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Category Archives: Foot Care
The (Alternative) London Fashion Week Kit
London Fashion Week is upon us and that undoubtedly means that the internet will be overflowing with suggestions for a beauty kit needed to survive the relentless schedule of shows, launches and parties.
They’ll go something like this; blister plasters for feet which have trekked all over London from dawn till dusk. Caffeine tablets to prevent eyelid drooping. Nail polish for touch ups on the go. Anti-fatigue foundation. Sweets or biscuits, because there’s never enough time to eat. These guides contain invaluable nuggets of information for fashion week newbies and will undoubtedly remind you to stuff something or other into your handbag in a last minute panic.
Wait, what’s that… you’re not one of the privileged few going to London Fashion Week? Darn, those designers can be mighty forgetful when sending out the invites. Worry not; I have the perfect alternative LFW beauty kit for us mere mortals who will be sitting at home instead of on the front row.
Get your beauty sleep and make it count. You don’t need to be partying with the fash-pack till 4am and rising at 6am, so cash in on those hours of snooze time and make them work for you. Origins High Potency Night-A-Mins is not only moisturising but it alos contains Vitamins C, E and H and it resurfaces skin cells. So, you don’t just look rested when you wake up, but completely revitalised.
Consider giving your hair a luxurious treat. Apply some coconut oil through the lengths and ends of the hair then apply a deep conditioning treatment such as Sebastian Professional Penetraitt Treatment Masque over the top. Stick it into a bun to keep it out the way and leave for as long as you can before shampooing… We’re talking a couple of hours here. It won’t look pretty at the time but that’s just fine seeing as we don’t need to worry about being papped outside Somerset House. The reward for waiting is worth it; enviably silky tresses here we come.
Finally, give your tootsies some love. They may not be hitting London’s pavements as hard as the Vogue staffers, but they still deserve some attention. Plump for some Bliss Softening Socks; the gel lining inside these wonders pushes moisturising oils into tough, rough skin. Wear them around the house with abandon whilst feeling sorry for editors hobbling in their Manolos.
Dollface Reviews: Liz Earle foot care range
I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but I’m a runner. I’m not a FAST runner, I hasted to add. You won’t find me winning any races (or even entering them, for that matter), but two or three times a week, I pull on a pair of deeply unattractive running shoes and hit either the road or the treadmill. While I’m sure this is very good for my heart and lungs, however, it’s not so great on the feet. If you run yourself, you’ll know what I mean, here.
Anything that makes my feel feel softer, smoother and, er, fresher, then, is always going to be a good thing, so I was very happy to be given the opportunity to review Liz Earle’s new foot care range, which consists of a Foot Spritzer, a Scrub and a Moisturiser.
First up: the spritzer. This contains natural ingredients like rosemary, spearmint and peppermint and feels like bliss when you spray it on after a long run. I’d imagine it would feel equally good after a day spent going about your normal business in a warm climate, but as I live in Scotland, I can’t speak to that. It is, however, wonderfully cooling and refreshing, and I don’t stop at the feet, either: it also feels fantastic on sore, tired leg muscles, and it dries in quickly, so you don’t have to hobble around on your heels once you’ve sprayed it on.
The scrub is the next step in my new foot care regime. I’ve been keeping this in the shower so I remember to use it every day, and it’s proved to be excellent at helping get rid of rough skin and, er, the residue of that giant blister I got a couple of weeks ago. It also smells great, with a strong scent of peppermint, which helps wake me up again after my run. As well as the peppermint, it contains rosemary, avocado and wheatgerm oils.
Finally, the moisturiser. I tend to be lazy about applying foot cream, purely because I can never be bothered waiting for it to sink in before walking around again (Liz Earle also sell socks to wear after you’ve applied this, but I’m guessing any socks will do), so I haven’t used this as much as the other two products, but when I have used it, I’ve been impressed. Again, there’s a strong peppermint scent, and a very rich creamy texture which, happily, sinks in pretty quickly, so you don’t have to wait TOO long to be able to walk again.
Individually, these products all work well. As a team, however, I think I have them to thank for the fact that I’m still able to bare my feet in sandals this summer, despite everything I put them through.
If you want to try them out, they’re available at the Liz Earle website.
Lush ‘Stepping Stone’ foot scrub
At about this time of year, I start thinking about my feet a lot. Wait: that sounded a bit creepy, didn’t it? I don’t mean it in a foot-fetish kind of way, I just mean that as the feet in question are starting to break free of their winter footwear, and expose themselves in peep toes, sandals and flip flops, I’m obviously going to want them to be looking their best, and that’s not something that’s going to happen without a bit of help. Or a miracle.
Lush’s ‘Stepping Stone’ pumice doesn’t promise miracles (Well, it’s only £2.75, what do you expect?). It does, however, promise to scrub and moisturise your soles, and leave them looking sandal-ready in time for summer. It also smells like mango. Get it here.
Dollface Reviews: Scholl Crackling Ice Foot Spray
I ran on a treadmill for ten kilometres yesterday. I’ll leave it up to your imagination just how how and, well, sweaty, my feet felt after THAT. Oh no, wait: I didn’t really leave it up to your imagination, did I? Sorry about that.
Help was at hand foot, however, because the lovely people at Scholl had sent me a bottle of their Crackling Ice Foot Spray just a couple of days earlier, and let me tell you, it couldn’t have come at a better time.
What it says on the tin:
“…an invigorating foot treat to revitalise hot, tired, aching feet. Its unique formulation turns into a crackling mousse on application – leaving your feet cool, refreshed and beautifully fragrance.”
It was the “crackling mousse” bit that intrigued me most about this. “I bet it won’t ACTUALLY crackle” said the cynic in me, but that cynic was silenced as soon as I sprayed this on, because yes, folks, it crackles. And how. As soon as it comes into contact with your skin it kinda froths up, and starts fizzing. It’s a strange, but actually really pleasant, sensation, and I’m not embarrassed to admit that I sprayed on a little more of it than I probably should have, I was enjoying it THAT MUCH.
Once the crackling had died down, my feet were left feeling cool and soothed. This was a blessed relief after my run, but it would also come in handy for feet that’ve been stuffed into stilettos or strappy sandals for hours, and are now feeling the effects. It costs just £4.88, and is available direct from Scholl.
Tweezerman Pedro Too foot file
Looks like everyone and their dog is getting into the whole “foot file shaped like an egg” thing right now. Where DO they get their ideas, I wonder?
This one is by Tweezerman (yes, the same Tweezerman that makes such excellent, er, tweezers) and it’s called “Pedro Too”, so kudos to them for resisting the impulse to use the word “egg” in the name, even although they DID manage to get “ped” in there.
This can be used on either wet or dry skin, is pink and is £12, which means I’m probably not going to forsake my (cheaper) Ped Egg for it unless someone can convince me it’s a whole lot better than it. Anyone care to give it a try? (Note: not you, Microplane. Your comments will continue to be deleted…)
Tweezerman Pedro Too foot file, £12 at ASOS
Dollface Reviews: Revlon Pedi-Expert pedicure kit
Oh God. Oh no. This looks suspiciously like a foot file, doesn't it? And I'm sure we all remember what happened last time I tried to review a foot file.
Well, it IS, in fact, a foot file. It's Revlon's new Pedi-Expert, and as you can probably tell from the name and appearance of the product, it seems to be their attempt to ride the wave of popularity for egg-shaped files with the word "ped" as part of their names.
This one, of course, isn't quite "egg shaped", but the general principle is the same. There's a file, which looks a lot like a cheese grater, which clips onto a pink, plastic container. The container is obviously there to collect the, er, shavings, and it has a finer gauge file on the bottom of it, which allows you to finish things off. This particular kit also comes with a set of nail clippers and a nail file, both of which always come in handy.
I've only used this once so far, so I can't say anything about how long it will last (although the fact that it comes with a lifetime guarantee on the blade is definitely encouraging news), and I'm definitely not going to draw comparison to They Who Shall Not Be Named For Fear of Them Leaving Fake Comments Telling Everyone Not to Buy This Product. It does compare very favorably with the Ped Egg, however, and did a very good job of leaving my feet feeling soft and smooth, without cutting them or otherwise injuring me.
The price of the two products is similar too: the Pedi-Expert cost $9.99 at Walgreens or, if you're in the UK, £7.78 from Superdrug.
Dollface Reviews: The Ped Egg foot file
So, I bought a Ped Egg.
I don't even really know why I bought a Ped Egg, because I already have a Microplane Foot File which I'm perfectly happy with but, well, I guess I'm even more of a sucker for advertising than I thought I was.
I bought my Ped Egg at the 'As Seen on TV' store (hee!) for $9.99, only to discover that you can buy them even cheaper than that from lots of different places, so it's a good idea to shop around.
Now, I don't want to say too much about this because some of you may be eating, but let's just say that I wear heels a lot, and my feet don't really love me for it. The Ped Egg, though, has made a world of difference: it really is as good as it claims to be, and it really does remove hard skin super-quickly, and without any discomfort whatsoever. It even collects the shavings for you inside the egg, and you may well get a strange sort of satisfaction out of that. I do.
Having now revealed much more about this than I really wanted to, I will just add that as far as I can tell, this is every bit as good as the much more expensive Microplane, with the only difference being the price.
As I said, you can pick these up in lots of places, but if you must order one right now, Amazon have them for just £3.89. I don't think you'll regret it.
Butter London The Pedicure Collection on sale at ASOS
As lovely as they look and sound, Butter London's products have always been a little too pricey for me to justify purchasing, and I'm afraid that's still the case here, even although their Pedicure Collection has been reduced by over £20 at ASOS.com. The price drop brings it down to £40, and three products are included:
Silk Stockings shimmering gel for legs
Stiletto Stick – for cracked heels – lovely!
And Pumps Spritz, which is a cooling spray for your legs and feet.
These sound like just the trio to get your feet and legs into sandal-worthy shape for summer (if you'll excuse me sounding like an issue of Cosmo for a moment), and if you think they're worth the price, you can buy them here.
Fruity foot files from Dollydagger
Dollydagger has long been one of my favourite websites when it comes to retro clothes shopping, so you can imagine my delight when I discovered they have a beauty section too. There’s only a very small number of items in it, unfortunately, but I instantly started coveting these fruity looking foot files, which come in the shape of apple and orange slices. Yes, I suppose the idea of rubbing fruit on your feet is a little bit strange now I come to think of it, but hey, they’ll look good in the bathroom and they only cost £3 each. Get them here.
Green By Nature – natural products for body, hands, lips and feet
In these eco-aware times, it’s always nice to hear of a personal care brand that’s dedicated to protecting the environment, not testing on animals, and providing us will all-natural ways to pamper ourselves.
Green By Nature is one of those brands. These products are currently being sold at Target, and consist of everything from body wash to lip balm, via cuticle creams and body butters.
And what’s in them? Well, according to their press release, "All… skincare and body products are 91%-98.6 natural. Their ingredients come from the earth and contain vitamins, extracts, oils and antioxidants to cleanse, soften, smooth and hydrate the skin." So now you now.
The brand also donate 1% of their sales to environmental causes and refuse to test on animals. You can buy their products via their online store or at selected branches of Target. (If you’re buying from Target keep your receipt – for every three of their products you buy, Green by Nature will send you a complimentary Peppermint Lip Glaze) Their Starter Kit, shown above, is a good way to try out the products, and costs $14.99.
