You're steps away from keeping feet in shape

By Paula Rath
Advertiser Style Writer

So what have we done for them lately? Not enough, said Deborah Lippmann, a celebrity manicurist who came to Neiman Marcus Ala Moana to introduce her line of nail products and offer classes in nail care. Lippmann noticed right away that our toes often look terrific, but our heels — ick — are dry and cracked. They don't have to be that way. A little TLC can go a long way for hard-worked heels. Here's a step-by-step approach to softer feet.

• Start by exfoliating (removing dead skin). Calluses can be rubbed away with a pumice stone such as Sephora's or Dr. Scholl's Beauty Stone (Longs). For maintenance, there are mild, moisturizing exfoliators on the market such as Frederic Fekkai's Body Scrub with shea butter (Sephora, Neiman Marcus) and BlissLabs' Foot Patrol (Sephora).
• A soothing foot soak with eucalyptus, such as Origins Foot Rest (Origins, Macy's), or some sea salts, will refresh tired feet. BlissLabs makes Frigifeet (Sephora), a foot gel, to relieve swollen feet. Philosophy offers a scrub called Footnotes (Macy's) that contains pumice, with eucalyptus oil to freshen and lavender oil to moisturize.
• Honolulu Community College student Tahiti Fernandez loves Benefit's Sandal Scandal (Macy's), a moisturizer with 10 percent alpha hydroxy that comes with cute little booties. She follows this with a facial mask applied to her feet and wraps them in Saran Wrap for half an hour.
• Lippmann recommends applying cuticle oil to heels and other problem areas before bed.
• For extremely rough heels, Island Herbal makes an industrial-strength cream called Mango Buttercream (Cook's Discoveries, Waimea, Big Island). Put it on under socks before going to sleep.

Foot notes

Hanalei, owner of Hanalei Salon, inside Connie Gayle Beauty Centre, said a common mistake is to apply polish before removing all traces of polish remover. If any residue is left on, it will dry the skin and cuticles.

In our humid climate, it's best to wait two to five minutes between coats of polish, Lippmann advised. She said it's best to apply a thin layer of top coat or nail strengthener every day.

Hanalei said a base coat is important to help polish adhere, and a top coat is a must to help seal the polish.

When filing toenails, file in one direction. Shape the sides first and keep them as wide as possible. File along the groove at at the side of the nail — not under the nail, as that can weaken it.

Red is the most popular color for toenails. It's always fashionable, fresh and pretty. But there are other options.

• Duet — Lippmann's version of a two-toned pedicure with a dark shade on the nail bed and lighter color on the tip, or vice versa. She loves an opalescent hot pink with a flat matte coral on the tips. For holiday, she suggests a clear classic red with a dark burgundy tip.
• A sexy version of the French pedicure: sheer pink nails with a silvery tip.
• You can get the professional look at home by embellishing your pedicure with little daisies, decals or rhinestones. Beauty supply stores and drug stores often carry them. For Halloween, try a pumpkin on coral polish.

What's in — and out

Hanalei said the "in" look for toes right now is a short nail with a natural look: white opalescent with a clear pink blush. It's the look we see on celebrities and models in the magazines. A fashionable toenail length is about / inch.

"Glitter is so over," Lippmann said. However, she added, shimmer is still in. The colors for fall are rich, dark berry tones, garnets and burgundies.