I can't stress enough the importance of exfoliating, especially during the winter. Skin is dry, dead, and needs to be removed! Whenever you exfoliate, whether it be your face, body, or even lips, you are sloughing off dead skin and letting your radiant skin shine. You’re also giving your moisturizer or serum a better chance at penetrating the skin! When you don't exfoliate, skin build up, flakes, and even clogs your pores (yikes!). 

The trick here is not to overdo it. Exfoliating too much will irritate your skin and may even cause breakouts. It is recommended to exfoliate twice a week to achieve silky skin.

As for recommended products, any scrub from the pharmacy will do! St. Ives has a nice grainy scrub, as does Garnier. If you rather a more organic option, make your own at home! It’s almost too easy- combine sugar and olive oil until it is as thick and grainy as you like and apply the mixture to the skin. The sugar will gently remove the dead skin cells while the olive oil moisturizes and hydrates skin. After you remove your makeup, let the mixture sit on your skin for a few minutes and then gently scrub the mixture for a minute or two. Wipe off the scrub with a warm (not hot) wet wash cloth to reveal beautiful clean skin!

-Patti, contributing elfette