I have an odd question for you guys. I spent the first part of my life up through my early 20s as a ballet dancer. Because of the pointe work, most ballet dancers keep their toenails very short and slightly rounded. I've always done this, so when I started skating in those nice tight boots, it made sense to keep doing it that way. As an side, I will also mention that I hate feet -- mine, yours, everyone's. My feet were so beat up from the dancing (I also did barefoot modern dance on wooden floors with rosin -- yuck) that I just got to where I hated how they looked and felt.

I know that most of the world does toenails that are a little longer and trimmed straight across, rather than rounded. This gives a nice surface for painting, etc.

So here's my odd question: what do you guys do with your toenails? Do you find that the "normal" pedicure, trimmed straight across and longer, bothers you in your skating boots? I would really like to have decent looking feet this summer, but I'm concerned that the length and "corners" will bug me in my boots.

I'm afraid I've never noticed - I just remove the excess toenail when necessary, and try to keep them short. I do notice that my feet hurt in my boots if I've let them get too long.

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Mrs Redboots
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Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I LOVE having a pedicure done (hate to do it myself) so I have one about once a month during the summer. My manicurist/pedicurist is a former skater so she knows to keep the corners very slightly rounded and short... maybe not as short as most people en pointe keep theirs.. but they are short. There's still enough nail (except maybe the little toe) to put pretty paint on.. but it keeps it from snagging tights and making my feet uncomfortable in skates.

I almost never get a pedicure but I do take care of my feet - if I don't I get a tendency to get corns and stuff - and I do keep my toenails short and rounded so that there is no contact with the inside of the boots - I can definitely feel it if I haven't taken care of them lately.

I've also learned to stretch my feet so that they don't feel so stiff all of the time (something that I think happens with aging!) - and they even look different now - nice and balanced, which is great.

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I keep mine short. I have really big toenails (not huge toes, actually my toes are really short), even my pinky toe, so even really short there is plenty o' painting surface. (My fingers are the same way, the nail beds are long so even though I keep my nails short they look much longer than they are when painted).

Eww I don't like feet. Especially itty bitty pinky toenails that are pretty much nothing, it freaks me out.

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2010-2011 goals:
Pass Junior MIF test
Don't break anything

I don't do anything particular for my feet. I like to have my nails painted though.

I have noticed variance in toe nail length does not bother me in my skates at all. In pointe shoes, if they were even slightly longer than normal it made a huge difference. You don't have to be quite so diligent with the clippers for skates.

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I keep them shortish, but not super short. Just slightly rounded at the corners.

No where near as short as when I was younger and was doing gymnastics barefooted.

Thanks for all the responses. I'm going to ask the nail tech to do them shorter than usual and slightly rounded -- and see what happens. If that doesn't work out, I'll do what I've been doing and learn to live with ugly feet for another summer

Frankly, I just clip mine however I manage to do it, which tends to be sort of willy-nilly. My mom always told me you clip them straight across to prevent ingrown toenails, but when I used to do that my ex used to come after me with the clippers after I'd clipped my toenails and clip the corners off as I always scratched him at night! I make sure they're not too long for dancing (though for pointe they might be too long, I dunno), and especially before a dance competition as my ghillies are a skosh too small and tend to push my toes together more (otherwise I practice barefoot or in socks).

I'm looking at my feet now and they don't look too bad...at least, toenails aren't going to make or break them. I don't know anyone who looks that close, lol, though it might be more obvious if I painted my toenails I guess. THere's nothing to be done for my feet anyway as I have one toenail that is slightly crooked (so I have to clip it very carefully and tape over it for a dance competition or it digs into the toe next to it and turns it bloody, ow and ew). So I guess I'll never be a toenail model.

I don't think short rounded toenails will look bad...unless I'm imagining something entirely different than yours look like. I think it's more important to keep them evenly trimmed and matching each other than what shape you use...