Here’s how to exfoliate to transform dry, flaky skin into soft and smooth, glowing skin! Gentle exfoliation is a bit like giving your skin a massage… so it’s good for your skin, helps your makeup look seamless, and gives you closer, longer-lasting shaves, too!

Got flaky, dull, dry skin??? It’s time to exfoliate!

We all have these areas on our bodies that get dull, dry and flaky.

I dislike this wherever it is on my body, but especially on my face because then when I wear makeup, the makeup looks flaky, dry, and just bad. I have a couple areas that get especially flaky — around my eyebrows and the outside of each eye and around my lips and lower jaw.

I’ve shared elsewhere how to keep your skin smooth… In this article, I’m sharing how to exfoliate skin to remove that dry, flaky, dead skin… revealing smooth and healthy skin beneath!

What Is Exfoliation?

There are a few types of exfoliation. It can be done chemically, like through gentle and renewing acids. And it can also be done physically.

We’ll talk about physical exfoliation today… using products that are often called “scrubs”. They may have sugar, oats, charcoal or other ingredients that gently “scrub” the surface of the skin, loosening the dead flaky bits so your skin can be rinsed clean to reveal fresh and healthy skin.

Here’s how it works…

How to Exfoliate Skin

First, wet your skin down. Then take some scrub in the palm of your hand. (I actually combine my scrub with a bit of cleanser to save time… exfoliating and cleaning all in one go!)

The gently rub the scrub in small circular motions over the skin that you want to exfoliate. When I do this, I especially focus on the areas where I tend to get flaky skin. Then rinse clean and dry. Follow up with the rest of your skincare routine: your serums and moisturizers, etc.

I also use a scrub periodically on my body, focusing on extra dry areas like arms, legs, elbows, feet (especially around the ankles). It’s easy to do this while in the shower, either before cleansing or combined with a body wash cleanser.

It always feels sooo good and invigorating, too. Not only are you removing the dead skin cells, it’s like a gentle massage that refreshes and invigorates your skin, leaving you with a healthy glow afterward. Just remember to be gentle!

How Often to Exfoliate?

It depends on how often your skin needs it! I try to exfoliate my face every 2 or 3 days, or at least weekly. I exfoliate my body weekly. That seems about right for me.

If you have sensitive skin (and I consider myself to have sensitive skin), then be sure to proceed with caution. Don’t be overly aggressive with a scrub. Take note of how your skin feels and try to find the frequency where you experience the benefits without any irritation or drying out.

Need Help?

If you’d like a recommendation for non-toxic, gentle, non-drying, yet very effective scrubs (the ones I use for face and body)… go here!

And remember, exfoliation is just ONE part of a skin care routine that helps your skin look its best. If you’re interested in the products I use and recommend (they’re non-toxic and they work GREAT and I have options for all skin types and issues), go here.