to exfoliate twice a day?

[MamaLazarou]

Looking at some threads in Style + Beauty and people are advocating weekly exfoliation. I was in hospital recently, didn't exfoliate for 4 days and my skin was like an inch thick! How often do you exfoliate and is twice a day too much (gently, with a hot muslin cloth)?

Do what?

We have 7 layers of skin. Renewing all the time. When you're young the whole renewal process takes one month. As we age this slows down.

As long as you're exfoliating gently you'll only ever be removing dead skin which would be due to shed anyway. But natural shedding is usually uneven and after your teens is slow. The reason exfoliation makes your skin look good is akin to wiping a layer of dust off a lovely piece of wood. It also helps your moisturiser get to the lower skin layers.

Exfoliation speeds up the renewal process somewhat too. This is why dedicated exfoliators feel it when they haven't exfoliated for a while.

If it's just using a muslin cloth/face cloth/hot cloth cleanser, i do that twice a day myself then use a facial scrub once or twice a week and a face mask once a week.

Because if I didn't exfoliate, I would be inundated with whiteheads, blackheads and rough bits. You lucky lot, having naturally smooth skin!

If I skipped a day or two, I would have loads of little whiteheads all round my nose, it's really gross. My skin isn't particularly oily but I suffered from acne for about 20 years (until I started the hot cloth method).

Yes, Cluelesscrapparent - that does count as exfoliating.

Exfoliation speeds up the renewal process somewhat too. This is why dedicated exfoliators feel it when they haven't exfoliated for a while.

Ah. this explains the 'inch-thick' feeling. Thanks!

Its like people who say "I have to wash my hair every day because it is so greasy if I dont". No, the reason your hair gets so greasy is because you wash it every day! Gradually lengthen the time between washes and eventually when you settle at twice a week your hair will stop over producing the oil that daily washing strips from it.

Same with exfoliating. You are causing the break outs and thick skin by over doing it. Gradually extend the periods between, do it once a day then in the morning one day and the evening the next....etc until you are down to once a week and you skin will settle down. It is actually trying to protect itself from the damage that is being inflicted on it by the constant rubbing away of the top layer of cells.

I wash my face with a cloth everyday, this is a nice gentle form of exfoliation. I also use a liquid exfoliator.

I never use a gritty, scrubby product though. They're far too rough.

Sorry I must disagree bogeyface my hair really does need washing every day. I have tried a few times to lengthen gap between washes but achieves nothing. My hair is very fine (though lots of it) and gets greasy incredibly easily. Really bugs me when people say it's my fault its like this!

Never. Seriously, what busy mother even has time to exfoliate twice a day?

I wash my hair daily to remove yesterday's hair products and to blow dry it in to its style.

My hair gets greasy easily because it's incredibly fine and incredibly straight. Thicker, curlier hair doesn't get greasy as easily as the oil doesn't travel down the hair shaft as quickly.

Thank God for dry shampoo, otherwise I'd have to wash my hair every day rather than every other day.

Never. Seriously, what busy mother even has time to exfoliate twice a day?

This is hilarious. You are too busy to wash your face? Seriously? How many kids have you got?

I never use a gritty, scrubby product though. They're far too rough.

Me either. They are scratchy and horrible.

I wash my hair about twice a week, would hate to have to wash it daily.

Not only do I never exfoliate but I wash my face with soap, then apply some of ds's emollient cream instead of moisturiser. Bet that shocks you!

I exfoliate gently daily with a facial pad and olive oil soap. I've done this for a few years, my oily skin has improved, blackheads gone and tiny lines disappeared.

eggs how long did you give it? It takes a few weeks for it to settle down, helps to use dry shampoo in the mean time to help take out most of the grease. After a month or so it should be ok. My hair is the same as yours (and dead straight as mentioned above) and used to be horrendous if I didnt wash it every day, then I was very ill and needed help in the shower. After a while I realised that twice a week was enough and it didnt get greasy until the night before wash day after a while. You do have to be patient.

I'm 53 and not entirely sure what exfoliation actually is.

I wash my hair every day because it looks absolutely awful if I don't. Also, I don't feel "clean" if I have a shower without washing my hair.

As for exfoliating, I wash my face with a flannel and some face wash when I can be arsed every night and occasionally do my body. Twice a day sounds uncomfortable

What do you use to exfoliate Eyeliner ?

I hot cloth cleanse and give my face a little scrub with the flannel whilst I'm doing it but if I use a topical exfoliant like that Clarins one that Caroline Hirons bangs on about, I break out in horrendous cystic acne. If I stick to a lil scrub with a flannel it's fine.

I feel like I need something else though.

Is it oil in the skin that's feeling 'an inch thick' do you think? Over exfoliation will make your skin more oily if it's prone that way anyway.

This is hilarious. You are too busy to wash your face? Seriously? How many kids have you got?

If you just mean washing your face, why not say so? I assumed you meant removing the outer layer of skin (which, um, is what is usually meant by the term and is apparently usually done after washing) and all over the body. And since I assume that the various people who say they have never exfoliated, do in fact wash their faces, I suspect that they interpreted the term the same way.

Some of the posts on here...

Well I splash in the general direction of my face once a month if it needs it and occasionally have a run down with a twig.

I thought by exfoliating, you meant using an exfoliating product such as a cream or face wash , designed for this purpose.

I should think almost everyone on here washes their face at least once a day no matter what their personal circumstances!

rub down with a twig

Or a run down. Both will do.

I use a muslin cloth twice a day, and an exfoliating cream once a week.