We tend to have a lot of health and wellbeing related routines in our day to day lives. A healthy diet consisting of breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as snacks that balance out our food groups and provide energy when you need it. An exercise routine where we attend the gym, fitness classes or team sports on a regular and scheduled basis that builds our strength, stamina, flexibility and balance. Haircare routines that ensure our locks are moisturised, clean and looking their best. The list goes on. But when is the last time you considered your skin care or nail care routine?

These are elements of your body that do require ongoing care to remain in the best condition possible. Here are some tips that can guide you on this journey!

Skin

Your skin requires daily care to ensure that it stays in the best condition possible. At the same time, this is often a feat that is easier said than done. At the end of the day, everyone has their own, unique skin type and finding the right routine and products to use can be a huge trial and effort experiment. You’ll likely go through a host of techniques and products before finding what’s right for you, but at the end of the day, once you find the perfect fits, you will find the efforts were more than worth it. Make sure to take your skin’s individual needs into account at all time. Listen to your skin. Take notice of it. It will give you indicators of what it needs.

If you find that your skin is itchy on a regular basis, you need to look into common causes of itchy skin, as you may require treatment or products that soothe. If you find that your skin is routinely greasy, you may have oily skin and will need to look into products that will mop up excess grease and reduce its production. If your skin is dry, it’s asking for hydration. Good skincare doesn’t have to be a challenge. You just need to look at your body’s indicators and browse the market for options that suit your needs.

Nails

We use our hands consistently throughout the day on an everyday basis. Picking things up, writing, chores… anything we touch involves our nails. At the end of the day, they serve a pretty important purpose, which is protecting the sensitive tips of our fingers from damage and harm. Nowadays, they also serve an aesthetic purpose, with strong and healthy nails indicating overall good health and even being used as an accessory through different styles and polish. When you consider how much dirt and bacteria our nails are routinely exposed to, it’s not surprising that you do have to come up with some sort of nailcare routine to keep them in good shape. This is where manicures and pedicures come into play. By visiting a professional nail technician, you can make sure that your nails are not only well painted, but that they are taken care of. Here’s what to expect in each treatment.

Manicures

A manicure is a hand treatment that takes care of the nails on your hands. The steps carried out tend to include:

• Clipping – clipping your nails makes sure that they are a good length, which ensures that they are less likely to break or tear, which could cause pain and long term damage. This also ensures you can do your daily activities without being inhibited.

• Filing – filing your nails ensures that they have a smooth edge, making you less likely to scratch yourself or others. Nail filing can also ensure that your nails are a shape that suits your taste and preferences.

• Buffing – when your nail technician buffs your nails’ surface, they can increase the blood circulation to the nail bed, which maximises their health. If you’re having your nails painted, buffing also removes or reduces any ridges, which gives your nail tech a smoother surface to work with.

• Cuticle Trimming –  your nail cuticle is a layer of clear skin that is located along the bottom edge of your finger or toe. Its role is to protect new nails from bacteria when they grow out from the nail root. However, cuticles can quickly become overgrown, so during a manicure, your technician will likely carefully trim them back.

Pedicures

A pedicure is similar to a manicure but for your feet in that it revolves around maximising the health of your feet and your toenails, as well as making them presentable. It does entail different steps to prepare for. These include:

• Soaking – your feet will be soaked in a bath of warm water, often with some sort of treatment or aromatherapy oils. This helps to soften the skin on your feet, as well as the cuticles on your toenails.

• Cuticle Removal – your cuticles may be trimmed back if they are overgrown. This will help to free up space on your nail bed and can look more presentable too.

• Dead Skin Removal – a lot of dead skin can build up on your feet, particularly your heel. This is because we stand and walk on our feet a lot throughout the day. Your technician can use a variety of protected blades to remove dead skin from areas where it has built up.

• Exfoliation – your technician will then use some sort of exfoliating scrub to ensure that any smaller and less serious areas of dead skin are removed. This leaves your foot feeling soft and smooth.

• Nail Trimming, Filing and Buffing – your toe nails will be cared for in a similar way to your fingernails. This involves trimming to manage the length of your toe nails, filing to ensure their edges are smooth and buffing for smoothing and shine.

The in-depth information above should serve as a good starting block when it comes to managing and maintaining the health of your skin and your nails. Hopefully, some of it will come in useful for you along the line!