons of very hot water. It should be almost too hot to touch with steam rising from it. The vapors that rise from the foot bath will be minty-fresh and invigorating. Soak your feet in this solution for about 15 minutes, or until it is no longer warm.

2. Wipe your feet dry with clean terrycloth. Massage a dime-sized amount of extra-moisturizing lotion on your feet. Spend about five minutes on each foot, thoroughly massaging the lotion into the balls, heels, ankles and toes. Wipe your feet clean with the terrycloth towel.

3. Clean the areas around your toenails with a cuticle stick. Use the pointed end to push back the cuticles of each toe.

4. Apply a single coat of nail polish to each toenail. Start with a single stripe of polish down the center of each toenail, and then a stripe down each side of the central one. This assures all-over coverage. Let the nails dry for 5 minutes. Use any color polish that suits your fancy.

5. Apply a layer of clear nail polish over the top your colorfully painted nails This seals in the color and keeps the toenails glossy. Allow the nails to dry for an additional 10 minutes. It may take longer to dry a second or third layer of nail polish because each time you paint a layer, the bottom layer becomes wet again. Keep this in mind when painting multiple layers.

Tips & Warnings

• Use a cotton swab soaked in nail polish remover to clean the skin around your toenails if you make mistakes with the nail polish.

References

• Just for Mom: Home Pedicure