Jump Start Aug: Holiday Prep Week: Day 3
Today, as part of the prep week, it’s time for some Summer body care. It will get your skin healthy and glowing, and it’s also the perfect way to get your skin ready for tomorrow if you’re going to use some fake tan.
In the shower or bath, take some time to exfoliate properly and whisk off those dead skin cells. If you have a long-handled brush, give your back and front a good scrub.
Pay extra attention to elbows, ankles and knees, and also to upper arms and legs. Use a body scrub with gentle circular motions if you already have some, or just use a body brush/sponge and some shower gel. Bar soap isn’t ideal because it can leave a residue.
You can also make your own brown sugar body scrub at home, which is a real treat for your skin. I like to add some ground coffee for a real pick-me-up and some extra exfoliation, plus it smells really great.
Aaaaand…moisturise
After washing everything off, quickly towel down and smooth on some body lotion, paying extra attention to drier areas. You don’t need anything expensive, and it’s best to go for something simple and unperfumed. I’ve had some really good results with E45 Intense Recovery body lotion, which is very reasonably priced and pretty easy to get hold of.
If your skin needs more moisture, try doubling up your products. Start with a thin layer of body lotion, as before, and give it a couple of minutes to sink in. Then layer a thicker moisturiser over the top of drier areas, such as a body butter, Waitrose Baby Bottom Butter or some cocoa butter cream (you can get 500g tubs of this in most bargain chemist shops and other discount shops for £1 or less) [edited to change product name]. Another option is to use a few drops of olive oil.
You can then add some warmth to help the body lotion or oil do its work even better, if you wish. Cotton pyjamas or a dressing gown, and some cotton socks are good for this. If you have an especially dry patch of skin, such as on elbows or knees, you can also loosely cover it with cling film before putting pyjamas on over the top, then relax for half an hour or so while it all gets to work. Don’t keep the cling film on any longer than that though.
Do you have any other low-cost tips for body exfoliation or moisturising? Please share them.
I agree with your tips – layering body lotion over the top of an oil (I like to use sweet almond oil, which I buy quite cheaply from an aromatherapy suppliers) is very effective at moisturising and softening your skin.
I would like to point out however that NICE guidelines now say not to use aqueous cream as a moisturiser – one of the ingredients is sodium laureth sulphate which is a detergent, so not great to be left on the skin.
Hi Jo,
Thanks very much for your comment – it’s interesting to hear what the NICE guidelines now say. In which case, the best pound shop option will be a tub of cocoa butter cream instead (and check the label to make sure it doesn’t contain detergent ingredients).