"My feet reached an all-time low. So I tried the soothing at-home pedi anyone can do."

Up until I was 25, feet weren’t something I particularly cared about. You know when you get older, everything is fine, until it isn’t?

Well, that moment came this year when I started getting REALLY DRY heels and I was forced to do something about it.

That meant finally buying one of those exfoliating feet things that I had seen in my mum’s bathroom and that I thought were only for… older people. Anyway, my problem was solved, at least temporarily.

However, I also have another foot issue. Blisters. Bad ones.

As an avid hiker, I’m used to blisters. From walking with slightly damp socks after a mid-hike dip, to not taking ‘moisture-absorbing’ socks seriously, I’m prone to a blister or five. I don’t know why I haven’t learnt my lesson yet but that’s beside the point.

The point is, I was having a delightful hiking holiday in Lorde Howe Island last week when I got this bad boy and I knew the time had come. I'm sorry you have to see this, but... it's necessary.

Yes, that is a blister, not a bandaid. Image: Supplied.

So when I arrived back from my holiday this week and had the opportunity to trial a new range of magnesium footcare products from EpZen, I knew it was a sign. And that sign said, “Ellie please, you need to look after your feet.”

I said yes to the opportunity faster than it took for the blister to appear post hike.

So I made a night of it. I’d not only give my feet a long, warm soaking, I’d go all out and give myself a full at-home pedi.

I haven’t been to a nail salon since COVID happened, and I’ve actually realised I could probably do a lot more at-home beauty treatments than I give myself credit for.

So with my feet in their perpetual state of flakery, (not the good kind of almond-croissant flakiness) I took it upon myself to create a nail salon environment in my home and fix my feet.

Before I get into the deets of my at-home pedi, let me tell you a little about the products. Actually, before I do that, can we just appreciate that each of these products is under $12?! You can find them at selected major retailers, govita.com.au and epzen.com.au

Sooooothe me. Image: Supplied.

So the EpZen Magnesium Footcare range includes a foot soak, foot tonic and foot balm, and all contain high-grade magnesium and a 100 per cent natural essential oil blend.

In case you didn’t know, magnesium has been shown to be best absorbed by the skin. It helps to ease inflammation (blisters begone), hydrate dry skin (bye, flakiness) and alleviate stress (CAN I SOAK IN THIS STUFF?!).

It's also meant to improve your mood and sleep quality - something that I think we could all do with right now in 2020.

The products also have essential oils like peppermint, eucalyptus and tea tree which also helps to relax and restore your feet.

You’ll reap the benefits of the aromatherapy through your skin, but also the essential oils are said to release into the air so you’ll breathe them in too and feel relaxed from head to toe. These essential oils are also anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal and antiseptic.

My home pedi experience.

The setup. Supplied.

I wanted to completely switch off from the world and use this time to unwind and refocus my mindset. I put my phone on aeroplane mode and chose a book to read while I soaked my feet. I decided on a non-stimulating book because I wanted my mind to be completely at ease and really didn’t want to concentrate (sorry to the author of the book that I deemed non-stimulating).

I put in my noise-cancelling earphones, which are honestly some type of sorcery because they create a dream-like state in your head where nothing else exists.

Then I started removing my old tattered nail polish.

It’s been too long. Image: Supplied.

The one nice thing about doing a pedi at home is that you don’t feel embarrassed about showing the nail beautician the disgusting state of your nails. You can just acknowledge it yourself, cringe and move on.

I then added half a cup of EpZen Magnesium Soak to a bowl of warm water.

I made sure to close the door before I started so the whole bathroom became a steamy room of essential oils and it was GLORIOUS.

It also made me feel super calm as it forced me to take 20 minutes out of my day to do relatively nothing.

Once I got over the fact my feet were in a salad bowl, this was actually really relaxing. Image: Supplied.

After drying my feet, I trimmed my nails and lightly exfoliated my heels. I felt like the foot soak made it really easy to scrub off the dry skin. It was then time to moisturise and lock in all that goodness I’d been soaking in.

We all know the best part of any pedi is when you get that massage afterwards. It feels SO luxurious and you never want it to end. So I decided to pamper myself and try and do a little self-massage, which probably wasn’t as good as the real thing but still better than nothing.

The best part - balm me up. Image: Supplied.

I used EpZen's Magnesium Foot Balm, which has vitamin E and cocoa seed butter, which nourishes and softens the skin. I applied a generous amount of it across my feet and up my calves, and it felt lovely. Not sticky or greasy, either. My feet felt supple and hydrated.

The next night, it was time to try the foot tonic. In all honesty, I had never heard of a tonic before that wasn’t to do with gin so I went into it with a raised eyebrow.

I ran myself a warm footbath again and popped about 25mL into it and soaked my feet for another 20 minutes. It definitely felt more oily than the other soak when my feet were in the water but I was still left with that nice fresh and clean feel afterwards.

Why is this so satisfying to watch?! Image: Supplied.

I could get used to this, I thought to myself, and promised to make this my nightly ritual. A daily pledge to care for myself, my mind and my poor, poor feet.

If you can’t get around to doing it every day, I would recommend it after a long day on your feet or after some hard exercise.

All in all, I really enjoyed these products. It’s the perfect way to dabble in self care especially if you’re quite lazy with that sort of stuff like me.

To my feet: I’m sorry I’ve put you through so much in the past and I vow to care for you more if you promise you won’t give me a hard time again, deal? Cool.

Ready for bed. Image: Supplied.

 If you’d like to try a foot soak ritual like this, check out EpZen’s Magnesium Footcare range here.