Exfoliating? Clarisonic?

[Morgan]

Somebody on here posted about having a clarisonic, and now I kind of reeeeeeally want one. But they're pretty darn expensive. Who has one? Anyone tried it and been dissatisfied? What about the cheaper versions, like that neutrogena face scrubby thing?
And how often do you all exfoliate your face? Do you notice a difference in your skin afterwards?
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[browneyedgirl]

Let me just say, I'M NOT AN ESTHETICIAN!

But I am technically licensed to do facials, which is irrelevent. haha. Seriously though, they're used at the salon I work at. A lady I work with at my other job has one. So I'm not an expert and don't have first hand knowledge, but I know stuff.

The only complaint I've heard is that the regular brush can be a little harsh, but it absolutely WILL pull the "crap" out. They also make a smaller version that's a little cheaper, same thing except that I'm not sure you can attach the body brush to it.

You also shouldn't exfoliate every day. It really depends on your skin. Some people can only do it once or twice a week, some do it several.
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[LooseyMama]

Mr. M bought me a Clarisonic for Giftmas in '08, and I have to say that it *definitely* helped with the frownlines I was developing between my eyebrows. They're much less noticable now. I don't use mine daily, but maybe I did when I first got it, I think ... hard to remember, that long ago.

One thing I've noticed more definitely in the year+ since I've had it, and maybe it's more a product of my age (perimenopause, ~le sigh~), but my skin is clearly more tender around when I expect a period and when I may be otherwise run-down, like fighting a cold. So I've learned not to use it at those times.

I've also noticed that my skin requires a particular kind of cleanser when using the Clarisonic. The samples they sent were fine, and the liquid cleanser I have from Arbonne works great, but I haven't found any other over-the-counter soap/cleanser that doesn't either tear up my skin or otherwise feel too intense. You can't use anything with ANY graininess to it at all. I mean, I've got some Aveda and some Burt's Bees cleansers that are just fine when I use them without the Clarisonic (one is even cold-cream based), but when I use them with it, the skin on my face hates me afterwards.

I can't afford to get professional facials right now, and the review I'd read (at HeadButler.com, if I recall) said that women were so infatuated with their Clarisonics that they'd grab them on their way out of a housefire. Hyperbole, surely, but still....
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[midnightsky1686]

(background...)My face is, to put in mildly, a mess. I have scarring, blisters, peeling, redness, breakouts, all of it. All the time. I have done ALL the dermatologist stuff, including acutane, retnin, etc in addition to professional facials, diet, etc. Everything short of laser resurfacing, pretty much. All these years people have been treating me for acne alone- now I am being treated for rosacea instead.

Anyways.

I use it every day for a minute, morning and night, which is what I was instructed to do- the brush and vibrating are pretty soft, so it is not removing tons of skin for me all the time. I have the "professional" version (the one that is something like $225 , ouch!) of the clarisonic, with the sensitive head and the body brush attachment.

I have SUPER sensitive skin, and the brush head I have does fine. I use a cream or gel based face wash. NO scrubbies. I think those rip my face up anyways even without the brush. I have done it with just soap or body wash too while on vacation and it was fine.

I hear some people have their face break out more after using it at first (all the stuff in the pores coming out and getting spread around?), but I haven't really had that. I can't comment on how it works for wrinkles since my mom is seeing the same person but was not told to use the brush (i think she is using more prescription peeling stuff).

My face is not perfect now- it is not a miracle worker, but it does help. Less scars and peeling for sure on my face. My face is still pretty red, but that's due to rosacea and still working on getting the right mix of things to make my face calm down. There are a couple of spots on the side of my face that have just had scars building up on top of each other over and over that seems to be fading a bit right now since I am not getting new scars there.

Along with the brush I use sunscreen every day, vitamin C oil, and face lotion at night. This will be changing in a week or so since I will unfortunately have to start on some prescription and more hardcore face stuff to control my face further (love that my person doesn't just jump to that though).

A couple things about the brush:
-you are not supposed to press it down on the skin hard, just move it around lightly
-I rinse my face afterwards just to make sure there isn't any of the crap my pores are releasing left on my face
-the battery lasts awhile, so you don't need it plugged in all the time
-For me it is the difference between electric and non electric toothbrush- one gets my teeth a lot cleaner than the other.
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[Morgan]

Thanks for the reviews! I think I'm going to get one... It's a lot of money, so I have been pondering a lot, and reading everything I can about it. It seems like most people are really satisfied, though.
I want the most expensive one (of course!), since it has the body brush, too. It's like $170 at overstock.com, so way cheaper than at Sephora, where it was $225. They don't have the pink one, though... drat! & thanks for the cleanser info, Loosey! I tried out some cleanser at Sephora when I tried the clarisonic that seemed good... I think it was Dermadoctor.
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The most overlooked thing about Morgan is that she's sort of like a really crappy version of Bea Arthur.
My tumblr: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/prettymuchthebestever

[midnightsky1686]

My mom just got one of the brushes and is now equally obsessed.

I like the body brush, but don't think it is as necessary.

I think you can find them on ebay for less, sometimes they come with extra brush heads or at least have free shipping.
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[chairs]

My bestie is a master esthetician and she LOVES hers. Granted, she did get a special esthetician discount or some mess, so hers only cost $80. Ha!
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[Morgan]

Yeah, I bet I'd love it a lot more if it only cost $80! I still haven't ordered it... but I am planning to do it. Soon. I just like to think things through verrrrrrrrry thoroughly first!
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The most overlooked thing about Morgan is that she's sort of like a really crappy version of Bea Arthur.
My tumblr: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/prettymuchthebestever

[Jzane]

Bump.

Anyone else had recent experience with these? I've been debating getting it but I just don't know if I can rationalize spending all that money. (I would be getting the Mia, which is around $120, but even then that's a lot for me.)

I've been using an exfoliating cloth every other day or so and trying to be extra careful about washing my face before bed because I've been lazy in the past, an using a clarifying toner but I still have blackheads galore. I've seen glowing reviews online but haven't been able to make the plunge yet.

Also, has anyone tried the Olay Pro-X? I've heard reviews going both ways about that one, mostly that it doesn't work as well and that the battery case is nearly impossible to get off.
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[Fritz]

I personally haven't used one (yet...), but one of my co-workers has started using it the last few months and went from having "bad" skin to having a gorgeous complexion. I complemented her makeup one day and she told me she was only wearing liner and mascara. She's really making me want one.

Does anyone know if you can use a face brush for the body, or are they just too soft?

[Morgan]

I bought one soon after I posted this, and I have to say that I don't think it made one bit of difference from my skin. I was totally expecting/hoping to have an experience like you're talking about Fritz, because people seem to love them, but I really haven't noticed anything whatsoever. And I use it fairly regularly (you aren't supposed to use it every day. I think they recommend like 3x a week), and then I've gone for a few long periods without using it all when I've been traveling, so I have a pretty good basis for comparison. No difference! I should sell it.
As for using the face brush on your body... don't know. When I switch to the body brush, it's not that the brush is necessarily so much different, although it is coarser, but I think the clairisonic brushes harder too. That said, I very seldom even bother to switch to the body brush, because I'm lazy!

Oh, and I bought mine on Ebay, and it was the same price as in stores, but came with two extra brushes, I think. And it was brand new.
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The most overlooked thing about Morgan is that she's sort of like a really crappy version of Bea Arthur.
My tumblr: http://www.tumblr.com/blog/prettymuchthebestever

[scarlet]

Sorry to hear it didn't wow you Morgan. You *should* try to sell it & recoup at least some of the money spent.

I had been lusting after a clarisonic for a while too but I had a feeling I'd lose interest a month or 2 after purchasing it and forget to use it enough to be worth it. I found a "poor man's" clarisonic (the Dual Exfoliating Face Brush for $18 on Sephora) and have been using it for a few weeks now. I use it everyday and notice a really significant difference in the brightness of my skin. I had been getting clogged pores on & around my nose which look great now too. Because the brush was so cheap I splurged and got a Murad face serum for $90 (!!!) because it was raved about by all the reviewers and it's a decent size that will last a long time. It may be the 2 products working together that make the difference, I don't know, but I think my $108 was well spent considering the results.
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[meexie]

My super cheap exfoliant is one I learned from the Not Martha blog - baking soda with a dab of facial cleanser and enough water to make a paste. Rub onto damp skin. Here's the key to any exfoliant, really - rub for at least two minutes over your entire face. A couple of swipes won't do it. Going in small circles and counting to myself helps me stick to it. After I rinse it off, I massage my face with my fingertips, again for at least a minute, to relax my face muscles and encourage circulation.

For whatever reason, it feels like it takes SO LONG to me (mainly because I can't do anything else at the same time?) so I don't do it more than once per week. My skin feels really smooth and soft afterwards, though, so I always think I'll get around to doing it twice per week.
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[dynia]

I bought the Olay and LOVE it! My skin is not bad to begin with but it is really glowy. Combined with my new foundation, it's amazing.
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[ruggedchick]

I use the Olay Pro-X and I absolutely love it. I use it about every other day. I think it cost me $27.
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