How to do: the perfect pedicure/ Cum sa faci: pedichiura perfecta

Yes, I think feet are sexy :D Or at least should be! In this post, I'm going to show you everything you have to do if you want your feet to look their best when you're wearing your gorgeous stiletto sandals <3 This post is a little late but better later than never! :P

Da, cred ca picioarele sunt sexy :D Sau cel putin ar trebui! In aceasta postare, o sa-ti arat tot ce trebuie sa faci daca vrei ca picioarele tale sa arate cat pot ele de bine cand o sa iti porti superbele sandale stiletto <3 Aceasta postare vine putin cam tarziu dar mai bine mai tarziu decat niciodata! :P

However, I can't believe I'm writing this post and I'm showing you my feet. Just a year ago I couldn't have done this, my feet looked absolutely HORRIBLE. My toenails were even worse than my fingernails before starting to care for them. Because I only liked black nail polish on them and I didn't use a basecoat, they were always yellow and with an unhealthy look, very brittle and easily broken. That was until I realised feet are as important as hands. Even if we only show them in the summer time, believe me, preparations should start early if you want sexy feet to complement those sandals!

Totusi, nu pot sa cred ca scriu aceasta postare si ca iti arat picioarele mele. Cu doar un an inainte n-as fi putut face acest lucru, picioarele mele aratau absolut ORIBIL. Unghiile mele de la picioare erau chiar mai rau decat cele de la maini inainte sa incep sa am grija de ele. Pentru ca nu-mi placea decat oja neagra pe ele si nu foloseam baza, erau tot timpul galbene si nesanatoase, foarte fragile si casante. Aceasta pana cand mi-am dat seama ca picioarele sunt la fel de importante ca si mainile. Chiar daca le aratam doar in sezonul cald, crede-ma, pregatirile ar trebui sa inceapa devreme daca vrei picioare sexy care sa complimenteze acele sandale!


About your skin - the foot file, the exfoliating scrub and the body butter are your best friends!

Despre pielea ta - pila de picioare, exfoliantul si untul de corp sunt prietenii tai cei mai buni!

Your soles will have a different aspect, depending on the type of shoes you wear most often. For example, I like to wear high heels a lot and because of them, the skin of my soles is thicker and coarser on the balls of my feet (the front part) and my heels are soft. If you're not wearing high heels, the skin on the balls of your feet will be softer than the one on your heels. Now a warning - NEVER EVER should you remove the thickened layers of skin or your calluses using a blade instrument! NEVER EVER, completely prohibited! Never let a pedicurist do that to your feet either! First of all, you should not remove the thickened skin completely. Instead, use a file to remove only the white dead skin residues that build up, in order to reveal soft skin (soft when you touch it, not when you apply pressure). You should still feel thickened parts when you apply pressure. If you insist on filing all the thickened skin, you will thin the skin in exactly the places which support your body weight and you will get blisters the next time you go out (or just walk for a longer time), yes, blisters on your sole and yes, walking will hurt! This happened once to my sister, I still wonder how she managed to get home, lol! Second, you can easily hurt yourself and get open wounds while using that instrument. Ok, so the best things you can do to make sure the skin on your feet looks flawless are:

Talpile tale vor avea un aspect diferit, depinzand de tipul de pantof pe care il porti cel mai des. De exemplu, mie imi place sa port tocuri inalte des si din cauza lor, pielea de pe talpile mele este mai groasa si mai aspra pe pernutele picioarelor mele (partea din fata) iar calcaiele mele sunt fine. Daca nu porti tocuri inalte, pielea de pe pernutele picioarelor tale va fi mai fina decat cea de pe calcaie. Acum un avertisment - NICIODATA nu ar trebui sa iti indepartezi straturile de piele ingrosata sau bataturile folosind un instrument cu lama (brici)! NICIODATA, complet interzis! In primul rand, nu ar trebui sa indepartezi complet pielea ingrosata. In loc de acest lucru, foloseste o pila pentru a indeparta doar reziduurile albe de piele moarta care se acumuleaza, ca sa dezvalui piele moale (moale cand o atingi, nu cand o apesi).  Ar trebui sa se simta inca parti ingrosate cand apesi. Daca insisti sa pilesti toata pielea ingrosata, vei subtia pielea in locurile in care se sprijina greutatea corpului tau si vei face basici data viitoare cand vei iesi in oras (sau vei merge mai mult), da, basici pe talpile tale si da, mersul va durea! Acest lucru i s-a intamplat surorii mele, inca ma intreb cum a reusit sa ajunga acasa, lol! In al doilea rand, cu acel instrument te poti rani usor si poti face rani deschise. Ok, deci cele mai bune lucruri pe care le poti face ca sa te asiguri ca pielea de pe picioarele tale arata perfect sunt:


1. a) Once a week (or simply when you feel you need it), on dry feet, use a foot two-sided file or electric file to file away the build-up dead skin residues on your soles and/or toes. If you prefer the foot file, choose one that has two different grits; use the coarser one to get rid of the dead skin and then smooth out the surface with the finer one. I don't recommend metallic foot files, you can easily hurt yourself with those. If you prefer the electric file, also get two bits - a medium or coarse sanding one for the dead skin and a diamond one for smoothing out the skin. When filing, do not insist in one place, file the entire surface using long moves. I prefer using an electric file. I intentionally didn't do my pedicure for some time to show you how much it can change. Here's how my soles look before and after filing off the dead skin (I don't file my heels much because the dead skin on them mostly goes away when I use my scrub):

    b) O data pe saptamana (sau pur si simplu cand simti ca e necesar), pe picioarele uscate, foloseste o pila de picioare cu doua fete sau o pila electrica pentru a pili reziduurile de piele moarta acumulate pe talpile si/sau pe degetele tale. Daca preferi pila de picioare, alege una cu doua abrazivitati diferite; foloseste-o pe cea aspra pentru a scapa de pielea moarta si apoi slefuieste suprafata cu cea fina. Nu recomand pilele metalice de picioare, te poti rani usor cu ele. Daca preferi pila electrica, ia de asemenea doua capete de freza - unul de smirghel mediu sau dur pentru pielea moarta si unul de diamant pentru slefuirea pielii. Cand pilesti, nu insista intr-un loc, pileste toata suprafata cu miscari lungi. Eu prefer sa folosesc o pila electrica. Intentionat nu mi-am facut pedichiura pentru ceva vreme ca sa-ti arat cat de mult poate schimba. Uite cum arata talpile mele inainte si dupa pilirea pielii moarte (nu prea imi pilesc calcaiele pentru ca pielea moarta de pe ele se duce in mare parte cand folosesc exfoliantul):

Before/Inainte

After/Dupa

2. a) Two times a week, use a sugar scrub on your (wet) feet. You can buy this or make it yourself, like I do. I simply ground some brown sugar until the particles are about a quarter of the size they used to be. Then I mix it with some extra-virgin olive oil (use only as much as needed to bind the particles). If you're using this on your body only, you can add essential oils for a pleasant scent and to mask the olive flavour. I'm using this scrub on my face too, so I don't add any (I'm afraid it can cause irritations). Apply this on the wet skin, massage for a couple of minutes and then rinse. It will leave your feet feeling super soft! A photo after this step (the skin is red because the blood circulation has been stimulated):

   b) De doua ori pe saptamana, foloseste un scrub cu zahar pe picioarele tale (umede). Poti sa il cumperi sau sa il faci singura, cum fac eu. Pur si simplu macin niste zahar brun pana cand particulele sunt cam un sfert din marimea initiala. Apoi il amestec cu putin ulei de masline extra-virgin (foloseste doar cat e nevoie ca sa lege particulele). Daca folosesti acest scrub doar pe corp, poti sa-i adaugi uleiuri esentiale pentru un miros placut si ca sa maschezi aroma de masline. Eu il folosesc si pe fata, asa ca nu ii adaug (mi-e teama ca pot cauza iritatii). Aplica-l pe pielea umeda, maseaza vreo doua minute si apoi clateste. Iti va lasa picioarele super moi la atingere! O poza dupa acest pas (pielea este rosie pentru ca circulatia sangelui a fost stimulata):

3. a) Every evening, when you're in bed, use oil or better yet, a natural butter to moisturise your feet. I'm using olive oil but a shea, cocoa or coconut butter would be much more effective. You can make your own lotion by mixing any of these butters with a little olive oil. Massage into your skin and insist around your nails and on your soles. If your skin is extremely dry and cracked, try this - apply a butter, massage well, put your feet in some plastic bags and then into socks and sleep with them on. It will work wonders! The final look of my soles (flash photo so details can be seen better):

b) In fiecare seara, cand esti in pat, foloseste ulei sau si mai bine, un unt natural ca sa-ti hidratezi picioarele. Eu folosesc ulei de masline dar un unt de shea, cacao sau cocos ar fi mult mai eficient. Poti sa-ti faci propria lotiune amestecand oricare din aceste unturi cu putin ulei de masline. Maseaza in piele si insista in jurul unghiilor si pe talpi. Daca ai pielea extrem de uscata si crapata, incearca aceasta: aplica un unt, maseaza bine, pune-ti picioarele in niste pungi de plastic si apoi in sosete si dormi cu ele. Va face minuni! Talpile mele la sfarsit (poza este cu blitz ca sa se vada mai bine detaliile):

After these procedures, your soles will be so relaxed you will feel like you're walking on clouds :)
Dupa aceste proceduri, talpile tale vor fi asa relaxate incat te vei simti de parca mergi pe norisori :)


About your nails - cuticle oil can solve (almost) any problem!

Despre unghiile tale - uleiul de cuticule poate rezolva (aproape) orice poblema!

A lot of the stuff I wrote in the manicure category can be applied to toenails too. Make sure you check out this post to see the products and tools you need (the only suggestion I need to add is that for filing your toenails, it's best to have a new file for shaping, pedicure-use only) and this very important post to learn about the nail anatomy (vital for a correctly done manicure/pedicure). In order to make toe cuticle care easier, hydration is mandatory. If your cuticle (eponychium) is dry, dead skin (true cuticle) removal will be difficult and the risk of damaging your nail surface with your instrument is very high (even if you soak your feet before starting). This happened to me :P To make sure you don't forget about your toes, try to apply cuticle oil to them too when you apply it to your fingers. I started doing this and I can now remove the dead skin in like ten minutes, no more struggling. Basically, the more moisturised your cuticles are, the easier the dead skin will come off. Here are the steps to do:

  Multe dintre lucrurile pe care le-am scris in categoria despre manichiura pot fi aplicate si la unghiile de la picioare. Vezi si aceasta postare ca sa vezi de ce produse si instrumente ai nevoie (singura sugestie pe care as vrea sa o adaug este ca pentru pilirea unghiilor de la picioare, este bine sa ai o pila noua pentru a da forma, folosita doar la pedichiura) si aceasta postare foarte importanta ca sa aflii chestii despre anatomia unghiei (vitale pentru o manichiura/pedichiura corect facuta). Ca sa faci ingrijirea cuticulei cat mai usoara, hidratarea este esentiala. Daca ai cuticula (eponychium) uscata, indepartarea pielii moarte (cuticulei adevarate) va fi dificila si riscul deteriorarii suprafetei unghiei cu instrumentul este foarte mare (chiar daca iti inmoi picioarele inainte). Acest lucru mi s-a intamplat :P Ca sa te asiguri ca nu uiti de degetele de la picioare, incearca sa aplici uleiul de cuticule si pe ele atunci cand il pui pe degetele de la maini. Eu am inceput sa fac acest lucru si acum pot sa-mi indepartez pielea moarta in vreo zece minute, fara sa ma mai chinui. In esenta, cu cat ai cuticulele mai hidratate, cu atat pielea moarta se va desprinde mai usor. Aici sunt pasii pe care trebuie sa-i faci:

1 a) Nail care can be done every two weeks because toenails grow slower than fingernails. If your nails are super small, like mine, I suggest you let them grow a bit. I did and now they look like they are a normal size, plus I can do french pedicures on them if I feel like. Be very careful when you walk barefoot, try not to hit your nails because they will break. Mine are now shorter than usual because they have broken :( Do not soak your feet before filing your nails. They will soak up water and be more prone to exfoliating when you file them. I suggest filing down rather than cutting (also valid for fingernails). A coarse file will do the job fast (don't go any lower than 150 grit). If you have to cut your nails before filing, use nail scissors instead of clippers. Nail clippers compress the nail layers while cutting them and when you release the pressure, the layers exfoliate. Always cut or file your nails straight, do not mess with the sidewalls (only round the corners a bit with your file). This is serious. Cutting the sidewalls of your toenails will result in ingrown nails, a condition which is both difficult and painful to treat. If you already have ingrown nails, I recommend you seek treatment from either a podiatrist or a professional medical pedicurist. I don't recommend normal nail salons, as most pedicurists are not properly trained in medical pedicure procedures. As you do to your fingernails, seal the edge of your toenails with a higher grit file (320 or 400).

 b) Ingrijirea unghiilor poate fi facuta o data la doua saptamani pentru ca unghiile de la picioare cresc mai incet decat cele de la maini. Daca ai unghiile super mici, ca ale mele, sugerez sa le lasi sa creasca putin. Eu am facut acest lucru si acum arata de parca ar avea o marime normala, plus ca pot sa-mi fac pedichiuri french daca am chef. Fii foarte atenta cand mergi cu picioarele goale, incearca sa nu iti lovesti unghiile pentru ca se vor rupe. Eu acum le am mai scurte decat de obicei pentru ca mi s-au rupt :( Nu iti inmuia picioarele inainte sa iti pilesti unghiile. Vor absorbi apa si vor fi mai predispuse la a se exfolia cand pilesti. Sugerez pilirea mai degraba decat taierea (valabil si pentru unghiile de la maini). O pila aspra va face treaba repede (nu folosi o granulatie mai mica de 150). Daca trebuie sa iti tai unghiile inainte de pilire, foloseste forfecuta in loc de unghiera. Unghiera comprima straturile unghiei in timp ce le taie si cand eliberezi presiunea, straturile se exfoliaza. Intotdeauna taie-ti sau pileste-ti unghiile drept, nu te baga in laterale (doar rotunjeste colturile putin cu pila). Taierea lateralelor unghiilor de la picioare va rezulta in incarnarea unghiilor, o afectiune atat dificil cat si dureros de tratat. Daca ai deja unghii incarnate, recomand sa ceri ajutorul unui medic podolog sau unui specialist in pedichiura medicala. Nu recomand saloanele normale de unghii pentru ca majoritatea pedichiuristelor nu este pregatita ca lumea pentru efectuarea procedurilor de pedichiura medicala. La final, cum faci si la unghiile de la maini, sigileaza marginea unghiilor cu o pila de granulatie mai mare (320 sau 400).

2. a) After filing, you can soak your feet in warm water (you can add a soak product or natural oil and essential oils for fragrance) for about 10 minutes and use your scrub. Immediately after removing your feet from the water, apply an oil or vegetable butter to your cuticles. Start pushing the cuticle back and scraping off the dead skin (using the same movements that you see in the video in this post). I found out the dead skin on the toenails is more stubbornly attached to the cuticle than the one on the fingernails. Nevertheless, as I said before, daily hydration will make this part easier. Be very careful not to damage your cuticles or nail surface. If you can't do this without damage, attempt doing your pedicure after a few days in which you have moisturised your cuticles as often as you could. In this photo you can clearly see the strip of dead skin that has been removed and the cuticle that needs to be left alone, never cut your cuticles:

   b) Dupa pilire, poti sa-ti inmoi picioarele in apa calda (poti sa adaugi un sapun special conceput pentru inmuierea pielii sau ulei natural si uleiuri esentiale pentru aroma) pentru vreo 10 minute si sa folosesti exfoliantul. Imediat ce le scoti, aplica un ulei sau unt vegetal pe cuticule. Incepe sa impingi cuticula si sa indepartezi pielea moarta (folosind aceleasi miscari pe care le vezi in clipul din aceasta postare). Am descoperit ca pielea moarta de la degetele de la picioare este mult mai incapatant atasata de cuticule decat cea de la maini. Oricum, cum am zis si inainte, hidratarea zilnica va face aceasta parte mai usoara. Fii foarte atenta sa nu iti deteriorezi cuticulele sau suprafata unghiei. Daca nu poti face acest pas fara sa strici, incearca sa-ti faci pedichiura dupa cateva zile in care ti-ai hidratat cuticulele cat de des ai putut. In aceasta poza se poate vedea clar fasia de piele moarta care a fost indepartata si cuticula care trebuie lasata in pace, niciodata sa nu-ti tai cuticulele:

3. a) Now is the time to relax, after having to endure all the backache-causing positions which you have to employ in order to do a good job with your pedicure. I suggest you apply a butter or super moisturising masque or lotion to your feet, wrap them up in a towel and watch an episode of your favourite tv show. With a cocktail near by. And some muscular and tanned guys waving palm leaves at you. Ahhhh, this is the life! :D

  b) Acum este momentul sa te relaxezi, dupa ce a trebuit sa induri toate pozitiile cauzatoare de dureri de spate pe care trebuie sa le ai ca sa faci o treaba buna cu pedichiura. Sugerez sa aplici un unt sau o masca sau lotiune super hidratanta pe picioare, sa le infasori intr-un prosop si sa te uiti la un episod din serialul tau preferat. Cu un cocktail pe aproape. Si niste tipi musculosi si bronzati care sa-ti faca vant cu frunze de palmier. Ahhhh, asta da viata! :D


4. a) (Finally) The last step - polish your nails. It is best to wipe your nails with some alcohol in order to dehydrate the nail plate a bit so the polish can adhere. Apply the nail polish without touching the cuticles or the lateral sides. If you did touch them, wipe off immediately using a cuticle instrument. Always use base and topcoat. Unfortunately, I don't really have any tips to prevent nail polish from getting ruined by wearing socks and shoes. Once my pedicure got ruined even after letting it dry for a few hours... Lately however, I painted my nails mostly in the evening (about two hours before going to bed) and I noticed the risk of them getting ruined as you sleep is much lower. This is how nails should look before polishing (they turn a whitish colour after dehydration); the lump on my right big toe is a mosquito bite :P

b) (In sfarsit) Ultimul pas - lacuirea unghiilor. Cel mai bine este sa-ti stergi unghiile cu niste alcool ca sa deshidratezi putin placa unghiala pentru a permite ojei sa adere. Aplica oja fara sa atingi cuticulele sau lateralele. Daca le-ai atins, sterge imediat folosind un instrument de cuticule. Intotdeauna foloseste baza si topcoat. Din pacate, nu prea am sfaturi pentru a preveni oja sa se strice de la purtatul sosetelor si pantofilor. Odata, mi s-a stricat pedichiura si dupa ce am lasat-o sa se usuce cateva ore... In ultima vreme totusi, mi-am dat unghiile cu oja mai mult seara (cu vreo doua ore inainte sa ma culc) si am observat ca riscul sa se strice in timp ce dormi este mult mai mic.Asa ar trebui sa arate unghiile inainte de lacuire (devin putin albicioase dupa deshidratare); umflatura de pe degetul meu mare drept este o muscatura de tantar :P

To summarize, here is a quick recap of the steps I do: file off the dead skin on the soles and/or toes, file the nails, soak feet, use scrub, use cuticle oil (after removing the feet from water), push back cuticles and remove dead skin from the nails, apply butter/mask/lotion, leave on for 15-20 minutes, wipe nails with alcohol, apply basecoat, polish and topcoat.

In rezumat, aici este o scurta recapitulare a pasilor pe care ii fac: pilesc pielea moarta de pe talpi si/sau degete, pilesc unghiile, inmoi picioarele, folosesc exfoliant, folosesc ulei de cuticule (dupa ce scot picioarele din apa), imping cuticulele si curat pielea moarta de pe unghii, aplic unt/masca/lotiune, o las pentru 15-20 de minute, sterg unghiile cu alcool, aplic baza, oja si topcoat.


Here are some photos of my last pedicure (black polish, with longer nails) and my current one (blue glitter polish + holographic silver hexagonal glitters). For my current pedicure, I was going to paint my nails all white but I didn't like the way they looked so I added the glitter polish on top of the white. Here is a video on how to do a super-glittery pedicure (I didn't use this method now but I've used it in the past and it looks amazing) - Advance Japan Nail Art Lesson Part 4

Aici sunt cateva poze cu ultima mea pedichiura (oja neagra, cu unghiile mai lungi) si cu cea curenta (oja albastra cu glitter + glittere hexagonale argintii holografice). Pentru pedichiura mea de acum, voiam initial sa-mi pictez unghiile doar cu alb dar nu mi-a placut cum aratau asa ca am adaugat oja cu glitter peste alb. Aici este un video despre cum poti face o pedichiura super sclipitoare (nu am folosit aceasta metoda acum dar am folosit-o in trecut si arata super misto) - Advance Japan Nail Art Lesson Part 4

Now this post is gigantic, but at least you learned how to get perfect looking feet! Hope your boyfriend is a foot fetishist. If not, you will be the only one enjoying your super sexy feet, but it's worth it, your self-confidence will sky-rocket!! Did you learn something new from this post? Please tell me I didn't show you my feet in vain haha. See you! ^_^

Acum aceasta postare este gigantica, dar cel putin ai aflat cum sa obtii picioare perfecte! Sper ca iubitul tau are fetisuri cu picioarele. Altfel vei fi cam singura care se va bucura de picioarele ei super sexy, dar merita, increderea in tine iti va spori considerabil!! Ai aflat ceva nou din aceasta postare? Te rog spune-mi ca nu ti-am aratat picioarele mele degeaba haha. Pe curand! ^_^