I have to say, I’m not really crazy about going and having people touch my feet, and usually, the few times I’ve actually had a pedicure have been for a wedding or special event, and I wasn’t crazy about it at that time either because I think feet are ugly. I would actually give myself a little “pre-pedicure” just so that person who was doing the pedicure at the salon wouldn’t think I had the most disgusting feet they’d ever seen, so it kind of defeated the purpose I guess, but oh well!
I recently got back from vacation and had a pedicure with a friend of mine there since she really wanted to have perfect toes for a trip to Madrid the following week. We paid $45 for about an hour long pedicure, sitting in nice, brand new massage chairs (my favorite part of the experience) in a nicer upscale salon in North Carolina.
Pedicures that are done professionally really are usually better than the ones you can give yourself at home simply because they have all the callous-defeating, foot softening, nail-perfecting tools they need right there, whereas I know few people who actually go out and purchase the callous removers, buffers and numerous other tools and products that professionals have on stock all the time.
First our feet were stripped of their existing toe polish, then soaked for a good ten minutes in a warm bath with some sort of cleansers and foot softening agents in them. Then, callous remover or softener was applied to the rough spots of our feet, our cuticles were moisturized and pushed back so they disappeared, our nails were buffed, and the base coat, polish and top coat were slicked on. I picked a sparkly silver color this time, a departure from my usual deep purple and red tones that I tend to favor.
They turned out pretty nice. I think the reason that a professional pedicure lasts so much longer than home applied toe polish is that the nails are usually buffed before the polish is applied, and there is a base coat and top coat applied so the polish is much tougher and longer lasting. Now, if only I could get something that would make my feet softer, I’d really love it.
The softening effects of the Aveda products they applied to the bottoms and sides of my feet unfortunately only lasted one day or so, but I guess I attribute that to me being on my feet a lot. Being a waitress all through college, my feet have seen worse days, but I do think they suffered permanent damage like smooshed toes and vericose veins from all those years on my feet.
