exfoliator

Just thinking about the word "peel" sounds painful, but the new Perricone MD Blue Plasma ($95) not only has a cool futuristic name, but also reinvents the facial peel. This silky blue liquid is an acid-free option that you can use daily to reveal glowing skin without the typical drawbacks, such as the redness and sensitivity you'll often find with a standard peel. The magic lies in an enzyme found in salmon eggs, which only works on dead skin cells.

This means you won't get the redness, irritation, and sensitivity that results from sloughing away layers of healthy skin, but you will get the benefits of removing debris from your pores and banishing lackluster skin. Plus, magnolia bark extracts provide anti-inflammatory benefits, while copper helps to repair your skin and gives the formula its striking blue color. This product is great for all skin types — even the most sensitive — and should be applied daily after cleansing and before your moisturizer. Getting enough sloughing action just got a whole lot easier.

With its off-white color, gray button controls, and facial cleansing brush system at the top, it's hard not to compare Olay's new Olay Pro-X Advanced Cleansing System ($30) to Clarisonic ($195).

But while they're visually somewhat similar, they differ in price (obviously) and motion. While Clarisonic uses a sonic oscillation system, Olay uses a nonsonic rotating one, making for a completely different experience. I almost prefer the circular massaging action of Olay (it's great for soothing sinus pressure), and the bristles seem to be slightly softer. Not that it's good or bad one way or another, but if you are looking for a super deep cleanser with a ton of power, Clarisonic, which has a heftier, more dynamic feel about it, wins out in this battle. To see the rest of my review, just keep reading.

Recently, L'Oréal came out with four new products in its Go 360 Clean Deep line ($6 each): a Cream Cleanser, a Facial Cleanser for Sensitive Skin, the gel-based Facial Cleanser, and an Exfoliating Scrub. OnSugar blogger Kiss and Tell shared her review of the creamy cleanser with us a few months back. Since I have had such a good experience with the exfoliating version, I couldn't help but share my review. What's so great about it, anyway? To find out, read more.

What could possibly be wrong about body wash? One word: plastics. Know those exfoliating microbeads that wash away dead skin? Unfortunately, many of them contain polyethylene, a non-biodegradable plastic. Sewage treatment plants can't process these tiny particles, so they make it into our water streams. Once they hit the ocean, they often join giant garbage patches, which in turn can choke all kinds of marine life.

Even if the sea creatures survive, the trouble doesn't end there. Toxins from the plastic can seep into other areas of their bodies — and yes, throughout the food chain. Not good for sea turtles and fish, not good for you. If you want to wash up with a completely clear conscience, look for scrubs with biodegradable ingredients like flax, sugars, salts, or ground-up nuts. There's nothing fishy about that.

Earlier this month, facialist Marc Edward told us that scrubs actually make your skin worse. Exfoliation, though, is important for keeping your skin clear, your pores small, and your cell turnover high. So what's a woman to do? There are actually tons of different ways to slough skin gently and effectively, and different varieties work for different ages and skin types. To get the lowdown on what different exfoliants do and to find out which one is the best match for your needs, just keep reading.

Dry patches and flaky skin are common complaints during this season, but if you have sensitive skin, the last thing you want to do is use a harsh and heavy body scrub. Enter Ahava Source Gentle Body Exfoliator ($20), reviewed by reader stoopeed. Here's what she had to say:

Though this product didn't really exfoliate a lot (maybe it was too subtle for me), it is one of the best daily body washes I've found. The cleansing is really nice, [and] it leaves my skin soft, clean, and happy. And the fragrance is, for wont of a more suitable word, uplifting. It is very subtle, does not interfere with your fragrance, and does not linger. . . But in one of my most depressing winters when I was not used to the long, dark winters of the north, I would feel much much better after a shower with this.

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