In the winter, you protect your feet, and soles with thick socks tucked in warm boots. The skin doesn’t get to breathe as much as it needs, and visits to the feet spa as not as common as they are in the warmer months when we all want to look our best from head to toes. So how do you get your feet ready for sandals in the summer?

Professional pedicures deliver the best results

The easiest way to the perfect summer soles and feet is a spa visit for a professional pedicure. Pedicures treat the toenails and the skin on the feet and the soles. A professional pedicure is an elaborate treatment up to the knees, including exfoliation, moisturizing, and massage. The dead skin cells of the soles are rubbed away with a pumice stone or other tools, then the pedicurist applies a hydrating cream, and follows up with massage. In many cases, foot-wraps – like seaweed-based wraps – are applied to make the skin even smoother. The nails are varnished at the end of the treatment, which may last up to two hours.

Do it yourself home foot-spas are great to maintain the results of professional pedicures.

A more inexpensive alternative to the professional pedicure at the spa, the home foot-spa is a great way to care for your feet too. In the summer, when your feet and soles suffer from exposure to sun, sand, and other natural elements when you walk barefoot on the beach or on the grass, a pedicure a month may not be enough. So here are the things you will need for the best DIY foot-spa:

• a small basin with lukewarm water, ideally a foot spa massager, or any container large enough to soak your feet;
• liquid foot soap – usually known as foot soak or foot bath
• a pumice stone or a foot file
• foot scrub
• moisturizer
• a toenail care kit: nail clippers, nail file, scissors, cuticle remover
• nail disinfectant
• nail base and top coat, as well as your favorite nail polish or lacquer
• a soft, ultra-absorbent towel

How to do your own pedicure

After you gather your supplies, here are the steps to the perfect DIY summer pedicure:

• First, remove the nail polish from your toenails.
• Fill up a basin filled with warm water and add your foot soak. If you don’t have a basin, fill up your bathtub. You can always replace your foot soak with any type of body soap your have at your disposal, and even liquid dish soap will do the trick. Keep your feet immersed in water for about five minutes.
• After you soak your feet, while they are still slightly wet, scrub your soles with the pumice stone or the foot file to remove dead skin cells and to smooth calluses. Focus on the problem areas first. Rinse the feet and pat dry.
• Apply the foot scrub, gently massaging it on your soles and your feet. When you are done, rinse and pat dry again.
• It’s time to shape your nails: clip and file until you get the desired length and shape.
• Remove your cuticles. You can either apply a cuticle softener and remover solution and then use a cuticle pusher to get rid of them, or just trim them with a cuticle nipper.
• Wipe your toenails with a disinfectant solution to remove impurities before you apply your favorite nail polish.
• Apply the base coat on your toenails, then one or two coats of color, and end with the top coat. Allow each layer to dry before applying the next.
• End your DIY pedicure with a moisturizing cream. Massage it gently on your soles and feet until it is properly absorbed by your skin.

To maintain the softness and suppleness of your skin on your soles and feet, you should use a moisturizer every day, preferably in the evening after your bath, when you go to bed. The moisturizer will work overnight, and you will wake up with rested, happy feet ready for new adventures.