6 Body Scrubs That Will Soften and Smooth Your Summer Skin
Vacations and visits to the spa are both taking their rightful places back on our summer calendars—and in a perfect world, you’ll have the opportunity for a relaxing self-care treatment while on a trip. More often than not, though, destination spas—save heralded locations in Switzerland or Hungary—can be completely overrated, with bloated prices on lymphatic techniques and tools that you can get for a better price in the United States. (Plus, it’s not the 90’s anymore. Products are available online, regardless of where you live.) To all the beauty junkies out there, this is where your product wisdom should prevail. Instead of forking over tons of cash for a mediocre body treatment, give yourself a body scrub while traveling (or doing a DIY pamper at home). With insight from some of the most renowned celebrity makeup artists, we’ve compiled a handful of the best body scrubs on the market that soften, reinvigorate, and smooth your skin at the end of the long, hot summer day—whether you’re lounging at Le Sirenuse in Positano or the Betsy Head pool in Brooklyn.
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Using a trio of basil, grapefruit, and ginger essential oils, Shiffa’s scrub is used to not only smooth skin but stimulate oxygenation of the muscles, which relieves soreness. The scrub’s Dead Sea salts are mineral-rich, and because the scrub is based in organic oils, the skin is ultra-hydrated with no need for body lotion after use. You can also use the product as a bath salt—just apply on the body while standing in a bathtub, then lower into the water to engage detoxing properties. This is a favorite skin refresher for celebrity makeup artist Monika Blunder (who often collaborates with Megan Fox on her red carpet looks). “Shiffa makes such a beautiful product, created by a beautiful human,” Blunder says. “As a celebrity makeup artist, I try crazy amounts of products, and the Shiffa Body Scrub really stands out above the rest. The basil, grapefruit, and ginger scent is so fresh and luxurious, and it leaves your skin feeling soft, supple, and radiant. I’ve gone through three tubs already!”
Using healing antioxidants to slough off dead skin and remedy dry skin, Jo Malone’s refreshing Vitamin E Body Treatment Scrub exfoliates dry surface skin cells to reveal an even glow below the neck. Healing vitamin E nourishes and protect against environmental damage. “The vitamin E body scrub takes me straight into spa mode,” says celebrity makeup artist Mellody Vere, who works with Alessandra Ambrosio and Poppy Delevingne. “It’s a nice, creamy soufflé scrub that exfoliates without being too harsh. It’s hydrating and exfoliating without stripping my skin.” Vere says she often uses Jo Malone’s scrub as a prep on her clients’ décolletages area before photo shoots.
A perfect smoothing scrub for clean beauty junkies wanting supple skin below the neck. The all-natural formulation of biodegradable, mostly organic ingredients rich in argan and olive oils renew and soften skin. An ideal scrub to use pre-shaving to prep your skin and leave it hydrated afterward.
Celebrity makeup artist Jamie Greenberg (whose clientele includes Kristen Stewart, Rashida Jones, and Kaley Cuoco) recommends this gentle scrub rich with ground rice, grapeseed, and Dead Sea mineral salts infused with the healing properties of sunflower oil, vitamin E, and shea butter. “If you’re looking for a body scrub that’s going to leave your skin renewed, I have a recommendation for you. My go to is The Diamond Well-Living Body Scrub from Natura Bissé,” she says. “The gentle formula leaves your skin polished, supple, and soft. It’s one of the best body scrubs on the market today. For my clients, I recommend using this exfoliant on the legs and shoulders right before a red-carpet event; it makes the skin look healthy and gives off the perfect sheen.”
This tropical scrub smells dreamy and feels creamy upon application because it’s packed with grape seeds and sustainable bamboo, which gently buffs and exfoliates dry skin. Melanie Inglessis, the renowned makeup artist who often collaborates with Gal Gadot and Olivia Wilde, has been a longtime fan of the Epicuren body polish. “This is my favorite body scrub. The fragrance is amazing and invigorating whilst gently exfoliating and polishing my skin, leaving it so soft,” she says. “It feels like tropical vacation and the beads are very soft and creamy, with gentle exfoliation.”
Ideal for softening rough areas around the elbows, knees, and heels, this all-natural, vegan, cruelty-free scrub revives skin that been weathered, over-sunscreened and lotion-ed out—with the help of shea butter, sugar crystals, and cocoa butter.
