Help for Rough Feet?

I mix baby lotion, vaseline, and vitamin e lotion! Found recipe on Pinterest! My feet and elbows are the smoothest and softest they have ever been! I lather up and then put on socks!

I live in AZ so we are barefoot or sandals year round. I *used* to have cracked ugly heals until I started doing this: I use the Ped Egg after I shower (It says NOT to do it on wet feet, but I do). It usually roughs them up. Then before I go to bed and my feet have been dry all day, I use a .99 cent really ROUGH black nail file made for acrylic nails. That basically sands down all the skin that was roughed up by the Ped Egg. Then I just put lotion on my feet (NO socks...I hate wearing them to bed) and go to sleep. My feet are now so smooth I only do this once every couple weeks and it stays like this. But at first, I tried to do it every day or two until I got them down pretty smooth. Good luck!!!

I make my own sugar scrub and my feet have never looked better! I probably will never pay for a pedicure again!

Here's the recipe that I use:
~1 cup organic cane sugar (can use any sugar)
~1/3 cup coconut oil (comes in a solid, I whip the oil with my mixer to make it nice and fluffy. I like the Nutiva brand)
~20 drops (or more) of essential oils of your choice. I like mixing sweet orange oil, tangerine oil and grapefruit oil. Be sure to use essential oils and not fragrance oils. I like Aura Cacia. They are pure and cheap. You can buy them at www.vitacost.com
~Orange, grapefruit or lemon zest. I usually put in about a teaspoon of zest.

I made a coconut lime scrub using the above measurements, only I substituted salt for the sugar and grated lime zest into the mix and added about a tsp. of lime juice. It was delightful!
I made a citrus sugar scrub yesterday with grapefruit essential oil and sweet orange essential oil and added both orange and grapefruit zest. YUMMY!

You can use these scrubs over your whole body and after washing the salt or sugar away, the oils leave your skin super smooth. Careful in the shower or tub, though! It can get slippery!

For my pedicures, I soak my feet in bath salts (I make my own! message me for the recipe if you want), then I massage my feet with the sugar scrub and use the pumice stone. It's much cheaper than any specialty store brand or salon pedicure, and it's good for your body AND the environment.

Message me if you want any more recipes! :)

What I do every month or so is I soak my feet in something called Johnsons foot soap (or you can use epsom salt) and just soak them for about 20 minutes. Then I go over them with a foot file really good.. I spend quite some time doing this. Then once you have gotten the worst of it I lay a good layer of hand cream (I have had the best luck with hand cream seems to absorb better into the skin) and just allow that to soak in while your feet are still moist from the soak. Then at night time find a nice thick lotion and put on a pair of cotton socks and by morning time your feet should feel nice and smooth and soft. I do this like I said about once a month because I refuse to wear shoes outside around the house when it's nice out.. I hate shoes.

Pedicure. That's the only way I keep my feet decent looking. We are at a place where I can swing a pedi/mani every two weeks...but who knows how long that will last. I feel guilty putting the money out, but my feet just aren't pretty!

I tried the Egg thing but that cut me really bad. I can't do socks - even in the winter I don't normally use them. I just don't like them. At work my shoes are off at my desk. At home I kick them off as soon as I walk in the door. I wear flip flops around the outside of the house if it's warm.

So I guess I'm no help...but you're not alone!

I have no advice, because I was going to say "Wear flip flops!" My feet are always dry and crusty in the winter and as soon as it warms up and I am not wearing socks and shoes everyday, they are soo much better.

Also, try lotioning them up before bed. That will keep them moisturized.

Got this plan of attack from my dermatologist when I went to him for this exact concern:

In additional to physically removing the dead skin as outlined by prior comments, the best way to soften the skin, so it's easier to remove, is to use a 40% urea cream. Urea is the active ingredient in all those foot creams, but it's at a much lower percentage. Any doctor should be able to give you an rx for a generic "40% urea cream" and it's literally like $5 for a huge tube. Just slather it on your feet every night before bed and then in the shower the next day, use your pumice on your foot in the shower. Keep doing that every day and you will definitly notice a difference. The cream seems like normal every day cream, doesn't smell funny or cause irritation or anything. urea just sort of eats the dead skin away so it's soft and it comes right off with the pumice.

The athlete's foot spray is good for the heels .. because sometimes, the problem isn't just dry skin, it's fungus on the heels and that also causes those cracked ugly heel problems. give it a try, I find it works quite well.. I used to do pedicures all the time, but since saving money, I now only get one every couple of months and in between, I keep the polish up myself. of course, nothing looks as great as a professional... Since you are on a tight budget, can you put away say 5 bucks once a week and then by month's end or even in 2 months, you will have the money and also, none of the guilt since you will have allotted for the pedicure..

Usually thick cream at bedtime helps my feet. Use it every night (keep it by the bedside). It is even better to use the cream 2x a day and wear socks for an hour or so in the morning after a shower.

Pumice stones don't work for me, I need sand paper! I went to the beauty supply store and purchased a "callus stone" by Tweezerman. They are about $20, but worth it and last for a long time. After you shower, pat dry the bottom of your feet and start sanding those puppies down. You'll be amazed at the dead skin that starts falling off. Start doing this after every shower and you'll definitely see some headway on the calluses. At night, slather your feet with a vaseline type product (I like Alba UnPetroleum, personally, because it has no petroleum in it) and put socks on and go to bed.

As for cleaning, get a nail brush and get a quality metal cuticle pusher. While in the shower, scrub your feet and under your nails w/ the nail brush. Then use the cuticle push's pointy end and clean out underneath the nails. Very easy to do w/ wet feet and then the gunk is soft and comes right out. Then take the flat end of the cuticle pusher and gently scrape your cuticles around the sides of your toes and the nail bed itself. This works better than cuticle remover and is less caustic.

I second ShortMom. Here is a blog with the measurements for the cream:

http://www.patchworktimes.com/2010/03/06/homemade-hand-cr...

I have made 3 batches, not only for myself but for gifts. It is GREAT stuff and a little goes a long way! I have found another recipe on Pinterest for body butter that I plan on trying soon. I hope it works as good as this one! My feet too need much help because I HATE shoes! :)

And PS if you haven't discovered Pinterest, and need an invite, msg me and I will send you one. You will find GREAT DIY stuff for everything you can imagine!

Good luck!!

EDIT: I just saw this on another great blod I follow which is great. Maybe this will help too!

http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2011/11/cure-for-dry-...

I use the pumice stone when I shower. I lather up in moisturizers and will make myself wear socks for a little while until the lotion gets absorbed.

I like L'Occatiane foot creme but plain old vaseline works well too. I am barefoot or sandals in the summer and most winter around here so it is important to keep up with good foot care!

Good luck.

Amlactin cream works wonders and is doctor recommended.

I shop with a wellness company that has an amazing foot care line; keeps skin soft, keeps feet from smelling, fights off bacteria, fungus, etc. If you are into safer, healthier, greener products in general this might be a good solution for you.

Put Vicks Vapo Rub on your feet with socks at bedtime . It really works . You can use the generic brand too.

You've got to remove the dead skin build up.
Soak your feet in warm water with Epsom salts and a little vinegar till they are very wrinkled.
Then pumice off the loose skin - lot's will come off.
Rinse, dry your feet, then apply a good foot cream (Bag Balm, Vicks Vapor Rub or any diaper rash cream will work, too) and wear socks over night.
Your feet will be good to go in the morning.
You can do this once every few weeks and your feet will stay in great shape.