I swear by Avon Double Action Intensive Callus Cream. They don't seem to have it by that name anymore so I ordered this instead it looks to be the same stuff and gives you pretty feet in two weeks if you use it twice a day.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1391794}}

Thanks for the info. I went to the Avon site and they have another product that sounds good: Foot Works Therapeutic Cracked Heel Relief Cream. I wonder if they have similar ingredients?

I use a pumice stone to keep dead skin away, then a moisturizer designed for feet.

I've tried moisturizers and daily pumicing, but what works better for me is the metal tool. I follow it with foot lotion.

I always look for shea butter, vitamin e, or aloe on the list of ingredients.

& if you apply your lotion liberally at bedtime & sleep in a pair of socks, it enhances the lotion's effect (& keeps it off the sheets).

I'm sorry---Jamie, I don't know what a metal tool is?

The crack relief cream is nice but the other product is the one that for me works the best. It was discontinued for a while but brought back. Avon will bring back products if there is demand. The cracked relief cream has a local pian reliever in it. The callus cream was a miracle product for me. I had used pumice stones and that metal callus rasp. Both seemed to make the problem worse by roughing the area. Other creams didn't seem to do much. My feet were terrible unitl I found this stuff. I wouldn't wear sandals with open heels in public.

Getting monthly professional pedicures will also help.

I use Zim's Crack Cream - in spite of the funny name!

Here is a link that might be useful: Crack Cream

I'm with woodie2 - I tried everything to clear up the deep cracks I had in my heels - even pedicures didn't do it. But Crack Cream worked like a charm. I can finally wear sandals again!

I bought some Crack Cream. It might work great if could stand the scent! It made me a little queasy. But I'm sensitive to scents in general.

I don't use the regular pumice stone sold in beauty supplies; they are not rough enough. I get the kind used around the house, to clean bbq's and toilets. They are much rougher. The others just do nothing.

Rosewest, it's called a callus reducer or a corn cutter. Just typing those words makes me wince, but it works for my rough heels and the pumice stone alone doesn't do it any more.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rough skin tool

barnmom, I hate the smell of the crack cream also. I agree that a professional pedicure helps a lot; I can maintain the softness afterwards by putting on a lot of lotion after a bath and wearing thick little golf socks to absorb it.
But it's hard to maintain the softness, does not take much to get dry again.
Moisturizing, a life long job.

A long soak before using the pumice stone helps remove more of the callus.

I use the cutter too. I picked it up at CVS a few years ago after having a pedicure where they used one of those on me. I use it about twice a month to shave the nasty stuff off the bottom. And weekly I use one a sloughing lotion to get all the rest of the icky dead skin off of my whole foot and my hands too and follow up with an AHA based foot cream from Avon (can't remember which one). I've tried the pumice things but I can scrape scrape scrape all day and it does no good.

I use a pumice stone in the shower --- and THEN use a four-sided emery square that is normally used on ladies' false fingernails. Found those (really cheap!) at Sally Beauty Supply!

By far -- the best way is to use Vaseline over a heavy-duty moisturizer and then slip on socks -- WHAT a difference a couple of sessions (about 20 minutes or so) can make!!

JUST going to put on some socks -- my feet/heels need another session!! :)

I LOVE Zim's 'Crack Cream". I use it 2x a day and after about a week and a half my heels are smooth. NO MORE CRACKS! I think this stuf is so great I even called the company to rave about! (I had bad cracks, too!)

I recently discovered Ahava Mineral Foot Cream, and it's great. A couple of times a week, I use a Diamancil file on my feet.

I've tried applying Vaseline to my cracked heals and wearing soaks at night but it does not last. I've been applying Vaseline to my heels than wrapping them in saran wrap THAN wearing socks to bed. My heals are moist and normal in the morning. My feet get the Saran treatment about three times a week. Sounds really weird but it works.

I use a Microplane foot file - it's a miracle worker! They're a little pricey, but worth it. You can find them on Microplane's web site.

These products work for me:

Sally Hansen Creme for Thick Callouses
Pumice Stone in Bath
Bliss diamond paddle for feet (used dry)
L'Occitane Lavender Foot Creme at night with cotton socks

One every few weeks: Hot Wax Treatment

Try vaseline on feet than wrap in saran wrap than put socks over the whole mess. I do everynight and it works until you can get the hot wax treatment.

Try something with lots of urea. Carmol 20 is a good one. My dermatologist had the pharmacist mix up a combo for me of Aquaphor and urea. Don't know how much urea was in that but I suspect it must have been more than what's available over the counter.

Ok, really easy treatment for my rough heals...I took my scrubber nylon thing (what are those called?) Theyre little balls of nylon? anyway, I put Caress on it and just scrub the daylights out of my feet...voila! soft as a babies bottom now! wow! I have tried everything! If I would have known what I had been using all along...what money I could have saved!

Caress---is that a bar soap?

I have to sing the praises of Avon's Foot works (c)racked Heel Relief. it is inexpensive, not greasy and it WORKS!!! (bought my first batch a month ago and recently bought another 2 lots from ebay so I can give some to my friends)

I have been plagued with emabarassing heels for as long as I can remember -using this cream for the last month - this is the nicest they have ever been.

I still soak, scrape and sand - but now it lasts - it used to be in 3 days my heels were (c)racked and calloused again. Now they continue to stay looking great.

I love this stuff.

**This forum won't let me use the word (c)rack

sorry rosewest, Ive been on vacation. Its the Caress body wash in the shower bottle. Pale Peach (they have so many different types now but the original is still the one I like the best.)
The nylon scrubbie thing for the shower, I still dont know the name of.
I swear though..this is the softest my feet have felt in ages.
I wrote to Caress to tell them how much my feet have changed and how much I love their product and they sent me four coupons for 1/2 off !!!!!
Now Im even softer! :)

Thank you keekush for giving the specifics. I'll plan on picking some up this week. I know what you mean by the nylon scrubbie thingy...I'll pick up one of those too (I think I'd prefer that to the metal "tool")

I found a great line of products to use for feet..you can usually find it at Sally's and they have a website. Check out MrPumice.com. They have callous remover creams and lotions that are great. My new best friend is the purple Mr Pumice bar.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mr Pumice

I had the worst problems and would never let my heels show. I found out from a smart lady to
1) In the shower when your feet are wet use a slighly abrasive flat pumice stick. Keep it up every day and don't rub too long or too hard. Be patient. A layer at a time. 2) After you dry your feet put Vaseline (it doesn't matter if it is generic) on your feet and slide on some socks. Leave them on while you dry your hair or walk around for a while or wear to bed. Do this every day. You will see that your patient routine will allow the skin on your feet to soften up and become smooth without roughing them up all over again my using harsh tools. The same goes for elbows.

Sounds crazy but I use plain sandpaper for rough heels, followed up with a foot cream. Experiment with different textures, usuallly I use a rough sandpaper and follow up with a fine texture. Don't be too aggressive, but if patient heels will be baby soft.

Avon is good but I swear by PureZeal Foot Soak, my pedicurist recomended I use it, she actually created it and it was featured all over, and it really does work! I love the smell and how it makes my feet feel. if you want to try it go to purezeal.com.

I use Dermal Therpy,found it in the drugstore section of Wal-mart.Use nightly till you get desired results,then a couple times a week.
HTH
Trudy

There are 2 homemade foot remedies you can make: mix sugar and cream into a paste,rub on feet,then rinse and dry. Or start with a bucket of hot water, add one-quarter cup borax and one-half cup epsom salts, soak your feet in this solution once a week. Follow both treatments with any moisturizing cream or lotion, then put on socks and leave on overnight.

You know the nifty little power tools they use at the professional manicure and pedicure places?! They are basically a dremmel tool (not sure if I spelled it right, but you know the nifty little gadget that sands, drills, etc. There are all sorts of tips you can buy from rough to very fine. They remove all callouses and I can even clean up the cuticles, etc. with a fine tip. So head to hubbys tool box and look for his dremmel! LOL!

Brenda

Tried crack cream and that's just what it is .Crap.cream.

Try Kerasal - most drugstores and Wal-Mart have it in the footcare section. It works like a charm. It is an ointment that contains salicylic acid - I use it at night with a pair of cotton socks and in 5-7 days my heels are soft again. You have to use it periodically to keep them soft, but it is reasonably priced and a tube lasts a pretty long time.

I also agree with Woodie- Zim's Crack Creme works really well for this kind of thing. There is another product available called the SPA glove- you wear it for five minutes and your hands come out soft as new. It is made by the same makers as the Zim's Crack Creme, and I am typing the website down below. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Zim's Crack Creme Website

Be careful with those Credo knives. They are like potato peelers, and you can cut too deeply and not know it till later. Do just a little, and later do some more if it needs it.

I had very bad calloused and cracking heels. My left heel became so bad it cracked into the flesh and hurt. I tried everything. The hour of soaking, then pumicing, and foot type emory board, and creams. Nothing I did was helping enough. I saw a demonstation of the "Microplane foot file" on QVC. Before I could order it, it was sold out. So I was put on the wait list. I just went to check for it's item number, and it's sold out again. But for future reference, on QVC the item # is v24021. It costs $15.57 plus $3.97 S&H, plus tax. Just Google "Microplane foot file" and you can find it elsewhere, if it's sold out on QVC.

Anyway, this thing has been a Godsend for me. My feet haven't been this nice in YEARS! You will never end up taking off too much. I ran it over and over the spots that were cracked, and never went to far in, you will know.
The calloused skin comes off into a very fine powder, inside the container. Now I just use the microplane on dry skin, and shower.

You might want to try something that was suggested to me by a client several years ago. First use a really effective pumice stone on dry, always dry, heels. Then bathe or shower to get your heels wet. Apply Bag Balm or Udder Butter (yes, the stuff they use on cow's udders - available in some drug stores and also stores that cater to people with horses etc). Wrap feet in saran and cover with a pair of socks. Do this for a few days and your feet will be very soft.

The only problem I find is that when my feet are soft like this they sweat. Which is something they don't do when they are hard and calloused. I guess that's just the price one must pay for beauty.

I'm with votsie on the sandpaper even though the family gives me those weird looks. Been thinking about trying the Dremel but was afraid of doing damage since I'm on my feet constantly for 40 hrs a week. The Dremel is also great for doing pet nails. I believe they have one made specifically for that.

Sally's Beauty Supply sells 2 excellent products that I have been using for at least 3 years .Sof'Feet callous reducer which you use on absolutely dry feet before shower or bath,and Heel to Toe peppermint sloughing lotion .I am diabetic and sometimes I'm not as diligent about foot care as I should be but I have on more than one occasion waited 'til the nite before an appointment with my podiatrist to groom my feet .My podiatrist is always saying that he wishes that he could get more of his patients to take care of themselves as well as I.
To get my feet doctor ready in a short period of time I use the callous reducer followed by the sloughing lotion then I take a bath or shower and slough again.I finish by rinsing my feet ,drying between toes ,and slathering vaseline over my feet .

here's an on-line source for the callous reducer and refills :http://www.footsmart.com/P-Callus-Reducer-40076.aspx

My heels are so dry and itchy that I can hardly sleep at night, but I think I may have just found something that can help. It's called Heel Balm and it is a diabetic, urea-based foot cream. It is extremely thick and disgusting, and super sticky, too, but when I applied it last night, it stopped the itch immediately. This morning, my feet felt much softer than ever before, and so did my hands. I couldn't believe it! I sure hope this stuff continues to work!

When you are in the shower use a pumice stone on your heels, it takes off the dry irritated skin, and after the shower use lotion like cocoa butter lotion.