Let’s face it, feet are ugly. Well, they can be. They amass dry skin, they crack, they just plain look odd! As women, we all want dainty feet (well, at least I do), slender and delicate for dancing in meadows, that remain soft and pretty despite being shoved in unforgiving heels and only seeing a moisturiser once in a blue moon, if they’re lucky. The reality is, most feet can only be described in Jamie Oliver lingo as ‘gnarly’.
But it’s summer: it’s important now more than ever that they look at least halfway decent instead of the kind of hideous lumps that belong in The Witches (remember that movie? Shudder). The fact is, summer is tough going on feet – they live in flip flops and, typically, they’re in shoes without any support.
But if you’re going to spend a small fortune on Isabel Marant Holden slides, then the least you can do is make your feet worthy of wearing them:
This may be an ugly product, and it’s unlikely that you’ll ever proudly display this in your bathroom, but it gets good results. Make sure your feet are really clean and remove any existing nail polish before slipping them into the clear plastic booties and sealing up. You leave them on for an hour to allow the hydroxy acids to eat their way through the dead skin. A week later and your feet will start shedding like crazy - it’s not a pretty sight - but give it a couple of days to do its thing and you’ll have the softest, silkiest feet you’ve had in your life. Honestly, this stuff is amazing.
The Professionals
Sometimes a standard pedi just won’t cut it. If you’re in and around London, I highly recommend the Margaret Dabbs London Foot Clinic – there’s one in the basement in Liberty, another at Urban Retreat in Harrods, and a standalone location on Cavendish. The Medical Pedicure will do everything a podiatrist would do. If you’re not in London, Scholl have chiropody clinics all over the UK and do a pretty impressive MOT on knackered feet.
To maintain the results of Footner, I used pads soaked in salicylic acid on my feet every couple of days. They speed up cell turnover and gently exfoliate the skin. Most brands – including Cane + Austin, Bliss and Philosophy – do them, but I love Origins' Spot Remover pads – they’re designed for the face (just like the others), but work just as well on feet.
I think as foot creams go, this is the very best. It’s thick and rich, but not in the slightest bit greasy so you can immediately pop on your flip flops and not slide out of them and break your neck. The reason why it’s so great is this – it contains urea (bear with me!). It sounds gross, and yes it’s found in urine, but no, this does not contain pee. Urea is produced naturally in the skin to regulate its moisture content and so the urea in this foot cream helps bind water to the skin. It also uses lactate, from lactic acid, which again helps the skin hold on to moisture. Clinical studies have shown massive improvements in just 10 days of using it twice a day. I use it all the time and can honestly say nothing else beats it. Buy it.
Pedi Colours
Personally, I’m not a fan of blue nail polish on feet. Unless you have the darkest of feet, I don’t think anyone can avoid not looking like a corpse. Bright and punchy colours look groomed and stylish – FACT. Favourites are always Essie in Fifth Avenue, £7.99, a tomato red, and Orly in Hot Shot, £10.50. An intensely vibrant shade contrasts against all skin tones, which is only ever a good thing.
** Follow Suzanne on Twitter @Suzanne_M_Scott**
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.