This week I have mostly been agonising over the colour of my front door. There’s something about being confronted with a colour chart that brings out the schizophrenic in me. I started off wanting ‘Cotswold green’ but tried it on the door and realised that to carry this off you pretty much need to live in a Jane Austen-esque country mansion with rambling roses framing the porch. Then I veered off in a completely different direction and thought about those delicious candy coloured doors you see in Notting Hill. This led to Sky-blue – gorgeous on regency houses but lairy on a bog standard London street. Matt was useless. He took one look at the patchwork mess on the front door and just said “ you know I don’t really care don’t you?”. 6 samples later and I’ve settled on Farrow & Ball’s ‘Green Blue’. Sometimes it’s green, sometimes blue. Sorted.
I painted the door barefoot and trod in so much paint that I could have made pretty impressive foot moulds. This led to me thinking about the dire state of my gnarled winter feet. I live in flip flops and would wear them in winter were it not for the fact that they give you camel foot when paired with socks. So in the name of research, I dragged my sorry, paint-smeared toes to the lovely people at Nails Inc who invited me to try out their ‘Terrific Tootsies’ pedicure. As I sat back with two episodes of ‘The Hills’ for entertainment [I don’t get that show – all they do is pout and open their eyes really wide when they’re given a bit of hot gossip], I suddenly felt a pang of guilt for the poor therapist who had to manhandle my knackered feet. But within 45 minutes they’d been scrubbed, filed and moisturised to baby soft perfection. And then, yet again, I found myself deliberating over paint colours. I settled on ‘Brook Street’ – a coral shade which looked quite summery. Other hot new colours which are bang on trend [they say this kind of thing on ‘The Hills’] include ones from the ‘Greige’ collection… if you don’t have your finger on the pulse that’s a play on, well, grey and beige…and ‘Haymarket’, a shade of green which would have co-ordinated perfectly with my front door.
There are loads of places in London where you can go to get your feet blitzed. I love the sound of the ‘Double Choc Pedicure’ at Bliss Spa which comes with a cup of hot chocolate. There’s also the ‘Ultimate Cowshed Pedicure’ at Cowshed. You get your feet wrapped in a hydration mask while they massage your scalp and shoulders. Sounds stressful.
But if your budget doesn’t quite stretch to a spa treatment, there are some cheap DIY treatments you can do at home. Here’s my guide to getting your tootsies out of the socks and into the sandals:
Chuck some rose petals [fresh not dead ones] around the room and light copious amounts of candles. Maybe put on a bit of whale music to drown out all external noise. Slip into a dressing gown to really get into the zone.
Take off any old nail polish and trim those claws. File them too so they’re squared off.
Now, soak your feet in a basin of warm water for about 10 minutes. You can add a few drops of your favourite essential oils, such as chamomile or tea tree oil to soften the skin. Now dry your feet with a towel and then push back your cuticles with a rubber cuticle stick.
File away any dead, hard skin with a foot file or pumice stone. I’ve recently discovered a nifty little gadget called the ‘Ped Egg’. You can get it at all quality, upmarket stores like Argos. I won’t go into too much detail in case you’re just about to tuck into your breakfast – suffice to say it’s like a hardcore cheese grater for your feet. The results are revolting yet strangely satisfying.
Then use a homemade foot scrub to massage your feet. To do this, mix up the following:
1.5 cups of sea salt
4 tablespoons of sweet almond oil
2-3 drops of lavender oil
2-3 drops of peppermint oil
Once you’ve done this, slather on a load of foot cream. The Body Shop do a good peppermint range or, to make your own, either mash up some avocados or combine almond oil and olive oil. The longer you leave this on the better – you could even put on some old socks and leave it to work its magic overnight. After all, there’s nothing like the whiff of day old cheesy avocado to stir up a bit of romance in the morning.
After you’ve moisturised, roll up some kitchen roll and weave it in and out of your toes. Apply a coat of clear base then select your favourite nail polish. Starting at the centre of each toe, paint from the bottom of the nail to the tips. Apply a second coat and finally a clear top coat for longer lasting results. WAIT for each coat to dry properly.
Of course, this is how you’re supposed to do it. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be in rush, apply one coat badly and then end up with smeared varnish all over your socks because it wasn’t quite warm enough to wear flip flops anyway. Happy pampering! – Valerie
DIY Distressed Wood
Edwardian Terrace Facelift
Hooked
