Leg treatment for summer pins

We’re coming out of the long drag of winter, and summer will soon be here. Leg treatments will soon be oversubscribed as women get ready to go bare legged. But what makes the best leg treatment?

This interview in Womens Health Mag interviews a successful leg model, Bailey West. She gives tips on how to look after the skin on your legs to get you prepped for summer and hoidays.

“Her lovely limbs have appeared in ads for Vince Camuto, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Caché, and West attributes her proverbial (slim, toned) leg up to an active lifestyle—”any time there’s an opportunity to move more, I take it”—and a balanced, junk-free plate. These are the other ways she keeps her stems shapely:

Undo black-and-blues. “Leg models have to be really careful about getting scrapes and bruises, but if I do get one, I soak a cotton ball in pure lavender essential oil, then place it on the spot for a couple of hours to help fade the bruise. I just tried it one day and it worked, and now it’s a remedy I use all the time.” (Makes sense: Lavender is a great anti-inflammatory agent.)

Shave smoothly. “I’ve always wanted to do laser, but blonde hair [like mine] doesn’t take treatment well, so I just shave. My trick is to use lots of soap and lather it up really well—I use the white Dove bar ($4 for a two-bar pack, at drugstores) because it’s so gentle—then glide the razor upward very lightly several times, which is better than doing it less and pressing too hard. I haven’t cut myself in eight years, I think.”

Go faux. “St. Tropez Gradual Tan Everyday Body Moisturiser is awesome, because it looks so natural and fades off evenly without flaking. I’ll use it for a full week leading up to a lingerie shoot to give my legs a little color so they photograph better. And I apply it as soon as I get out of the shower, because self-tanner absorbs best when skin is clean and fresh. Plus, I have to moisturize anyway—this product does both!”