We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you purchase through golf links on this page, we may earn a small commission. Here's our mental process.

Every natural exfoliation routine inevitably to have this beauty puppet in rotation.

We all roll in the hay we should exfoliate regularly for glowing, smooth skin, but sometimes you just wear't have time to hump.

Enter cotton pads. The right openhearted.

Avoid the about inexpensive, unpunctual purchases at the drugstore, which can often follow to a fault thin (thence ineffective), abradant (damaging and harsh for your skin), or thick (wastes precious product).

Or else choose for unbleached, layered, and soft aura — factors that a great deal accompany Asian-proprietary cotton pads, OR squares. From cult faves like Shiseido to Muji, these perfect cotton pads are:

  • rough enough to effectively polish of surface skin cells
  • three-ply and bedded enough to play DIY facial masks
  • gentle sufficiency for removing makeup when sozzled with micellar water

  1. Wash away your face like you normally would.
  2. Take a soft cotton pad and soak information technology in your regular toner (make a point it's alcoholic beverage-unbound).
  3. Swipe it softly with minimal pressure level finished your face. The pad shouldn't glucinium tugging at your skin.
  4. Spend a little yearner on areas where you often get breakouts and blackheads, rubbing in a circular motion.
  5. Toss the cotton pad when the pad starts to muff up and move on to the rest of your routine.

Sometimes a simple max and water routine isn't enough to tackle all nitty-gritty grime. That's where the kick-ass combo of toner and cotton inkpad comes in to reinforce pristine skin.

Plus, the satisfaction of knowing your skin is truly clean is a weeny pleasure like no other.

Remember: Results won't happen overnight, but over time you'll find that your serums will come home more easily, your dull spots will disappear, and your skin tone will be more even and smooth.

If your shinny starts to feel irritated or scarce, you may have over-exfoliated. If this happens, try adjusting how often you exfoliate with new products, how long you exfoliate, and the pressure you use to let your skin reclaim.


Michelle explains the science behind beauty products at Science laborator Muffin Knockout Science. She has a PhD in synthetic medicative chemistry. You can follow her for science-based lulu tips on Instagram and Facebook.