We all need renewal time, and a little pampering pleasure tops my list. Who doesn't love facials, pedicures, full body scrubs and the like? You can create the decadence of a day at the spa, right in your own home.

So plan on a little you-time, invite your girlfriends over for a spa party, or create a spa day for your mom, just in time for Mother's Day (and early enough that you can get your materials together!). Or, get some pretty containers and give these "products" as gifts.

This week, we'll start with pampering the feet, and columns on the face and body (and hands) will follow in subsequent weeks.

In the DIY spa series we covered the homemade exfoliate, the deep hair condition, and the manicure. Recently, Diane taught us how to save $20 and pluck our eyebrows at home. We're slowly eliminating the need for a trip to the spa all together. Stay home, save the money, avoid the pretentious setting and pamper yourself. Perfecting the at-home pedicure is something I've always struggled with, but these instructions are a great help.

Daily life can do a number on even the nicest manicures, leaving you needing a re-touch every week. Pedicures on the other hand, can look fabulous into the third week. Take the time to care for your feet and your toenails, learning the proper pedicure technique and maintaining them well for a spa quality pedicure at home. The full article takes you through the materials you need, foot and nail preparation, and applying the polish.

If you spend your days on DIY projects and not in bedroom slippers, you probably know how quickly your feet can get ugly and achy. The article gives special instruction on how to care for dry cracked feet. They mention using a gentle exfoliate, but I would be inclined to spend a little extra time on this step. Try one of these homemade foot scrub recipes and find the one that you like best. I find that the sugar scrub does the trick for me.

If you're looking to take the DIY pedicure that little bit further, replace the suggested cotton balls or toe separators with packing peanuts the way Garry suggests.

Just in case you haven't filled your quota this month for things you can do with packing peanuts, here's one more idea that just might do the trick.

My wife has discovered that when it's time to pedicure her toenails, placing packing peanuts in between her toes works better than using cotton balls as toe separators. She finds that while cotton balls tend to fluff out and get in the way of the project, the packing peanuts don't have that fuzz which can get in your way. She also says that the peanuts hold the toes farther apart and that they are easily adjustable, while cotton balls seem to always fall down on the job.

One other measurable advantage to using packing peanuts to wedge apart your toes is that cotton costs money and once you have stuffed it between your toes, you take it out and throw it in the trash. Packing peanuts on the other hand, generally come to us free of charge and in a pinch, you could always wash them after plucking them out from between your toes and reuse them as packing peanuts. I myself, wouldn't recommend that. Not to mention that many varieties of packing peanuts these days are in fact biodegradable.