We often talk about taking care of our hair, our skin, our bodies and a lot of the time, we neglect our hands and our feet. There could be a hoard of reasons why we want glowing skin but have no problem walking around with the ashiest hands or heels that look dangerous. Maybe we’re really busy, maybe we’re athletic and it doesn’t seem worth it to pretty-fy your hands if they’re just going to get calloused. Maybe it’s a money thing and you need to prioritise what’s hyper-visible. These are all really valid reasons. I’m here to tell you how you can take care of your hands and feet so that they’re presentable and won’t get you labeled as ashy.
A few disclaimers: There is always an alternative. If the products I use or the process I go through do not work for you, there’s always something that will. What I use can be a springboard and you can either upgrade my hand-and-foot routine or you can minimize it. Secondly, all this stuff should be fun. Pampering yourself takes effort but it’s a cheap and efficient way of reminding yourself that you are worthy of being taken care of, especially by yourself.
Feet – You are not in a Roman army, your feet don’t need to look like you’ve fought battles.
I love my feet. Not only are they sturdy and keep me running for kilometres after being in heels for hours, they’re also really cute. Even if they weren’t pretty, function over form so I’d love them anyway. I’m in heels most of the day, I run most days of the week and I also do strength workouts, I have no choice but to pay attention to my feet.
I use a heel ‘grater’ and a foot-pumice every night during my evening shower. This helps get rid of that hardened skin that may lead to cracked and discoloured heels. On nights that I do a body scrub, I focus a lot of time on my feet. I love the Body Scrub from Essentials at Avani Lesotho and I’ll do a full review on it in the self-care blog post. This happens once or twice a week, where I’ll just spend a good 2 minutes scrubbing my feet after using the tools. It’s therapeutic and ensures that your feet remain bright and even-toned. We sometimes forget that feet can look really dull and the work you put in to have those waxed, glowing legs, is overshadowed by the desert of skin below your ankles.
I go in with an overnight-repair treatment and/or a heel balm. I put on the Overnight Repair Treatment which retails at R38.99 and the Treatment Heel Balm which is R32.99 from Dr Sole, both of which are purchased at Clicks. After apply the products, I wear a pair of socks. The socks aren’t mandatory every night but I find that my feet absorb the treatment better. If you’d like to be a little extravagant, you can wrap your feet up in a plastic bag for 10 minutes to let the treatment soak and then take the plastic bag off before getting into bed. I get my toes done at a nail spa every 6-8 weeks. I’ll do a full pedicure and once in a while I’ll throw in a hot oil treatment for my toes. Having my toes done prevents not having to worry about wearing open toe shoes and (maybe most importantly) not having to worry about where a date will go.
2) Hands – Dainty hands will attract a dainty life
Hands are harder to maintain because they do a lot more than the feet. The most practical advice to maintaining healthier and more presentable hands is don’t wash dishes often without wearing latex gloves. I make sure to moisturise my hands as often as possible during the day, especially after washing or sanitising. On days where I’m using a body scrub, I spend a lot of time of my hands. The golden rule I apply with my hands is always use the remnants of your facial products of your hands, so that little residue which remains after a serum or a sheet mask should be spread all over the hands.
If you’re a gym fanatic an have hard/calloused hands, get better gloves with extra padding. If gloves aren’t your thing, use a lot of chalk and ensure that you’re using a pumice on your palms once in a while.
The moral of the story is that taking care of your body is an effective self-care tool. Communicating to yourself that every part of You matters, right down to your toes, has a real impact in how you think of yourself. It’s a cheat trick that I use whenever I’m feeling a little down, and it has its perks because I look great in all the shoes that I wear!
