Get your toes in shape for summer with DIY pedicure tips from Essie Canada lead nail artist Rita Remark.

As our feet make their way into sandals, it's time to get those toes in tip-top shape. Rita Remark, lead nail artist for Essie Canada, recommends heading straight to a nail salon for a pedicure after a long winter. "It's going to get you on the right foot for the rest of the summer," she says. For upkeep, follow Remark's steps for an easy at-home pedicure.

Step 1: Soak your feet

Soaking your tootsies in warm water for 10 to 15 minutes will soften the skin and make the next steps easier. If you're strapped for time, give yourself a pedicure after you take a bath or shower.

Step 2: Trim and file your toenails

Not only do long toenails look bad, but they also make you more susceptible to infection, especially in your'e a runner. "I like short, tidy square toenails," says Remark. Rounded shapes require cutting the sides of the nail and can lead to ingrown toenails.

Step 3: Exfoliate and file

Try an electronic foot file to loosen dry or dead skin cells. If your heels are dry and cracked, use a double-sided heel file, too. "The course side is to take care of all the dry skin," says Remark, "and the fine side is to smooth."

Leave cuticle pushing and dead-skin nipping to the professionals—there's a higher risk of infection when you attempt to DIY. Remar also recommends avoiding foot files that cut into the skin; you want to buff away dead skin without the change of cutting into live tissue. Keep it gentle and leave the heavy-duty stuff to the esthetician.

Step 4: Moisturize

When it comes to moisturizer, "your feet can handle a lot more than the rest of your body," says Remark. Apply a thick, creamy moisturizer to take care of any lingering dryness.

Step 5: Apply polish

Clean your nails with nail-polish remover, then start polishing. Remark recommends a base coat, two coats of colour (her summer favourite are bright, opaque colours) and a topcoat.

Toolkit:

Lush Foot Soap and Fancy Free, $7, lush.ca. Sephora Collection Nail Buffer Bock, $8, sephora.ca. Amope Pedi Perfect Wet & Dry Rechargeable Electronic Foot File, $80, amope.ca. Lotus Aroma Foot Care Repair Balm, $16, lotusaroma.com. Essie Nail Polish in Hiking Heels, $10, essie.ca. CND Vinylux Weekly Polish in Reflecting Pool, $13, cnd.com.

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