I Tried A Chemical Foot Peel Because I Needed A Pedicure And Didn’t Want To Risk My Nail Technician’s Health

Currently, we’re all dealing with all kinds of mini-crisis that are, in the glaring grand scheme of the Coronavirus pandemic, of little consequence.

And yet, still hard to deal with.

As we all attempt to stay strong and comply with stay-at-home orders we’re also being forced to deal with our ever-evolving feelings related to not having access to beauty and grooming resources. That’s right, from no hair cuts to no bikini waxes to no pedicures… we’re all going a little loca. Fortunately, while they might not be as great as the salon treatment, we do have access to a few things that can help us keep up with our beauty routines. And I’ve been experimenting with them and testing them out so that you don’t have to!

This week, determined to get as close to the salon pedicure experience as possible, I decided to do a foot peel.

Because as much as I love my pumice stone to keep my heels smooth, they can only do so much work. Also, pictures of the results of at-home foot peels look super gross and satisfying in the pimple-popping videos sort of way.

Now, I will spare myself the humiliation of sharing pictures of my feet during the peeling process, but I will say this: If your concepts of entertainment are waning during this time, here’s where the party is at.

I mean, just LOOK at this.

According to the directions, you should experience peeling within four to seven days.

You’ll kick things off with your foot peel by applying the actual peel, I used Baby Foot, and following the attached directions. To ensure the most effective peel, be sure to do the following:

Leave the peel on for as long as possible.

The instructions on the back of the peel say to keep the booties on for a solid 30 minutes. But according to reviews that I found, many said that they found the peel was more effective when they tacked on an extra 30 minutes.

Soak your feet in hot water for as long as possible.

As per the instructions, be sure to soak your feet in water before you put on the peel. Reviewers also said t soak your feet in water during the next few days to get the peel to really work. Because I don’t have all day to soak in the bath, I popped up the drain while I was doing my nightly shower and let my feet soak in the tub while I washed.

Pick away.

Yep, it’s the advice your dermatologist never gives to you and all the validation you will need in the next few weeks as your skin begins to peel! You definitely want to avoid peeling skin that isn’t ready to come off (I have a small nick on the bottom of my toe now because I got a bit too excited) but feel free to pick off all of the dead skin that will flap off your feet if you don’t.

And that’s all chicas!