20% Eid discount. This must be your lucky day! For one, your cheapskate boyfriend finally decided to take you shopping this Eid. Two, there's a discount at your favorite shoe outlet. Oh joy! You gallop towards the store but skitter away a moment later after a grim realisation- you don't want your boyfriend to see the wound you have been keeping concealed from him till this day, tucked away in a dark corner. It's not the heartbreak from your previous relationship that you never told him about. It's something worse- your cracked heels. Yeah, time doesn't heel everything and this estrangement from a gorgeous pair of shoes will haunt you forever, every step of the way, literally. All melodrama aside, read ahead for gorgeous smooth heels.
Spa care
The sure-fire way of healing those ghastly heels is a good ol' soak.
Wash your feet and Soak them in some soapy lukewarm water. You can add salt or lime juice to naturally loosen the dead skins. Don't use very hot water as that can cause your feet to dry out.
Scrape away dead skin using a pumice stone and a brush and wash your feet afterward. You can also trim and buffer your nails while you are at it.
Apply olive oil or foot cream liberally on your soles and heels and massage gently.
Put on a pair of clean socks and leave them overnight. Your heels should feel noticeably softer the next day. Repeat this for a few days and breakup with cracked heels forever.
Liven up your heels with all natural remedies, a much more effective way to spruce up your life:
Glycerin and Rosewater
Glycerin and rosewater are a match made in beauty heaven. Glycerin is a quintessential moisturiser and coupled with rosewater, the duo will give you smooth feet instantly. Add the mixture to your hot water soak or you can make a thick paste of glycerin and rosewater and apply to your feet directly and leave overnight. Whichever method you follow, you are guaranteed to get supple feet! As an added bonus, the rosewater will make your feet smell fresh because what's worse than a cracked heel is smelly feet.
Lemon
When life gives you lemon, don't make lemonade. Instead apply some of them to your feet! We are not kidding. Lemon is an excellent exfoliator and bleaching agent, which is not surprising as it is the key ingredient in most face-washes. The acetic acid in lemon helps slough off dead skin and soften heels. Cut a fresh lemon in half and massage your feet, squeezing the lemon as you go to release the juices. Follow by a coat of moisturiser. You can also mix it with some petroleum jelly and slather all over your feet. To take the moisture quotient a notch higher, make a paste with some mashed papaya and apply. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes and discover the magic!
Rice flour scrub
For more stubborn and deeper cracks you will need to amp up your artillery. A rice flour scrub should do the job for you. Mix coarse rice flour powder with honey and apple cider vinegar to make a thick paste. You can add olive oil or almond oil to the mixture for more critical crack condition. Apply the mixture to your feet after the soak and scrub gently. This scrub works so well you will never want to go back to your cosmetic scrub again.
Milk and Honey
Who doesn't know about the wonders of milk and honey? The natural antibacterial properties of honey packed with their combined moisturising prowess will heal heels as rough as the back of a hedgehog. Mix honey and milk in a 1:2 ratio and soak your feet. Gently massage your feet to loosen and remove dead skin. For best results follow the procedure at night before you nap. If you haven't had a proper shut eye for a few days, drink a glass of milk with a teaspoon of honey. Milk's sedative properties will lull you in no time as well as those cracks in your feet. A lifesaver, isn't it?