Kick off the New Year with smooth, soft soles

Timing is everything when you do a foot peel, and the stars aligned for me last month. I was post-birthday (so no Saturday night plans that required barely-there strappy sandals) and pre-holiday break so I knew I had a few weeks before I’d be sporting sandals to hit the beach or a fabulous hotel pool where one of our many out-of-town friends would be spending their vacation. Truth be told, I’ve been a Baby Foot devotee for years, and this was my first experience with another brand’s product, but I’ve loved each and every Patchology product I’ve tried so I figured their PoshPeel Pedi Cure was worth a spin.

Per the directions, I soaked my feet for 15 minutes beforehand. Amusingly enough (to me at least) the instructions said to pour the desired amount of solution into the bootie—and I was like, all of it—duh! So that’s what I did and slipped on a pair of Pilates socks so I could walk around as the blend of alpha- and beta-hydroxy acids (i.e. glycolic, lactic, citric and salicylic) went to work on the rough, dry skin that has accumulated since my last peel, despite monthly pedicures. The instructions say to leave it on for 60 minutes (or 90 for extra exfoliation) so I went all in and kept myself busy for an hour and a half before rinsing and soaking my feet for 15 minutes again.

This obviously wasn’t my first time at the foot-peel rodeo, so I totally knew what to expect. This means basically nothing for the first few days after the two-hour initial process—and then the magic started to happen—albeit five days later.

I honestly didn’t think this peel was going to work. I did it on a Friday, and diligently checked my feet multiple times a day. I noticed absolutely nothing (other than more rough, dry skin than usual) until my inspection on Wednesday night—until I saw the first signs of peeling on my toes, and then there was no going back.

The next week sheer heaven for me. (I’m a picker.) From small bits on my toes to full-on sheets on the soles and sides of my feet, I was in exfoliation paradise. But it kept going for almost two weeks, at which point I was ready for it to be over! (I had to go for a pedicure while my feet were still peeling since we had plans to meet friends from out-of-town at the beach on Christmas Eve, and it was semi-mortifying. You should have seen me trying to explain I didn’t have a communicable skin condition.)

But as always, the end result was spectacular, with nary a patch of dry skin in sight. My feet were so soft and smooth that I think I smiled every time I looked at them or touched them!

P.S. Just remember, any of these intense foot peels are likely to mess with your pedicure, which is yet another factor that plays a role in timing. (No one wants to waste their money on a polish job just to have it jacked up, right?)