Stylin Saturday: Pretty Toes

Has summer been tough to your little tootsies? No extra funds for a day at the spa? No worries, I am here for you babe!

Once every few years, I treat myself to a professional pedicure. But let's be honest, it really tickles and is kind of expensive!

So after a few trial runs, I taught myself how to make my toes a little fancy (with a pretty flower and all) just like the ladies do at the salon!

Let me tell you how:

First, prepare your toes in whatever way makes you happy (soaking, loofa scrubbing, lotion) and then get out your nail tools and favorite polish:

Great! Ok, start with a clear base coat followed by a lovely color of your choosing. Paint a coat (or 2 depending on the polish) on your little piggies:

Now for the fancy flower! Start by getting a piece of paper and your flower color (I like white best...). Make a small pool of polish on the paper for dipping in. My tool of choice for flower making is a metal crochet hook, the smallest one I could find at the local craft store. Works like a charm! Take your original polish color and do one more coat on the toe to be flowered (this just makes it easier to create petals in the steps to follow):

Here we go! Dip the rounded end of the tool (not the hook side) into your paint and make 5 dots in a circle on your toe where you want the flower to live:

Awesome, now flip your tool over and use the hook side to drag each dot to the middle of the flower:

Wow, you are doing so great!! Ok, let's get a little cuter and add a few accent dots just like those salon ladies do:

Hello, can you say "professional flower painter"? Because that is just what you have become! Now let's finish this bad boy off with a green center:

High fives all around...aren't your toes magnificent! Now sit back and relax for a minute to let that flower set....add a clear top coat to all your toes and you are ready for a night on the town...or to Target, or your back yard....doesn't really matter where you go.....you have cute toes!!

It takes a wee bit of practice to get the dots in the right place, but once you have done it a few times it's no big thing! Get some gals together to hang out, eat snacks and practice your flower making skillz! You deserve to have pretty toes for a bargin!!

(Many thanks to my foot model Nici L. and her pretty toes)