Man Speech: Giving Your Wife the Royal Spa Treatment

Treating your woman like the princess she is doesn't have to cost a lot of money, so give her an at-home pedicure to help make her feel special and appreciated. Think of it like staining and sealing a hardwood floor.

A COUPLE DISCLAIMERS

1. Some women really don't like having their feet touched, so this could be a major turn-off for your woman. If that's the case, a word of caution: don't go there. Her floor doesn't need to be waxed. 


2. Don't think you can't do it. Really, you've got hands, you know how to rub your muscles when they get sore, you know where your feet hurt when you've been standing on them all day. Giving your wife a pedicure is no different. And when it comes to painting her toenails, honestly, if you've ever held a paint brush you can hold nail polish. Just think of her toes as very tiny boards.

THE PROCEDURE

Begin by soaking her feet in some warm water. Use some bubble bath soap, something with a relaxing scent like vanilla or lavender. Let her feet soak for about 10 minutes.

Next dry her feet and apply some lotion. This is like wax for your finished cabinets. You really want to spend some time working the wax into the wood, the rough spots, the dry spots. You want the wood to feel silky smooth to the touch. So take this time to do some massaging of your wife's feet.

Next clip her toenails. Women's toenails are not slabs of granite like those of most men. They are delicate, so you don't need a big honkin' pair of clippers. Those little dainty clippers that she probably has in her makeup kit will work just fine. It's likely that you won't have to use nail clippers at all. You could probably get away with using a nail file.

A NOTE ABOUT NAIL FILES
A nail file is not sandpaper. And your wife's toes are not pine. Don't rub away at them with a nail file like your doing finishing work on a new baseboard. Use the nail file in single-stroke, left-to-right motions. No back and fourth sanding because that does damage to the nail.

Next take a cotton ball with some nail polish remover and clean the surface of the toenails. This isn't just to remove any old nail polish, but also any oils, dirt, and lotion that may be on the nail.

Next, paint the little piggies a color of your wife's choice. It will probably take two coats, so do one set of toes and let them dry as you paint the others. Usually about 10 or 15 minutes between coats is good. When painting, be quick about it. Nail polish is a pain in the asphalt. It dries and clumps quickly. It should take you no more than 10 seconds to cover each toenail.

Finally, you can cover each toenail with a nail hardener. This is like polyurethane finish for your wife's feet and will protect the nail polish and make it last longer.

And lastly, try to enjoy yourself. Giving your wife a pedicure isn't the manliest of manly things to do, but if you do it right it will be something she'll love. Put on some music, help her relax, give her some hot tea or cocoa, conversation, and laughter.

Keep pinchin' :-)