Overnight skin sensation: Ashirira detox foot pads
Detox, through the soles of your feet, overnight.
Yep, this one’s weird even by Japan standards. Time to let you in on the secret of Ashirira relaxing foot sheets.
Sweet dreams are made of… bamboo sap
The ‘rira’ in Ashirira’s short for ‘relax’. All the effects happen as you sleep. No sitting on the side of the bath checking your watch, like with leg hair remover or fake tan.
What gives these foot sheets their magical power? Bamboo sap extract powder. It’s the key ingredient – without it, you’d just be wearing some stickers all night.
Peel, press, and de-stress
How detox foot sheets work: stick them to your feet before going to sleep. It’s that simple. There’s a step-by-step guide on the back of the sticky sheets, but it’s in Japanese, so we’ll explain more.
Start by taking everything out of the plastic wrap. Check you’ve got 2 foot pads and 2 slightly bigger sticky sheets. Here in Japan, you can get single-use packs of 2 pads, and bigger 30-sheet boxes for long-term users.
The powder pads have text and a design on one side, and nothing on the other. The text side’s for pressing against the sticky sheet, so the blank side’ll be in contact with the sole of your foot.
Peel off most of the sticker back – the big bit below the arrows – and press the pad firmly onto it, with that text side down. When you peel the final back sticker bit off, the pad should then be exactly in the middle. Pick up the whole thing and stick it to your foot. Repeat for the other foot.
Unless you’ve got a 3rd foot you’re not telling anyone about, that’s all you need to do.
Don’t sweat it – these pads’ll absorb it instead
The pads work overnight to draw moisture out. In a good way.
When you put a lot of stress on your legs and feet, they swell up with liquid. Happens if you’ve done loads of walking, running and/or other exercises, or spent a lot of time standing up.
The swelling makes you feel less comfy, sometimes hurts like hell, and affects your circulation. So, at the end of the day, slapping these detox pads on takes the pressure off.
That’s literally it. Sucking extra water out of your legs makes you feel better.
The bamboo sap powder attracts moisture, and changes colour as it soaks up that excess. Depending on the brand, it turns the pads green, brown, or even black. Visible proof it’s working – no other effects on your skin.
And the pads harden up as they take in liquid. You’ll find that all out when you peel the sheets back off in the morning. Even after using these for weeks, you’ll be dying to know what they look like every time. Simple human curiosity.
Honestly, the first time you wake up and see the change, it’s so weird. If you’re anything like us, it’s a mix of wonder and being super grossed out. All you can think is… “Hold up, that came out of my body?”
Well, it didn’t really. The colour’s just a reaction with the moisture that came out of your body. But it sure makes an impression. The kind you can’t stop staring at.
Some reviews of Ashirira foot sheets mention feeling dehydrated or having a headache afterwards. Duh, these pads just sucked a bunch of liquid from your feet. Keep a glass of water by your bed.
Once the sheets are off, your feet might still be a bit sticky. That washes off in the shower or bath – no problem, unless you’re the type who always showers before going to sleep.
Effects that leave you standing strong
Some packs of Ashirira have an extra ingredient, to boost the power.
- Lavender – helps you sleep
- Yomogi – detox even harder
- Hot chili pepper – sweat out the bad stuff
- Grapefruit – diet by night
- Ginger – stay warm until morning
- Rose – feel more feminine
We’ve tried the rose and pepper versions, so you get a first-hand review here. If anyone ever says we’re not dedicated to this blog…
The ‘relax rose’ pads smell kinda like room spray (a positive, it’s pretty nice). Once they’re stuck to your feet, the scent doesn’t travel far enough to notice when you lie down.
Something people with smaller shoe sizes are gonna notice… is the size of both the pads and the sticky sheets. They’re longer and wider than we expected. The cartoon woman on the pack must have massive feet.
Here’s a closeup of a sheet covering Kei-chan’s whole foot (almost). Also proof we really tested these for you in real life. Aren’t we nice?
As long as you’re comfy, falling asleep with the sheets on feels no different to normal. Heading to the bathroom in the night can be interesting – no harm in putting pressure on the pads, but you’ll feel like tiptoeing anyway.
Mood on waking up? Yeah, ‘refreshed’ is accurate. Got a decent amount of sleep, woke up feeling good. It’s just like putting on a face mask – simple, no mess, easy to see the results. We’d use these again after a busy day.
A foot pad to fit everyone
There’s a ‘premium titanium’ version of Ashirira foot pads for sensitive skin. And a ‘hot’ version that heats up to 40 degrees, like kairo hand warmers. And a MEN’S version, with ‘manly’ (oh really???) eucalyptus and peppermint.
Plus a vegetable series:
- Tomato – feel more beautiful
- Spinach – feel more energetic
- Pumpkin – feel more active
- Carrot – feel more motivated
Yep, if wearing veggie extracts like shoes wasn’t weird enough, these pads all claim to affect your mood too. The spinach one’s the most obvious – Popeye didn’t lie to us about those muscles.
Beauty and skincare, from the feet up
All kinds of Ashirira relaxing foot sheets are on sale online now. DEJAPAN also helps you buy other brands of detox foot pads, skincare, makeup, and Japanese beauty products.
