I used to be all in with exfoliants, until I noticed my skin was continously red. I was going HAM with peels and scrubs, and my skin was basically crying for help! So I cut back last year because I noticed such an amazing change to my skin tone once I stopped scrubbing the crud out of my mug.
Then I met Kerry Benjamin, an LA-based esthetician, who gave me a facial of a lifetime. It wasn't frou-frou — there was no steam. There was no facial massage. It was very direct and very exfoliant-based, which worried me initially. She started by dermaplaning my skin, getting rid of a layer of dead skin and peach fuzz. (I'm no stranger to shaving my face, so I loved this part.) Then she went in for the TCA peel, which dissolved any residual dead skin and left my skin glowing. After dermarolling my skin and applying — or stacking, rather — a few serums, I was on my way.
My skin flaked for a few days following the appointment, but the clarity of my skin improved immediately! She advised me not to use scrubs, which can be too aggressive for my skin, but a peel, even weekly, would do wonders. I've been testing out her new TCA Multi-Acid Body Peel ($195) and have been loving the results on my hands and décolletage. It's definitely a beauty investment, but it will cost you less than laser resurfacing at the med spa. — KJ
