For Your Face
Look For
+ Gentle exfoliants like fine sugar, jojoba beads, rice bran, or almond meal
+ Oats and honey to calm stressed skin
+ Crushed grape seeds to deliver antioxidants to oily, acne-prone skin
Avoid
+ Super-rough ingredients like coarse sea salt, ground apricot pits, and walnut shells, which are harsh on facial skin
Tips
"Many scrubs contain essential oils, each with a different purpose and scent," says Jacknin. Geranium, for instance, is ideal for tightening and toning, whereas chamomile calms sensitive skin, sage fights breakouts, and lemon energizes. "If your scrub contains essential oils," Jacknin adds, "leave it on for five minutes so it can penetrate your skin." If your complexion falls into the uber-delicate or acne-prone categories, or if you have a sunburn, use all scrubs with caution: In these cases, scrubbing can actually spread breakouts or aggravate already sensitive skin. Start with gentle pressure, avoid scrubbing if you feel discomfort, and exfoliate just once a week.
Try
+ Aveda Tourmaline Charged Exfoliating Cleanser, $28, aveda.com
+ Ole Henriksen New Beginning Scrub, $24, sephora.com
+ Kimberly Sayer All-in-One Invigorating Lemon Scrub, $25, kimberlysayer.com