St.Ives Swiss formula for Body works fine for me. Inexpensive, and not harsh. It's hard for me to spend top dollar on ANYTHING (shampoo,exfoliator, etc) that literally goes down the drain!

Hi Alexa, I think the best all around exfoliator is good old fashioned Baking Soda mixed with a little warm water and soap...for face, body and feet.
I even mix it with my toothpaste on occasion.

I agree with jane, inexpensive exfoliators work as well as the more expensive ones...... I like the peach and apricot one that's been around forever.

I like my towels to be on the dry/not mushy side, I don't put fabric softeners on them; they absorb better and a good rubdown on my legs with a towel is a fast way to exfoliate a bit before putting cream....

Best thing to keep towels absorbant is adding the vinegar to the final rinse.. learned from the Laundry Forum.

Sugar! I also discovered that microfiber cloths do a great job as well.

Thanks for the great ideas everyone!

Barnmom - I will give the microfiber cloth a try, I just bought a new package.

Alexa

:) a microfiber cloth for the flakey's on my nose

sugar or salt in an oil base for my legs, which get rather flakey in the winter

and I really couldn't live without my pumice stone, I inherited my dad's 'draftsmen's elbows' and since I'm a barefoot kind of gal, callouses on the bottom of my feet are good- the ones on the sides that collect the dirt aren't so good, and I need the pumice to deal with them.

It's hard to keep up with all the needed exfoliation!

I use a clean cloth or natural sponge on my face to rinse off cleansers and get rid of dead skin. I'm using Estee Lauder Idealist Micro-D Deep Thermal Refinisher a couple of times a week. It turns hot on your skin. Then I finish with Idealist skin refinisher - makes your skin feel smooth as silk. I use a salt scrub on my legs in the shower.

A good soak in the tub with bath oils helps dry skin.

I give myself a pedicure at least once a week - soak in soapy water in front of the TV, then scrub the heels and callouses with a foot paddle, then put on a thick body butter then socks.

I used a micro-fiber cloth this morning. It's mid-night now and my face still looks and feels like it has a bad sunburn.

mustangs, did you use your cleanser on it or just water ?
yikes, now I'm scared of doing it, do you think you went too hard core on the rubbing ?

Sure you didn't just rub too hard? I've done that in the past when I got a little too aggressive with the exfoliation! I also break out if I rub too hard or exfoliate TOO much.

I used olive oil soap. It created a lot of suds and seemed to create a cushion between my face and the cloth. I tend to be aggressive when cleaning so my thought was to try again more gently.

Oh dear, I guess you missed my previous post about going easy with the microfiber washcloth. It will take your skin off if not used gently! Otherwise, it's great!

{{gwi:1390651}}

Jessy, with the layer of dead skin under my feet right now, I think my pedicurist will want to borrow your device
, lol,

Hehe! Can I borrow that after him?

Burt's Bees Citrus Scrub with Burt's Bees Orange Essence Facial Cleanser. Smell great, feel great, taste great :)

Oh geez Jessica!

Can I use it for my scary winter feet after Gina?

LOLOL!

Thanks for all the other suggestions everyone.

Alexa

Is that what you use Jessy?

I use those mesh scrub balls every time I shower, along with Yves Rocher shower gels. Gift from Sis after I complimented her on how smooth her legs felt and looked. She was known for dry scaly skin but now she's got beautiful smooth skin and so do I.

Neah Beverly, I use a belt sander.

Actually, I don't exfoliate at all.

It's not cheap but I use Renova which is Retin-A with a moisturizer in it. You have to get a perscription for it from your MD but you are always exfoliated when you put it on nightly. That's all I've used for years.A single tube which costs around $100.00 will last about 4 months if you put it on sparingly and you don't need much at all. When you use Renova,you don't need exfoliators or any of the night creams with retinol,alpha hydroxies or anything else.

peregrine, I'll look into that one; my friend has something similar...

I did a search here for exfoliators and I found this thread! Glad I ressurrected it and found so many familiar names and faces here :-)

Are the microfiber cloths the same ones that people use for cleaning around the house or is there a special one for face and/or body? I've never used one (either around the house or on my face or body) but I hear they're great.

I really need some exfoliating, the dry flakies have invaded my forehead - must be winter!

Yes, they are the same household ones. Use gently!

Thanks, Barn Mom, I hear you about using gently!

P.S. Are you still a gorgeous redhead????

No, Woodie, I gave up red and am a brunette. It is my natural color now and other than showing a few grays, the outgrowth looks much more natural. The red also tended to fade witch was disappointing. I was a blond as a child.

I think the net scrubbies with soap do a good job. As for the feet, I use a pumice stone from the hardware store, the kind used to clean toilets and BBQ's. The ones from the beauty stores just aren't rough enough.

Just got back from the gym where I saw a copy of the October issue of Real Simple magazine. I have never bought it because it looks like mostly ads, but there were a couple good articles about skin care in it. One was about substitute beauty products when you run out of the usual stuff, the other was about which products are really needed for different skin types. It probably wouldn't be worth purchasing the magazine, but if you see it or go the library, take a look.

Susan

Susan, I purchased the magazine once a few months ago, both DH and I enjoyed it a lot. I keep forgetting to look for it, the library is a good idea.

I've used Clinique's Exfoliating Scrub on my face for years -- great great stuff!!!!

On my feet -- I use a good pumice stone in the shower -- and then a four-sided sanding square (normally used by nail technicians and folks to sand false nails -- found at Sally Beauty Supply) on slightly damp heels. THEN a good moisturizer and vaseline (put on ssocks and sit for 15 minutes) Does wonders for feet!!!!!

Hey! Recently in an intimate moment I was told that my skin was "silky smooth" (and I'm no spring chicken). Love that mesh net & body wash!

And I ditto the use of vaseline and socks on the feet. The socks are VERY important! Matter of fact, I used to wear those adult jammies with the feet. Slather the body up with baby oil, put on the jammies, your whole body gets soft. Wish I still had those footed jammies..

Oh Cube, you probably wouldn't be having those intimate moments if you were wearing footed jammies! You must be a lucky lady, apparently you know WHEN to wear them and when NOT TO wear them!

I use a microplane grater and then some Krack. The microplane works great, and I keep one in the bathroom, which is separate from the two I have in the kitchen.

Lars

Wow, I'm learning a lot in here. I like brown sugar scrubs on my body, but it's more of a treat than a regular thing. I usually use a mesh puffy thing with a citrus body wash, a pumice stone on my feet and a gental scrub on my face a couple times a week. I am usuing Victoria Principals Reclaim, which I like pretty well.

I usued to LOVE the Real Simple magazine when it first came out. It was a simple magazing with great ideas on how to simplify your life and creat simple pleasures. (simple, simple, simple) I was really disapointed when all of a sudden it felt like a Vogue with all those ads. How can you have simplicity and massive advertising at the same time? It still is a good magazine, if you have the patience the weed through the fuss.