Reset with a pedi

Your feet carry your weight all day. Even if you sit at a desk, they dangle or are crossed beneath you, freezing in winter and swollen in summer. They’re squeezed into stilettos for a night out, or made to sweat in cute but impractical pumps. They develop blisters and corns, crack or ache or get ingrown nails – generally feet take a bit of a beating in our daily lives. So how can we show them, and ourselves, a bit of love? One way is a soothing pedicure.

Part of what makes a pedicure important is that taking care of your feet represents an act of taking care of your whole body – whether you believe, as reflexologists do, that the feet map out the body, or whether you just need a good foot rub to feel better all over. This is what self-care looks like, taking a moment to pay attention to the parts of yourself that work all day. 

At toast&co a pedicure starts with a soak in a scented, warm bath dotted with rose petals. Already you can feel the long days in queues at home affairs or the supermarket, or standing over a stove while holding a toddler begin to melt away. It feels good to just be taken care of for once. 

Then the feet are dried and the beautician inspects the state of the skin on your heels, toes and the balls of your feet. This is an important step. If you suffer from cracked heels, you might need an intensive moisturising treatment or some extra care when buffing. Corns need to be filed by just the right amount: too much and you risk infection; too little and they ache. 

Once your calluses are smoothed out, the nails are seen to. Do they need any special attention, especially if they tend to grow down and inwards? Or do they just need a clean and shape? Ingrown nails can be avoided by correctly clipping and filing the nail. 

When the nails are sculpted and ready, the whole foot is covered in a cream and massaged. Each toe is tended to, the arch of the foot is eased of any tension and the ankle tendons are rubbed free of yesterday’s stresses. Finally, a colour is applied to the toe nails. 

It is this final touch that brings together the whole experience. You feel and look refreshed, well-kempt and ready for whatever the week might bring. For today, your feet haven’t had to foot the bill for your hectic life.