Flip Flops and Sandals packed? Check. Killer holiday wardrobe? Check. Freshly manicured feet that don't look like a pigs trotter baked in the sun? Oops, maybe, maybe not! As soon as the sun comes out, we all want to rock those sandals and flip flops and let our tootsies be free. The problem with that is as soon as we do, we start drying out our feet. And before you know it, your feet look cracked and crusty and holiday day is upon you. Add in some chipped polish and that callous you got from insisting on walking around town in those new boots, and you get feet that are screaming out for some attention and pampering.

Getting your feet beach-ready isn't just about having smooth heels and cute toes. Keeping up on your foot hygiene can help prevent yellowing nails, fungal infections and sore, bleeding heels — none of which feel great against hot sand and beach rocks. Here are some of the best, most effective pedicure hacks for perfect, beach-ready feet.

1. Remove Any Stains From Your Nails

Grab some whitening toothpaste from your medicine cabinet, and an old toothbrush or nail brush. The whitening agents in the toothpaste will remove yellowing and stains on your toenails caused by dark polishes. If you don't have whitening toothpaste, make a paste with baking soda, peroxide and lemon juice. Scrub either whitener into your nails with the brush and let it do its magic for 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Soften Your Skin

Dunk your fresh toes (and the rest of your feet) into a large bowl of warm water. Add in a handful of epsom salts and a cup of apple cider vinegar. In about 10 to 15 minutes, the rough skin on your feet will be soft enough to slough off with a washcloth.

3. Exfoliate

Vinegar and lemon juice aren't the only kitchen staples that lead to smooth feet. If you have sugar or coarse salt and some olive oil, you can mix them together to make an exfoliating scrub that will finish smoothing your feet. A little honey will add even more moisture.

4. Moisturise

While you're in your kitchen, look for some coconut oil. If you don't have any, you can slather on some olive oil and put on some clean, cotton socks while you finish getting ready. The socks will hold the moisture close to your skin so more of it gets absorbed. You can skip this step and use your favourite lotion instead for a less intense (and quicker) bit of hydration.

5. Polish

Since you have pretty perfect toes now, you don't really need polish. Haha! I know, I'm talking crazy. There are some things you need to do to to keep from undoing all your good work. First, use a base coat, no matter what colour the polish, to prevent staining. Second, use baseline around around your cuticles because not only will it moisturise them, it will make any polish mistakes wipe away quickly and easily.

6. Know we know these are simple hacks but if you're struggling for time and want the professionals help, we offer fantastic Pedicure and Gel Pedicure here at Vanity Fair Beauty. Unwind with us for an hour, sit back, relax and dream about basking in the sun on that beach in the sun!

Appointments are available online or you can call us on 01892 616096