Time to Scrub Up

Everyone knows we’re supposed to exfoliate. The magazines tell us, the adverts tell us, our mothers tell us - but that doesn’t mean we all do it like clockwork. Although I do love the deep clean feel, I’m something of a panic scrubber, meaning when I pick up the tube I already have the dried skin and spots exfoliating would have prevented (when I say dry I mean the kind where your makeup looks patchy as opposed to flaky). 

I’d say on average I exfoliate once a week - twice if I’m feeling particularly grubby/ felling particularly like being a goody two shoes. For somebody who regularly forgets, I seem to have gathered a fair few products designed to shed my dead skin and invigorate my pores.

In the interests of spring cleaning I decided to test all four over the course of a few weeks to see how they compared and narrow down my products!

Simple

I first picked this up to compliment my makeup remover and toner that I got from the same Simple range, expecting similar great things from the well known brand. However Simple’s ‘Kind to Skin’ exfoliator lived up to its name in the worst possible way. It was so kind to my skin that I wasn’t sure whether I’d accidentally picked up a cleanser instead. As you can see from the picture it even looks like a lotion! It also smelt very chemically which is strange for a range that are dedicated to sensitive skin and natural ingredients. As a regular user of their other products in the range, I’m really disappointed in this product - although girls that are looking for an everyday exfoliator may find this one beneficial as the softness means your skin won’t dry out as it would with something a bit rougher. AT £3.30 (from Boots) it won’t break the bank to give it a try anyway.

 St Ives

The St Ive’s is equally inexpensive at £4.30 (again - boots) but I feel the quality is far superior. A pea sized amount really is all you need and it has a wonderfully soft texture for a scrub. The apricot smell is delicious and for those of you who are concerned about cosmetic chemicals - this product is 90% derived from natural ingredients. The exfoliation is quite robust, there’s definitely more to it than the Simple version, and my skin feels like a polished stone afterwards.

Although I'm a bit of a tyrant with my moisturising regime (see I stick to some rules!) after using this product I don't feel the urgent need to slap some on as you can often experience with other exfoliators. Given that this product isn't even tailored to dry skin types I find it impressive that they've managed to find a hydrating formula that still does its job as a scrub.

I also love the fact that you can pick up 30ml versions, such as the one I have, to throw it in your makeup bag or take it on board planes. As a frequent traveller with my full-time non makeup blogger job this is something I've learnt to appreciate in recent years! 

Soap and Glory

Soap and Glory is one of my favourite brands and is often the main culprit of my Boots binges, although the ‘Greatest Scrub of All’ comes in quite cheap compared to some of their products at £6. I’m struggling to decide my favourite between this and the St Ive’s as it has a lovely fresh smell (I think it’s a bit minty) and it’s definitely a lot more granular than the Simple version, although it has a lovely foaming sensation when you apply it. Again my face feels very polished, although I think using this more than 2-3 times per week would be too harsh on the skin. The tube claims the formula contains ‘smooth-boosting spheres that pop open when you press on them’ - personally I think this is a bit of a gimmick as I certainly didn’t notice a sensation of that description, but maybe I just didn’t press hard enough!

Whilst we're on the topic of Soap and Glory I've also used their  'Scrub Your Nose In It' exfoliator quite a while ago which is a more basic version of this one (no popping spheres) but I hadn't gone back as I found that to be a really drying formula.

The 'Greatest Scrub of All' appears to have been rebranded since I bought my version a few months ago, but I've also seen a few rumours circulating on the internet that this is to be discontinued in the near future, so if it sounds like something you want to get your hands on get your coat on quick! At the date of posting this, it is still available on the Boots website.

Bobbi Brown

The final exfoliator I own is something very different to the previous three. I discovered this a couple of years ago on a trip to New York and I think this may be the only exfoliator, apart from St Ive’s, that I’ve replaced! The buffing grains can be applied with water or with cleanser, I tend to favour the second which gives the more traditional exfoliation feel. It does feel like you are scrubbing your face with sand but the clean feeling is on a whole other level! I use this in addition to my usual exfoliation routine about once a month during the summer months and maybe 2/3 times during the winter as my face tends to get drier. It is pricey at £28 but honestly it lasts for a year or more so you do get value for money (don't take the above picture as an indicator of how much you need - it's a very fast spilling bottle!)

Verdict - if you can afford it I would definitely recommend the Bobbi Brown buffing grains for a nice treat every now and then, and out of my three ‘everyday’ exfoliators I think I’ll be sticking with the St Ive’s.

Carly x