No Joke, This £12 Foot Mask Has Saved Me £100s on Pedicures—And Gave Me Baby Soft Feet

Now that spring is finally here, you might, like me, finally be turning your attention to your feet. Sandal season isn’t far away, the weddings are fast approaching, and summer holidays are on the horizon. All of this means you might want to panic-book a pedicure after hiding your feet in boots all winter. If you’re anything like me, you might not want to shell out for a regular pedi every four to six weeks (as fun as it is to try some pedicure trends) or have to sit in the salon for an hour or more at a time. Whilst it’s a nice treat, your time and money are precious, after all.

But likewise, having to slave away with a foot file is no fun either, which is why I’ve been swearing by Footner Exfoliating Foot Socks (£12) for as long as I can remember. It might not be the sexiest of products I could be writing about as a beauty editor, but it’s easily one of the best beauty products I recommend to people the most (and actually buy myself, despite having access to a beauty cupboard of products). I’ve tried many foot masks, body scrubs and foot creams, but honestly? Nothing is as effective as this addition to my body care routine.

However, there are a few things you need to know before using Footner for the first time (yes, there is shedding involved, and it’s not for the faint-hearted). Your softest feet yet await below.

How Does Footner Work?

There’s no elegant way to say it, other than your feet quite literally shed. Like a snake sheds its skin. Inside the socks is a combo of lactic and alpha-hydroxy acids, which work in tandem to exfoliate. Think of them as a supercharged exfoliator for your feet. You simply pop them on for an hour and let them get to work. This isn’t a foot mask where you see immediate results, however. Instead, the effects are delayed and only start to show around 5-10 days later, when you’ll start to see the skin shedding. It can take longer for thicker skin, but the whole process takes around 10-20 days.

How to Use Footner

Inside the box are two huge socks. You cut each one open along the top before slipping your feet inside, and there’s a sticky tab that you peel off to secure the fit around your ankles. The socks are large enough to accommodate feet size 10 and under, so if you have smaller feet, then I’d recommend wearing a pair of socks over the top to ensure a secure fit and also allow you to walk around if you need to (otherwise, it’s basically impossible on hard flooring). Then, all you need to do is kick back for an hour with your favourite show whilst the ingredients get to work.

How Long to See Results

Don’t expect an immediate result with these. The whole process takes around 10-20 days, and you’re unlikely to see any shedding until around day five or six, or sometimes a little longer. By which point, I highly, highly advise hiding your feet away under socks and shoes. Now is not the time for open-toed shoes or sandals! Start the process around two weeks before you plan to have your feet on show, and you’ll be totally fine. If you have thinner skin on your feet, the timeframe will be shorter. But for thicker skin, it can take longer for the full process to complete.

You’ll start to notice the dry skin lifting off on areas like the toes, arches and balls of the feet first. Areas with harder skin, such as on the heels, take a little longer to fully lift. It’s gross, so I’m going to spare you the photos, but trust me, it’s so satisfying.

As tempting as it is, Footner recommends that you don’t peel the dry skin off; instead, let it fall away on its own. That being said, you can hurry the process along by soaking your feet in warm water, and also soaking your feet prior to applying the exfoliating socks. It sounds counterintuitive, but you should also avoid moisturising your feet during the process and prolong the peeling. So leave moisturising them with a body lotion or body cream for the time being.

My Thoughts

If you can put up with the long process of the shedding, then these exfoliating foot socks are actually brilliant. It takes a bit of logistics to make sure you use them during a time when you can hide your feet away for a while (i.e. not two days before your wedding pedicure or just before summer holiday), but they’re a great alternative if you don’t want to spend the time or money getting an in-salon pedi.

Once you’ve gone through the ordeal of the shedding, you’ll be left with baby-soft feet that last for a good couple of months. I try to do them quarterly or before a summer holiday, and they make maintaining the results so much easier in between treatments.

I do have to say that the shedding can be messy. As much as you can try to contain the dead skin, you may have moments where you find bits falling off inside your socks, on your carpet or in the shower. You’re going to be hoovering a lot. My advice? Buy a pair now before summer so you have time to hide your feet away before sandal season fully commences. Trust me, you’ll enjoy the softest feet ever over the coming months.

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