Skin can be stubborn to deal with – especially the skin on your face. But if there is one technique you can use to see instantly gratifying improvement, it’s exfoliating. Exfoliation is a non-invasive and gentle practice that clears away the top layer of dead, dry & dull skin cells. The problem is, there are so many different types of exfoliators, scrubs and peels on the market, and all of them promise great skin.

So how do you know which one to use? And how do you figure out if you have the type of skin that needs to be exfoliated in the first place? With these questions in mind, I thought I’d talk you through the different exfoliating techniques, why your skin might just be in need of exfoliation, and how to get the best result while making sure not to overdo it.

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Your skin has this supernatural ability to exfoliate itself

So here’s the thing: as long as all your normal body processes are running smoothly, your skin will retain its natural ability to exfoliate itself. The turnover of a skin cell takes between 4-6 weeks for those with younger skin and between 6-8 weeks for those over the age of 50, with more mature skin. Along with aging, other usual suspects like stress, poor diet, city pollution and hormone imbalance can contribute to the ineffectiveness of your skin’s ability to self-exfoliate. The result is a build-up of dead skin cells, which can – if not properly cleared away through the process of exfoliation, for example – make your skin look rough and aged, or cause block pores, leading to skin irritation and/or varying degrees of acne.

Since life just seems to make up the rules as it goes along, sometimes we can’t prevent external or internal factors that might disturb our skin’s self-replenishing protocol. There are many of us who lack the ability to naturally exfoliate, and that’s exactly why exfoliating is so important. But it isn’t just important for the sake of your own skin. Exfoliation also augments the effects of any skin care products you use. After exfoliating, the use of subsequent products are significantly improved and will even have your makeup looking neater & more finished.

When your skin is not well-exfoliated, moisturizer won’t be able to fully penetrate the skin’s surface, and the makeup you use will only sit on the top layer of your skin – still filled with rough dead skin cells – and this can cause it to look flaky, cakey and dry. So, if you’re not exfoliating already, I think it’s time to start.

The golden rule of exfoliation

The key to exfoliation is to do it the right way. That means you’ll need to know what type of exfoliating technique works well on your skin by testing out a few different motions, beginning gently at first to see how your skin reacts. If you rub your face the wrong way, you’ll increase the chances of exposing skin cells that are not capable to keep up with the workload that the outer layer skin takes on. Over-exfoliated skin will adopt certain changes in its cycle of cellular regeneration, and that’s not what you’re aiming for.

Classic signs of over-exfoliating:

• Inflamed, red or irritated skin is a sign of a skin barrier that’s been compromised.
• Shiny or waxy-looking skin can happen when you’ve buffed away the natural texture of the skin too much.
• Breaking out could be caused by excessive exfoliating as the skin ruptures to allow more bacteria in, which in turn multiply exponentially and form colonies there. Some claim that this is all a part of the cleansing process, but if it’s already been a fortnight and you’re still in that ‘cleansing’ process, chances are that you’re simply overdoing it.
  
  

Different types of exfoliators

You’ll find all sorts of fancy exfoliators on the market these days. But if we break it down to its simplest forms, you’ve got two main types of exfoliation: manual & chemical. While there are a range of exfoliants under these two umbrella terms, the most important thing to know is still which technique works best for your skin type.

Manual exfoliation

Manual exfoliation requires a little physical labour to get results. The products are mostly abrasive – like the scrubs containing little bits of sugar, microbeads (which are usually non-biodegradable and should be avoided!), oatmeal, nut shells, etc. – and/or require the use of either a brush, sponge or cloth that can buff away the dead skin cells. Scrubs containing particles (like coffee) can be quite rough and leave microscopic tears in the skin.

If a scrub leaves your skin feeling raw, it’s most likely too harsh for your facial skin and is best left for areas of the body which have thicker layers of skin. Even though manual exfoliants are typically more on the abrasive side, some can be gentle enough to not cause any irritation to your skin.

Chemical exfoliation

A chemical exfoliant won’t give you that satisfying scrub-down feeling, but it will offer a subtle and soft clean. It’s a solution that’s applied to the skin and contains ingredients like alpha hydroxy acids, beta hydroxy acids and enzymes that loosen up skin cells on skin’s surface so dead cells are easier to remove.

In the end, the whole point of exfoliation is removing the top layer of dead skin cells, and no matter how gentle you are, there will always be some sort of alteration to the skin.

Do you have any recommendations for certain exfoliators according to different skin types?

Absolutely! Here at the Amazingy HQ we have all types of exfoliants on hand, so we got the team together to toil & trial different exfoliators for different skin types, and here are our suggestions (also in the form of an Amazingy FAQ YouTube video at the end this article) —

Scrubs

Good for: Normal and dry skin types

This is your classic manual exfoliator. It’s a bit like that DIY coffee scrub (we’ve all tried it at some point), where you physically brush away dead skin cells with tiny circular motions of your fingers. The main exfoliating ingredients in scrubs will vary, but you should opt for those which support overall hydration and lessen the side effects of skin irritation.

Because they’re mainly used to buffer the skin’s surface, those with less sensitive skin types can apply them a couple of times a week, as long as you avoid overdoing it on any sections of skin which are already dry. A facial scrub is required to be soft enough for supple skin, but productive enough to slough dead skin cells. Absolution’s La Crème Gommante contains of micro-algae diatoms for its mechanical exfoliating action, leaving a deep clean without damaging the skin.

Brushes and sponges

Good for: All skin types

These tools are good for those who want the benefits of exfoliating without having to add another tedious step into their skin care regime. They are gentle and “low-key” but provide high quality results, making them suitable for almost all skin types. Just as skin brushing is practically magical for its ability to improve blood circulation beneath the skin, open up the pores and exfoliate, using brushes and sponges is like skin brushing for your face.

The most favourable thing about a sponge or brush is their ability to contain zero harsh chemical or ingredients. In fact, the the Konjac Sponge puff is made from 100% food-grade Konjac, which is a plant fibre staple in Japanese cosmetic treatment. It’s so gentle that it can be used everyday and suitable for even the most sensitive skin.

Hydroxy Acids

Good for: Sun damaged or acne-prone skin

Alpha hydroxy acids (AHA) and beta hydroxy acids (BHA) are the two main classes of chemical exfoliants. Chemical exfoliation works by breaking down the substance that keeps the dead cells stuck to your skin and requires zero scrubbing.

Although AHA and BHA sound similar, they have one very important difference: AHAs exfoliate the skin’s surface, while BHAs both exfoliate the skin’s surface and clear out all the gunk from inside the pores. For this reason BHAs are more favourable for skin prone to development of acne and blackheads, whereas AHAs are surface exfoliators and are better suited for weather-damaged or aged skin.

Because the whole concept behind chemical exfoliants is that they’re leave on, Pai Skincare’s Copaiba Deep Cleanse AHA Mask is suggested. After about 10 minutes the mask works to clear congestion on the skin; there might be a slight tingling on application, but that’s how you know it’s working. Plus, as an added bonus, it comes with a muslin cloth to help leave skin feeling soft and smooth.

Enzymes

Good for: Sensitive skin types

When used in exfoliators, the job of an enzyme is to breakdown proteins in the old skin cells. This only affects the top layer, so you’ll never have a problem with overexposing any deeper layers of skin cells. Enzymes are naturally occurring in fruits like pineapple (bromelain) and papaya (papain), and like the alpha and beta hydroxy acids, they don’t have any type of abrasive buffering particles or grains, which means that they bring less chances of skin irritation.

Gentle mild acids (especially from fruits like kiwis, apples and papayas) remove dead skin without abrasives. Active plant ingredients calm & nourish the skin during the peeling. Susanne Kaufmann’s Enzyme Peel uses such enzymes from such fruits to gently remove dead skin without any stress to the epidermal layer of the skin.

So, those are just a few suggestions for which exfoliator you can use for each skin type. Just bear in mind that it’s pretty generalised, so on your personal journey to finding the right exfoliator for you, just start slow and gently and see how you go, watching out for any signs of irritation. Good luck!

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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in November 2017 and was updated in November 2019 for formatting.