Thanks to my cosmetology license, I can share with you the exact steps I used to give pedicures as a professional in a salon. This DIY Pedicure Routine can be a lifesaver, especially now when flip-flops and sandals show the wear and tear that summertime can bring. Doing your own pedicure will save money, & leave you with feet that feel wonderful and toes that sparkle!

I attended cosmetology school as an 18-year-old, and was working in a salon by age 19. My specialty was hair cuts and colors, but I built up quite a few regular manicure and pedicure clients. I was always happy to see one of them on my appointment book, as it gave me a break from standing with my arms raised, and gave me a chance to just sit and enjoy my client while attending to their nails.

People always asked me if it bothered me to work on other people’s toes. It never did thanks to the soak that each client started out with. By the time I handled their feet, they were nice and clean and disinfected. I quite enjoyed giving pedicures, knowing that it made my clients feel pampered. I remember some great conversations and feeling relaxed as I filed, massaged and polished away!

Below is a step by step DIY Pedicure Routine. It is perfect for summertime, and really anytime! Doing it yourself just might give you the same pampered feeling as a professional pedicure would, but without the cost!

Supplies:

Basin big enough to fit both feet

Towels

Hot water

Soap

Epsom salt (optional)

Toenail clippers

Nail file

Nail buffer

Cuticle pusher

Cuticle clippers

Amopé Pedi Perfect™ electronic foot file

Exfoliator

Moisturizer (I use Coconut Oil)

Polish (base coat, color, & top coat)

DIY Professional Pedicure Routine

Clean/Soak

Use a container big enough to fit both feet. Fill it with hot soapy water. You can add some epsom salts for a dose of magnesium. Lay a towel down on the floor, put the basin on top, and make sure the rest of your supplies are within reach. Sit in a chair in front of the basin and soak for 5 minutes. This cleanses, relaxes, and softens up the cuticle & rough skin.

Clip

Dry one foot, and keep the other soaking for these next 3 steps–clipping, filing and buffing. Only clip if you have excess length. Keep toenails straight across to avoid painful ingrown toenails.

File

Use a file to smooth out the rough edges, remembering to keep the toenail straight across, and not too short. Toenails that are too short show too much skin at the end of the nail, which is not aesthetically pleasing and makes polishing difficult. Want to try something different than the traditional nail file? Try the Amopé Pedi Perfect™ electronic nail file.

Buff

Toenails can tend to have ridges, and buffing is an easy way to make the top of the toenail nice and smooth. Start with the roughest part of the buffer, and work your way eventually to the smoothest side of the buffer.

Switch

At this point, switch feet. Repeat above steps with your other foot, and place the foot that you just buffed back into the water.

Push

Once both feet are clipped, filed and buffed, it is time to push back the cuticles. Dry both feet off. Gently push back any over-grown cuticle. Use the instrument to get any dirt out from under the toenails. Use the water to rinse and keep things clean.

Trim Cuticle

Only do this step if you have excess cuticle. Do not over-trim. Make sure to get any hangnails.

Exfoliate

Use exfoliator of choice. My favorite is my Coconut Lime Sugar Scrub, or my Lemon Sugar Scrub. If you want to keep it simple, use coconut oil mixed with some sugar and maybe a drop of essential oils. Rub exfoliator into both feet and up onto the ankle. You could go as high as the knee if you’d like. That was our stopping point as professionals. Use basin water to rinse all exfoliate off & dry both feet.

Smooth

This is where I get to introduce you to my favorite tool for keeping my feet super soft and smooth. It is called the Amopé Pedi Perfect™ electronic foot file. I bought it at CVS great deal, thanks to a coupon that I used. It is perfect for summertime daily wear and tear, especially for cracked, dry, thick heels! This tool is wonderful for the heel, under the big toe, at the side edge beneath the pinky toe and anywhere you have hard, dry, rough skin that needs to be smoothed. I found it worked much faster and was so much easier than smoothing by hand with a foot file. The Amope’ Pedi Perfect conforms to the shape of your foot and feels wonderful while smoothing. It has a safety stop feature that makes it safe to use, and there are no sharp blades so I feel comfortable letting my teen girls use it. I so wish I had this tool when I was doing pedicures professionally, as I get better-than-professional results with it! It feels great, is easy to use, has replaceable roller heads and is one of my favorite recent purchases. Keep scrolling for an awesome coupon to get one for yourself.

Moisturize

Give both feet one more good rinse, dry them off, then moisturize all the way up to the knee if desired. I simply use coconut oil.

Massage

Take a minute to pamper yourself and really rub the moisturizer into your feet. Pay attention to the arch, each toe, in-between toes and even the top of the foot. Do a couple of toe flexes and ankle stretches while you are at it.

Prep

It is now time to polish, but if you don’t remove the moisturizer from your nail beds, the polish won’t stick and will chip immediately. Nail polish remover is perfect for removing any leftover oils and even your own natural oil from the nail bed. This step is key for good nail polish adhesion. Saturate a cotton ball or pad with polish remover and remove all moisturizer from each toenail.

Polish

Polish in this order: Base Coat, 2 Coats of Color, Top Coat.

I love getting more adventurous on my toes when it comes to color. I often choose my color depending on the season or if I have a special outing, I match it to my outfit. I love using brighter colors and even glitter polish on my toes, even though I am much more conservative with my nails.

Despite all the talk of adventure, my toenail polish crush right now is white. I love how clean it looks. It makes my feet look much more tan than they really are and it matches every flip-flop, sandal, and outfit that I have.

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So there you have it. Step-by step for a DIY Professional Pedicure. It is such a great feeling to have cute summertime toes by doing my own pedicure and saving money.