4 Essentials For Your Beauty Toolkit
Cellulite Tools , Tips
Posted on May 10, 2021
Rather than investing into an entirely new product to do the trick, you may find a simple solution in a beauty tool to assist you in your routine. A simple change or mindful addition to your rhythm may assist your products to work harder, your skin to feel more rejuvenated, and/or even less inflamed.
Here is our list of essential tools to add into your routine for a more effective, and sustainable skincare routine:
A face brush is used as a tool to assist in gentle exfoliation of the skin, boost the efficacy of your cleanser, stimulate skin’s circulation, and ensure all dirt, makeup and grime to be lifted from the day’s exposure.
Face brushes that are made for this purpose are usually always very soft, ensuring they do not have abrasive effects on the skin. Depending on your skin type, they can be used in replacement of a physical exfoliant product as your skin will naturally shed dead skin cells through this mechanical process of buffing your cleanser. Unless silicone, face brushes are compatible with all cleansers except oil–unless your oil cleanser emulsifies slightly.
For more sensitive skin types, it’s recommended to use no more than twice weekly. For skin that requires more assistance with cellular turnover, you could attempt to use every day (due to its softness). Ideally, you would work your way up to that to ensure you’re not damaging your skin. How to know? Notice how your skin feels post cleanse. If it’s too tight, you’re over cleansing the skin and disrupting the acid mantle. To combat this, you may prefer to start using a tool like this with a more nourishing and protective cleanser, such as a cream cleanser, as the texture is physically more cocooning to the skin.
Try–Alder New York’s Cleansing Facial Brush or MODM Soft Face Brush.
A Gua Sha tool is used as a massage technique designed to relieve tension in the muscles of the face, boost blood circulation, and encourage lymphatic drainage to alleviate puffiness. It helps break up fascia, the connective tissue that hugs muscles but can sometimes interfere with optimal circulation. The technique allows for your hydration products to penetrate deeper into the skin as the circulation keeps pores open to accept the moisture more readily.
Gua Sha tools need to always be used with an oil to create slip on the face–rather than a fast-absorbing product. Anything other than an oil can result in pulling the skin, creating the adverse effect. The best way to use your Gua Sha tool is to cleanse the face, apply any toners or essences, and lock in moisture with an oil or hydration mask.
We love Odacite’s blog on How To Do A Gua Sha Facial for a detailed step-by-step on how to get the best results.
Shop Gua Sha tools here.
Dry body brushing is part of the traditional Ayurvedic approach to health and wellbeing, involving a dry massage on fresh, clean and dry skin with a brush (no product such as body oils or creams). It is designed to help refresh skin, stimulate the lymphatic system and enhance blood circulation. It is thought that the course bristles stimulate the pores and therefore keep them open for the body to ‘sweat’, releasing toxins flowing through the lymphatic system. It’s also a fantastic exfoliant for the skin–buffing away dry and dead skin cells, leaving behind fresh skin. It’s known to help target blocked pores and keratosis pilaris–the bumps that are usually found behind the arms–as well as a solution for ingrown hair.
The best time to dry body brush is right before a shower, preferably in the morning. This way, any impurities loosened on the skin's surface can simply be washed away in the shower, leaving you with soft, supple and smooth skin afterwards. Ideally, keep the water temperature mild as your skin has just been freshly exfoliated.
It’s just a 5-10 minute process pre-shower and not much pressure is needed at all. The aim here is to not scratch the skin but just to stimulate it. Adjust accordingly to how sensitive each area of your body is. The dry brushing technique is to use upward strokes toward the heart.
Shop Dry Body Brushes here.
A face cloth is essentially a face washer, however is generally made with a softer fabric for the delicate face areas such as muslin, microfibre or organic cotton. They are an ideal addition to any routine (and all skin types) in removing balm, oil or cream cleansers, clay masks, or even as a quick technique to wake the skin in the morning.
Using lightweight fabrics works to steam, soften and gently exfoliate the skin without stripping it of its natural oils or function. The steam increases blood circulation, delivering oxygen and nutrients from your cleanse, while the cloth works to remove product, impurities and cellular waste. It assists greatly in reducing inflammation or congestion while keeping skin slightly damp for the application of hydration products that follow.
A game changer for anyone looking for an effective removal of product and essential for sensitive or complicated skin.
Shop Face Cloths here.
Here is our list of essential tools to add into your routine for a more effective, and sustainable skincare routine:
Face Brush
A face brush is used as a tool to assist in gentle exfoliation of the skin, boost the efficacy of your cleanser, stimulate skin’s circulation, and ensure all dirt, makeup and grime to be lifted from the day’s exposure.
Face brushes that are made for this purpose are usually always very soft, ensuring they do not have abrasive effects on the skin. Depending on your skin type, they can be used in replacement of a physical exfoliant product as your skin will naturally shed dead skin cells through this mechanical process of buffing your cleanser. Unless silicone, face brushes are compatible with all cleansers except oil–unless your oil cleanser emulsifies slightly.
For more sensitive skin types, it’s recommended to use no more than twice weekly. For skin that requires more assistance with cellular turnover, you could attempt to use every day (due to its softness). Ideally, you would work your way up to that to ensure you’re not damaging your skin. How to know? Notice how your skin feels post cleanse. If it’s too tight, you’re over cleansing the skin and disrupting the acid mantle. To combat this, you may prefer to start using a tool like this with a more nourishing and protective cleanser, such as a cream cleanser, as the texture is physically more cocooning to the skin.
Try–Alder New York’s Cleansing Facial Brush or MODM Soft Face Brush.
Gua Sha
A Gua Sha tool is used as a massage technique designed to relieve tension in the muscles of the face, boost blood circulation, and encourage lymphatic drainage to alleviate puffiness. It helps break up fascia, the connective tissue that hugs muscles but can sometimes interfere with optimal circulation. The technique allows for your hydration products to penetrate deeper into the skin as the circulation keeps pores open to accept the moisture more readily.
Gua Sha tools need to always be used with an oil to create slip on the face–rather than a fast-absorbing product. Anything other than an oil can result in pulling the skin, creating the adverse effect. The best way to use your Gua Sha tool is to cleanse the face, apply any toners or essences, and lock in moisture with an oil or hydration mask.
We love Odacite’s blog on How To Do A Gua Sha Facial for a detailed step-by-step on how to get the best results.
Shop Gua Sha tools here.
Body Brush
Dry body brushing is part of the traditional Ayurvedic approach to health and wellbeing, involving a dry massage on fresh, clean and dry skin with a brush (no product such as body oils or creams). It is designed to help refresh skin, stimulate the lymphatic system and enhance blood circulation. It is thought that the course bristles stimulate the pores and therefore keep them open for the body to ‘sweat’, releasing toxins flowing through the lymphatic system. It’s also a fantastic exfoliant for the skin–buffing away dry and dead skin cells, leaving behind fresh skin. It’s known to help target blocked pores and keratosis pilaris–the bumps that are usually found behind the arms–as well as a solution for ingrown hair.
The best time to dry body brush is right before a shower, preferably in the morning. This way, any impurities loosened on the skin's surface can simply be washed away in the shower, leaving you with soft, supple and smooth skin afterwards. Ideally, keep the water temperature mild as your skin has just been freshly exfoliated.
It’s just a 5-10 minute process pre-shower and not much pressure is needed at all. The aim here is to not scratch the skin but just to stimulate it. Adjust accordingly to how sensitive each area of your body is. The dry brushing technique is to use upward strokes toward the heart.
- Start with the soles of your feet and up your legs in quick, long strokes.
- Move up the body to brush your arms inward, from hands to elbows, then upper arms to shoulders.
- Finish on your chest, stomach, back and shoulders. Here, use circular and clockwise movements.
Shop Dry Body Brushes here.
Face Cloth
A face cloth is essentially a face washer, however is generally made with a softer fabric for the delicate face areas such as muslin, microfibre or organic cotton. They are an ideal addition to any routine (and all skin types) in removing balm, oil or cream cleansers, clay masks, or even as a quick technique to wake the skin in the morning.
Using lightweight fabrics works to steam, soften and gently exfoliate the skin without stripping it of its natural oils or function. The steam increases blood circulation, delivering oxygen and nutrients from your cleanse, while the cloth works to remove product, impurities and cellular waste. It assists greatly in reducing inflammation or congestion while keeping skin slightly damp for the application of hydration products that follow.
A game changer for anyone looking for an effective removal of product and essential for sensitive or complicated skin.
Shop Face Cloths here.