A Little Pampering

By Author: Styan Williams
Total Articles: 37
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Tired after a long hard day at work? Your feet are aching and you just want to go to bed. You take a hasty shower and jump in with the warm soft pillows. And then, as the silk sheet rubs against your feet, there is a horrible sensation. What is it? Crusty dead skin rubbing against the material. You look down and see all those little bumps on your tired feet. You think about a pedicure. Makes you think of a manicure. You look at your hands, and the nails are growing unevenly, some nail polish has chipped off, and the skin feels rough. Not pleasant at all is it? It's clearly time for you to do yourself a favor and invest in some serious pampering of self!

Now the best thing to do would be to get yourself an appointment at you favorite Spa, and sit back and relax, while you're pampered to heaven. However, if you don't have the time or the money to spare (or if you don't like strangers touching your feet) you might want to invest in a manicure and pedicure set.

Usually a pedicure set includes:
Acetone

Cotton balls/pads

Cuticle cream

Cuticle Pusher & Cuticle Nipper

Lotion

Nail ...
... File

Nail Polish

Orangewood sticks

Toenail Clippers

Base coat

The list might seem alarming, but it doesn't really take too much time. We'll go over the points of the very basic foot and hand pampering. You will need to soak you hand/foot in warm water. Add salt and essential oils for better cleansing and more relaxation. Once you've soaked it for a while, say about fifteen to twenty minutes, and your feet/hands feel considerably softer, withdraw, and wipe clean on a towel. Then moisturize using lotion/hand cream which is also usually included in the set. You should ideally do this at night, so you can wear socks (and even gloves if you fancy it) and go to sleep, and awake buttery limbs the next morning. This is truly the most basic approach. But a more thorough approach, which can also save you from nail disorders and corns and calluses, would include a little more effort.

This would include the use a foot buffer or pumice stone to scrub the sole of your feet. These are hard skin removers and act as sandpaper does to wood to your skin, leaving it smooth and polished. It's ideal if you use a softening agent before, either in your foot bath or afterwards. Some kits contain such products.

You also need to have clean cuticles for your nails to look happy and be healthy. Most manicure and pedicure sets come with manicure scissors, or nail cutters. Do not use a feathering razor, household scissors or professional scissors for this purpose! That could be potentially dangerous. Cuticle cuts are prone to getting infected very easily and it's better to stick to prescribed methods.

Once you clip your nails and take care of your cuticles, remove the chipped nil polish and apply a layer of enriching varnish. You'll look lovely and feel great! So go ahead, give yourself that long awaited pampering.

Paragon Enterprise (UK) Limited are manufacturers and distributors of Nail files, Nail pusher, Nail cutter, Cuticle nipper.