The Mommy & Me Pedi

My daughter attempts to touch-up Mama's pedicure with a marker.

As a child I wasn’t allowed to wear nail polish. It wasn’t that my mother didn’t allow it per se, it was that I played classical piano, and you don’t usually find serious piano students flaunting painted nails. But I wanted the colors, trust me.  As a mother, I now of course love the indulgence of getting manicures and pedicures, but the manis are completely impractical. With all the sippy-cup washing I do, my fingernail polish chips in seconds.  However, in the summers, having spectacularly colored toes makes me supremely happy. It’s a simple, but sometimes hard-to-achieve pleasure, because getting to the nail salon isn’t always easy as a busy mom. But when I’m there, it’s fantastic. And as my daughter’s been getting older and showing interest, I’ve wanted her to partake in the fun.

Given how young she is at just barely two years old, I wanted to avoid using chemical-laden, adult, nail lacquer on her. She still puts things in her mouth, and obviously I can’t hand her a People magazine and have her be content to sit and let three coats dry.

Last week, I decided to give Piggy Paint, a non-toxic, water-based nail color made specifically with children in mind, a try. We sat side by side outside, where she could be free to run around while the nails dried in fresh air, and I applied one quick coat to each toenail as she watched with delight. I made sure there was very little polish on the brush before I applied it (to provide for optimally fast drying), and told her to help Mommy blow after I finished each foot. It took all of three minutes to the complete the whole pedicure.

After all was said and done, she smiled, satisfied, declaring repeatedly: ”Look! Look!”  Then, alternately pointed at my toes and hers, reveling in the mommy-daughter matching yellow toes. I also tested the Piggy Paints on myself to get a sense of how durable they were. They do dry pretty quickly: one thin coat dried in about a minute, but the polish doesn’t last very long. I noticed, on my thumbnail, as well as my daughter’s toes, that the polish started fading/chipping away within the next day. Applying more coats helps with longevity, but it's dependent on how much you and your child can manage together -- more coats = more sitting still. I would recommend, that even though they are advertised as non-toxic, it’s a safer bet to keep the Piggy Paint polish limited to the toes for those young ones who still, like mine, eat a lot with their fingers or put their fingers in their mouths.

And there you have it:  a kid-safe, totally doable, mother-daughter pedi!

Piggy Paint's Project Earth: Solar Power on my daughter, and China Glaze's Nail Lacquer in Solar Power on Mama.

The Itty Pedicure 1-2-3:

1)    For trimming tiny nails, I personally love the ease Pigeon Baby Safety Nail Scissors ($15) provide.  These scissors are designed wonderfully by the popular Japanese baby brand to deliver speedy cutting in a secure and precise manner. It takes me twice as long to cut my daughter's nails with any other nail clippers or scissors. I also like the Tokidoki Sandy Nail File ($5) for both my daughter and I. It's easy to find in the beauty cabinet and adorable.

2)    Before we were ready for a full-blown pedi, I opted for a few nail stickers when my daughter was younger. It’s the perfect way to involve a very young child into your at-home pedi without getting messy with liquids. You can pick up nail art decals from your local dime or drugstore, or here’s a nice one dozen variety set ($5).

3)    Piggy Paints are a solid option for a Mommy & Me pedicure. The biggest test it had to pass with me was the “fume-test,” and upon opening the container the polish merely smelled like kids’ school paints.  There are some great colors. We like: Piggy Paint's Project Earth: Solar Power Nail Polish (neon yellow) and their Ice Cream Dream shade (metallic green/teal), $9 each. And to match with Mama? Try China Glaze’s Nail Lacquer in Solar Power ($6), and Sephora by O.P.I.’s Nail Colour in Teal We Meet Again ($9), respectively.


-N.C.

Disclaimer: Nuy Cho has no affiliation to any of the beauty companies mentioned on www.nuybeauty.com.