As you read this, your body's busy making new skin: "It takes a skin cell 28 days to move from the dermis, where it's created, to the top layers of skin, where it's naturally sloughed off," says Francesca Fusco, M.D., a New York City dermatologist.

Spring is the perfect time to help that process along: Post-winter skin is usually dry and scaly after months of low humidity and those overheated homes and offices. Exfoliation kick-starts your skin's renewal system, removing dead cells and uncovering the fresher skin that's waiting underneath. So buff, scrub, and peel your way to a smoother summer with the season's best remedies, both handmade and high-tech.

There are two kinds of exfoliators: physical ones (oats, crystals), which remove dead skin by literally scrubbing it away, and chemical types (glycolic, fruit acids), which dissolve the bonds that hold skin cells together, allowing them to slough off more easily.

Limit exfoliation to once a week until you know how your skin reacts. Then, you can scrub up to three times if your skin isn't showing signs of irritation.

1. Olay Regenerist Daily Regenerating Cleanser is a creamy, moisturizing formula with amino peptides that help cells rejuvenate more speedily.
2. L'Oreal Paris Go 360 Clean Deep Exfoliating Scrub has natural apricot-seed powder that gently scrubs away dirt; the included scrublet deep-cleans pores.
3. Origins Brighter By Nature High-Potency Brightening Peel with Fruit Acids smoothes skin like a professional glycolic peel without the redness.
4. Burt's Bees Citrus Facial Scrub, made from ground almonds and oats, is gentle enough for every skin type.
5. Derma E Microdermabrasion Scrub helps to rejuvenate your face, removing dead skin cells gently with a crystal-blend system.

1 cup ground oatmeal
1/2 cup dry lavender flowers, stripped of stalks
1/2 cup powdered milk (either whole or nonfat)
2 tsp. cornmeal

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl, massage into damp skin, and rinse with warm water. (Scrub will keep for six months.)

Recipe from "Do It Gorgeously" (June, 2010), by Sophie Uliano.

2/3 cup fresh pineapple chunks (room temperature)
1/4 cup cold-pressed olive oil
1/4 cup fresh, clean parsley, chopped

Pulse pineapple in a blender, then add oil until almost smooth. Add parsley, and blend carefully so mask doesn't liquefy. Apply to skin and leave on for 15 minutes, instructs Brenda Brock, recipe creator and founder and CEO of Farmaesthetics.

You can exfoliate your body more regularly than your face; most people can tolerate a daily scrub. Rough spots like heels may crack if dead skin isn't buffed away.

Always apply a moisturizer after exfoliating to keep freshly scrubbed skin soft.

1. AHAVA Gentle Body Exfoliator is naturally rich in sea and mud minerals and penetrates deep to remove impurities.
2. Aubrey Organics Meal & Herbs Exfoliating Bath Bar contains almond meal and kaolin clay to moisturize and restore your skin's natural balance.
3. J.R. Watkins Smoothing Foot Scrub is infused with pure peppermint oil to help revive tired, dry feet.
4. Ole Henriksen Rub n' Buff Salt Scrub helps to smooth skin and relieve muscle tension with a blend of sea salts and essential oils.
5. Sally Hansen Salon Ultra Smoothing Foot Scrub contains Dead Sea salt and marine botanical to polish away dry skin and calluses.

3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. ground cloves
1 Tbsp. dried rose petals
2 tsp. grated orange zest
1 1/2 cups sesame oil

Combine ingredients in a large bowl, making sure that everything is well mixed. Use on damp skin twice a week, Uliano says, scrubbing with your hands or a washcloth in small, circular motions. The mix will last up to six months when stored in a cool, dark cupboard.

1/2 cup used coffee grounds
1/2 cup honey
1 Tbsp. fresh orange zest

Mix ingredients together in a container and rub mixture into skin with your hands or a washcloth, using upward strokes, for one to three minutes. Apply up to three times a week, Brock says.

The best scrub may be no farther than your pantry. Honey is one of nature's best humectants, drawing water into the skin, while sugar buffs away dead cells so gently that it dissolves as it works. A touch of citrus offers an invigorating scent.

Blend the ingredients until well mixed, then store in a jar, says Janice Cox, author of "Natural Beauty at Home."

• 1 tsp. pure honey
• 1/4 cup light olive oil
• 1 cup raw or granulated sugar
• 2 tsp. fresh citrus zest

1. Add olive oil to honey.
2. Blend with sugar.
3. Mix in zest.