Necessary Pedicure Equipment

The many types of pedicure equipment can get a bit confusing to everyone. With so many different gadgets and so many new-age gimmicks, it sometimes may seem like science fiction trying to decipher all the functions of the different products!

Many people have many questions about exactly what’s needed and what’s not. Here, I’ll try to get you acquainted with the necessities and what you can do with out. Hopefully, on this page we’ll answer most of your burning questions.

Being sure to have proper pedicure equipment should always be your first step when performing a pedicure. Knowing each phase of a pedicure will be beneficial. Since different products can be used to perform the different stages, you can do a checklist pertaining to the different phases. So for each stage you can make sure you have an applicable product to get the job done.

Our pedicure guide can show you everything you need to know about how to do a pedicure.

A note to keep in mind: Be always sure to properly disinfect and sterilize all pedicure equipment to prevent pedicure infections. However, some products are meant for one time use only. To determine this, most porous products or products containing porous materials like wood, open celled spongy foams, paper etc were most likely meant to either be used once or sterilized and disinfected in a special way. Non-porous products like stainless steel, closed cell foams, plastics, nylon, glass etc were most likely meant to be disinfected and used again. Some open celled foams can be reused but you must be sure they are properly sanitized!

The different pedicure stages

Nail Polish Removal
There exist a few different types of nail polish remover, the most well known being pure acetone which has its drawbacks. However most solvents used (including acetone) will dry out your skin. Some are less harsh and are often mixed with ingredients to help counteract the dehydrating properties of the harsh solvents used.
Applicable products: Nail Polish Remover AND cotton balls OR lint free cotton cloth

Nail Grooming
Basically, grooming your nails requires a cutting device if your nails are long and/or an abrasive for grinding down and smoothing. These still have variations.
Applicable products: Nail clippers AND/OR Nail Files (depending on the length of your nails)

Pedicure Foot Soak
This step involves soaking the feet in a vessel large enough for the purpose. Some are plain vessels with no gadgets or frills and others have it all. What you use will depend on your budget for pedicure equipment. A pedicure bowl or pedicure tub that just holds water will still get the job done like a foot soak with all the frills. All that is needed is for the feet to soak to soften up the skin. Everything else is icing on the cake!
Applicable Products: Pedicure Bowls OR  Pedicure Tubs OR Pedicure Foot Spa AND Epsom Salt AND MAYBE some essential oils. (Read our Pedicure Guide for info on using the essential oils)

Cuticle Treatment
Many people confuse the nail fold with the cuticle, the translucent almost invisible layer of skin covering a tiny portion of the nail plate close above the nail fold. As a result they don’t treat the true cuticle but fiddle with (and many times damage) the nail fold. The cuticle needs to be moisturized, and gently pushed back to keep the nail plate attractive while maintaining the protective seal between the nail plate and nail bed.
Applicable Products: Cuticle Softener OR Cuticle Remover AND a lotion with emollients AND cuticle stick, orangewood stick.

Scrub and clean your nails and feet
Many pedicure guides leave out the portion where they clean underneath nails, your soles and the rest of your feet. This is necessary for cleanliness though so don’t leave it off your pedicure equipment checklist. Be sure to scrub those feet!
Applicable products: Nail Brush AND/OR old/new toothbrush (medium to soft bristled if your skin is delicate) AND  a cotton wrapped orangewood stick or other cotton wrapped implement.

Mechanical Exfoliation, mechanical exfoliant or Foot Scrub
This is the step where you try to get those soles and heels soft again by grinding away at the hard skin that may have built up. Some products are meant for light duty while others are meant for more heavy duty work. Pumice Stones are more general duty and Loofah Sponges are more light duty. Foot files are great for adding leverage and bringing in some good man-made abrasives to exceptionally rough patches like calloused spots. Foot files are great for general smoothing as well.
Applicable products: Pumice Stones OR Loofah Sponges AND/OR Foot files (if you’ve got some trouble spots)

Chemical Exfoliation, chemical exfoliant
These products aid in the mechanical exfoliation process through tiny abrasives that help grind away at the skin as you perform the mechanical foot scrub. They contain anything from sand and sugar to tiny particles of plastic as abrasives and are usually mixed with any number of lotions, oils or additional creams. Some contain particles of polyethylene that can block the digestive tracts of certain ocean animals and cause them to die when pumped into the ocean. So be mindful of this when purchasing foot creams to add to your aresnal of pedicure equipment.
Applicable Products: Foot creams, foot scrub creams, pedicure creams

Moisturization
To ensure that feet remain soften and supple, moisture needs to be added along with emollients to soften. Moisturizers are typically a finished product designed whereas emollients, chemicals that soften skin, are often added to moisturizers. Try to pick products that contain more natural ingredients such as aloe and Shea butter.
Applicable Products: Moisturizers/lotions with emollients added

Applying Nail Polish
Nail polish varies a great deal. Before applying any nail polish though, be sure to use a base coat to limit or prevent nail staining from the coloring contained in some (darker) nail polishes. A top coat can help to prevent nail chipping and give an extra shine. Clear nail enamel can substitute as both a base and top coat.
Some people though have certain allergies that restrict them from using certain types of nail polish. A formaldehyde allergy would most definitely mean you would need a formaldehyde free polish even though the amount of formaldehyde normally contained in regular polish wouldn’t harm another person.
Applicable products: Nail Polish OR Formaldehyde free nail polish OR Water Based Polish AND base coat, top coat OR clear Nail enamel

To see how this list of pedicure equipment blends in with an actual pedicure, be sure to read our pedicure guide on how to do a pedicure.

Link back to the Home Page from the Pedicure Equipment page