by Aline Agopian
Need a quick boost to instantly brighten up your face and make your makeup look smoother and more radiant? The fastest quick fix is exfoliating. Anytime you feel like your face has lost its glow, the best thing to do is invest in a great scrub.
Here are a few amazing products that will give you that one-minute facial in the comfort in your own home:
First, use a gentle makeup remover such as Sephora's Ultimate Warming Cleanser to clean your face. This honey-like cleanser is an ideal way to get your pores squeaky clean right before you exfoliate.
If you are new to exfoliating, Clarins' Gentle Refiner Exfoliating Cream is wonderful cream to start with. The gentle cream is ideal for sensitive skin and gives off great results. It is made of micro-beads which are tiny particles that can be worked in with your fingers with a little bit of warm water (focusing on problem areas such as the nose) to get rid of dead skin.
Someone with dry skin might wonder why they are getting break outs even though their skin isn't oily, but if you don't exfoliate the dry dead skin cells prevent the cells from revealing new fresh skin underneath.
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Make sure not to over exfoliate and always read the recommended amount of times the product suggests to be used. Exfoliating once a week is a good routine. Some products are gentle enough to be used more often like twice a week. This all depends on your routine, skin type and how harsh your exfoliator is.
Sephora's Cleansing Gel & Exfoliating Brush is another great product because it comes with a brush and allows you to avoid your fingers. Feels like a professional facial.
Leave it up to the luxurious La Mer brand to have diamond powder in their exfoliator. La Mer's Refining Facial boosts circulation with its sea quartz.
If you have discoloration on your face, hands or maybe on your decolté from sun exposure, Kiehl's Epidermal Re-Texturizing Micro-Dermabrasion is a perfect remedy and can be used up to three times a week.
The suggested products will not only make your face feel smoother but also will make you feel the difference the next time you put on your favorite foundation or powder. A useful technique many makeup artists use is to have their clients exfoliate right before the makeup application, which is usually the case for brides-to-be.
After exfoliating it is very important to hydrate your skin. Think of this step just like you would a shower. When you get out, the skin is super clean and ready to be moisturized. Exfoliating helps serums and moisturizers penetrate deeper into your skin, giving you better results.
My favorite moisturizer after exfoliating is Kiehl's Rosa Artica. Preferably exfoliate at night and moisturize before going to bed so that you wake up with a radiant glow. If you find yourself forgetting to exfoliate, try to keep the scrub in the shower so that you're always reminded to use it once a week.
