BEAUTY Home pedicures

Your feet in your own hands


Winter is coming, and sandals and flip-flops have been shoved to the back of the wardrobe – but that doesn’t mean it’s okay to ignore your footsies. Feet left unloved for the winter are more painful to care for come spring, as the hard skin can form unsightly and painful-to-remove calluses. And don’t forget, the festive season of sparkly dresses and glitzy footwear is just around the corner – those toes will be on display again…
However, most of us have neither the time nor the money to splash out on pedicures or even the chiropodist at the moment – and not everyone has the stomach for a fish pedi. Thankfully, the ingenious Micro-Pedi, from Irish-owned company Lifes2good (www.lifes2good.ie), means we can take our feet into our own hands.
This professional-at-home pedicure system is designed to work on all areas of the foot, including the heels, removing dead skin cells safely and quickly, leaving the skin soft, supple and beautiful in seconds.
Also great for keeping our little piggies perky is a good old-fashioned foot soak with natural oils. And if you can convince your other half, a foot rub can be bliss. Bear in mind you might have to return the favour though…

Home pedicure

• Set just 30 minutes aside weekly to soak your feet. All you need is a bucket full of warm water and a few essential oils, such as lavender to soothe and lemon to stimulate circulation, which can work wonders in the cold winter weather.
• For extremely dry feet, add two tablespoons of powdered milk or baking powder to the warm water.
• When you are done with soaking, carefully rub your toenails with a toenail brush in order to get rid of the dead skin cells and surface impurities.
• Dry thoroughly and use the Micro-Pedi to instantly buff up your heels and other hard skin areas.
• Apply your favourite nail polish to your toenails. Always use base coat to stop nail polish from discolouring toe nails.

The Micro-Pedi is available at O’Donnells Westport; Staunton’s, Castlebar; Molloy’s Ballina; and Treacy’s, Ballinrobe.