The sandals season is upon us, and feet have nowhere to hide. If yours have
been bundled up in socks and boots for the past six months, then they will
probably be in need of special care and attention before you put them on
show. So where should you start? From expert tips to the best pedis, we’ve
got all you need to know.
PREPARATION IS EVERYTHING
Simple techniques can work wonders. We asked Britain’s top toe technicians for
some one-step tips to achieve pedal perfection.
- “Massage each foot with cream every night for 20 seconds” – Bastien
Gonzalez, master of the “naked pedicure”. Alternatively, sign up for a
one-hour treatment with Gonzalez himself, £110; www.bastiengonzalez.com.
- “Get instantly groomed feet by cleaning up cuticles with Leighton Denny
Remove & Rectify Cuticle Remover & Moisturiser [£8]” – Nina Taylor,
Kate Moss’s foot double in the Rimmel ads.
- “Two handfuls of sea salt in a foot bath filled with warm water will
encourage elimination of toxins through the skin” – Margaret Dabbs,
podiatrist.
- “Remove hard skin when feet are dry with Bliss Diamancel No11 The Tough
Buffer [£39]” – Andrea Fulerton, British Nail Professional of the Year 2005
and 2006.
- “Sergio Rossi’s latest campaign shows what a perfect pedicure should look
like – moisturised skin; even, rounded nails; and gorgeous colour that is
impossibly neat and can be achieved using a corrector pen” – Marian Newman,
celebrity nail guru.
BREAK OUT THE BRIGHTS
Complement tanned summer feet with wild nail-colour fantasies. “This season,
go for a real clash of colours with hot-pink fingers and yellow toes, or try
coral fingers and gold toes,” says Samantha Sweet of Creative Nail Design.
Try Creative Nail Design Enamel in Hot Pop Pink, £10; Collection 2000 Hot
Looks Nail Polish in Ooh La La, £1.49; or Leighton Denny I Love Juicy Nail
Colour, £10. Once you’ve applied your colour, make sure it stays vibrant,
especially if you are going anywhere near a swimming pool. “Chlorine equals
bleach, which, along with UV rays, can fade nail colour, so use a UV top
coat, such as Barbara Daly make-up for Tesco Goodbye Yellow [£3.50],” says
Fulerton.
TOP TOE JOBS
If you want somebody else to do all the hard work for you, there are myriad
ways to put your feet up and have them made over at the same time. Here’s
where to go for the fanciest footwork.
Relaxing Bloww’s Tobacco Pedicure, £60; 020 7292 0300. The highlight is
a slow, soothing massage with essential oils and detoxifying tobacco leaves.
Bespoke Marian Newman Nails at the House of CharlesWorthington
Signature Pedicure, £45; 020 7631 1370. Treatments are tailored to your
needs.
Microdermabrasion The Pacifica Yoga Pedicure, £70, The Pacifica Day
Spa; 020 7243 1718. A special ‘wand’ removes sun-damaged skin and helps to
fade scars and sun spots.
In company Fancy a foot-pampering soiree with friends? Natasha Miller
and her Oni crew will show up on your doorstep (London and surrounding areas
only) and deliver an indulgent treatment. From £50 per person – plus their
taxi fare; www.urbansolace.co.uk.
Hedonistic Enjoy a glass of champagne with a mani/pedi at theNails Inc
Champagne Nail Bar in Harvey Nichols, London, Edinburgh and Leeds
DIY luxury Theo Fennell’s bespoke Silver Toe-Separators, £250 for four,
can be made to fit pinkies perfectly; 020 7591 5000.
FRESHEN UP
As the soles of your feet produce approximately 500ml of perspiration a day,
keeping them sweet-smelling can be an uphill struggle. How to do it? “Wash
feet daily and dry them well,” says Emma Supple, Scholl podiatrist. “Apply a
moisturising cream, even to sweaty feet, as this helps condition the skin,
and use deodorant spray.” If you are indulging in a salon pedicure, the New
York pedicure queen Ji Baek has some stark advice. “Avoid portable
salon-pedicure bath tubs and whirlpools at any cost,” she says. Apparently,
they can harbour infectious bacteria.
SURVIVING STILETTOS
Heels hurt like hell, but they do have their benefits, as the platform king
Terry de Havilland explains: “I could never claim that high heels are good
for women’s feet. They do wonders for their legs, though, and their
self-esteem. There’s nothing like strutting around in a pair of 4in heels to
make you feel great about yourself.” The good news is that there are ways to
minimise the discomfort, starting with buying a pair that actually fits.
“Check that they sit straight,” says Hillary Chan Latos, shoe designer for
Mischa Barton’s favourite footwear brand, Jour & Nuit. “For heels
with closed toes, order a half-size up. Walk around for half an hour before
trying on.”
Exercise might also help to keep the agony to a minimum. At Gymbox in London,
the women perform the Stiletto Workout (£8 per session; 020 7395 0270) in
their Choo-alike heels. Some expert podiarists have dismissed it as a
bunion-inducing gimmick, but Gymbox claims the workout will strengthen feet,
ankles, calf and core stability muscles to ensure perfect alignment when
you’re walking in stilettos.
If that doesn’t grab you, there are more sensible exercise options. “A good
Pilates class mobilises the feet and ankles, and lengthens the calves and
hamstrings – all of which will provide some relief from the effects of
wearing heels,” says Hana Jones, Pilates teacher; www.pilatesfoundation.com.
SURGICAL ENHANCEMENT
Still not happy? There’s always toe tucks and collagen injections. According
to some experts, however, plastic surgery for prettifying the feet should be
approached with caution. “If a woman has good feet and dabbles in these
procedures, she could end up with feet that cause her more pain,” warns
Michael O’Neill, podiatric surgeon and spokesperson for the Society of
Chiropodists and Podiatrists. Contact a podiatric surgeon (www.feetforlife.org)
or the British Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (www.bofss.org.uk)
before you embark on surgical or non-surgical procedures.
FOOTNOTES: A MISCELLANY
In the beginning Pedal gazing is nothing new. Wall carvings discovered
in Egypt reveal that the first pedicure took place more than 4,000 years
ago. The Chinese have practised foot massage since 3000BC. In Greek legend,
the foot symbolised the soul.
Let’s get physical The foot contains 26 bones, 33 joints, 107
ligaments and 19 muscles, and absorbs about 5m pounds per square inch of
pressure per day.
A touch toe much Casanova, Goethe, George du Maurier (the novelist
Henry James’s best friend and Daphne’s grandfather), Thomas Hardy and F
Scott Fitzgerald all had a foot fetish.
Art and sole Leonardo da Vinci described the foot as “a masterpiece of
engineering and a work of art”.
Sole music The Fats Waller song Your Feet’s Too Big contains the most
synonyms for feet in popular music – eg, “Your pedal extremities are
colossal.”
Foot fiction In the Brothers Grimm fairy tale Cinderella, the wicked
stepmother says to her daughter: “Cut the toe off – when you are queen, you
will have no more need to go on foot.”
