A close, smooth shave is ideal year-round, but when the summer sun’s out and more of our skin is exposed, remaining free of prickly stubble and ingrown hairs is an even bigger goal.
Luckily, achieving a consistently flawless shave every time isn’t as difficult as you might think. Aside from a quality razor, shave cream, and aftercare routine, there is one essential prep step you don’t want to skip: exfoliation.
This is because exfoliation removes all the dead skin cells, dirt, debris, excess oil, and so on that accumulates on your skin. It, therefore, rids your skin of the buildup that would otherwise clog your razor and prevent it from removing the hair fully. In turn, when skin is sufficiently exfoliated, you’ll end up with a smoother, more comfortable shave sans ingrown hairs, nicks, or razor burn.
To achieve a silky-smooth bikini line, legs, underarms, or wherever it is you swipe your razor, try one of the following to exfoliate your body pre-shave.
- Dry brush: From helping boost circulation and decreasing the appearance of cellulite to helping flush toxins and purify the body, the benefits of mechanical exfoliation from dry brushing go beyond brighter, smoother skin. Of course, its ability to shed dead skin cells make it an excellent tool to get your skin ready for an even, nick-free shave. We love Joanna Czech’s Dry Massage Body Brush for all of the above.
- Body scrub: Should you prefer a sensorial scrub experience, antioxidant-packed Corpus Naturals Katrafay Body Scrub is gentle yet effective, removing dead skin cell buildup while stimulating circulation to reveal soft, glowing skin that’s ready for the swipe of a razor. Similar to the spa-like experience you get while using our Reflekt 1 cleanser (more on that later), this body scrub will hit you with an instantly therapeutic aroma for the added benefit of relaxation.
Naturally, exfoliation knows no gender, so men who shave their beards and mustaches are no exception to this pre-shave step either. Before you roll your eyes at the thought of trying to convince the men in your life to use another skincare product (unfortunately, studies have found that 65% of men don’t even wash their face every day and 81% don’t moisturize), we have just the one they’ll actually use and look forward to: Reflekt 1 Daily Exfoliating Face Wash.
This gentle face wash is a bestseller for men (almost as much as it is for women) because it multitasks to effectively cleanse, exfoliate, and hydrate in one luxurious step. In doing so, it removes any and all impurities to unclog hair follicles and help prevent ingrown hairs on the face and neck. In other words, it creates a perfectly smooth canvas for shaving without adding any extra or complicated steps. A win-win!
