Naked toes

[jethrien]

I took off my chipped toenail polish last night, but didn't get around to replacing it. I was walking to work this morning, and noticed how odd my toes looked to my eyes in sandals with no polish. And then, since I was looking at my feet, I started looking at other women's feet. And no one who was wearing sandals wasn't wearing nail polish.

Well, not no one. But I started keeping a rough tally. Of all the visible toenails I saw on 23rd St and Park Avenue, less than 10% had no polish. (None were male.) A significant proportion of the unpolished bare toes were clad in Birkenstock-style sandals.

I...had not actually realized that this is a social convention. But it is. I like toenail polish because it's pretty and I like getting to wear different colors all summer and so rarely go without it during sandal months. But now that I think of it, it does seem odd to see women's toes that do not have polish. Not necessarily bad or unkempt or anything, but odd. Has it always been this way? I don't remember my mom telling me anything when I was growing up about making sure I'd painted my toes before putting on sandals, but her nails peel when she uses too much polish so maybe that was just something she herself didn't do. Or is it because of the rise of professional pedicures, or because of increased casual offices, or what? It's weird--I would have pegged things like makeup or earrings as a bigger social convention for being properly dressed, but way more women seem to be wearing toenail polish than makeup or earrings (or fingernail polish). And when I think of it, I feel more incompletely dressed with bare toenails than I do without either makeup or jewelry.

And the weirdest part is that I never really noticed this before. Oh culture. You're so weird.

Comments

[mithras03.livejournal.com]

For about the first half of this summer, I hadn't painted my toe nails, and when I visited my parents one weekend, my mom was adamant that I should paint them. It's the summer! Make your feet look nice! And of course she offered to do them for me. To which I said, I'll get around to it (and I since have), but yes. In the winter, I don't paint them (gives the nail the opportunity to breathe too), though I know some women still do.

[jethrien.livejournal.com]

I only paying mine in the winter if I'm going to a formal event and wearing open toed shoes.

[ivy03.livejournal.com]

Oh, I am accutely aware that to wear sandals, you need to wear toenail polish. Like needing to shave your legs before wearing a skirt. To the point where I always agonize over what shoes to wear to the first pedicure of the season, cause if it's sneakers, I risk messing up the polish, but if it's sandals, then I spend half the day with bare toes.

I should note that since I now work at a place that doesn't allow sandals, I do not have a pedicure.

[momerath4.livejournal.com]

I can sense that there is going to be some culture shock for me in moving back to New York after five years in California. I wear flip-flops or sandals almost exclusively about nine months of the year, and I think I have painted my toenails maybe three times in the past three years. And one of those times was my orange Reunions pedicure. Of course, that could be just me and my laziness--maybe I should do my own tally.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Ah, the eternal dilemma of internalized sexism and justifications of beauty regimens that we do actually enjoy. Like you, I like painted nails in general (and pedicures are a delight of decadence) because it's fun and pretty and spruces up my toes. At the same time, I do that agony dance for at least a moment every time I put on flip flops with either no polish or chipped polish on my toes. And that moment is a moment too long to be worrying about what other people think, but I still do it and I hate it.