"Dullness is the first sign of aging." This is what my friend Marta recently told me. I'd been remarking on the unfortunate reality that, as we age, we lose color and glow in our skin as well as our hair, making us gradually look more and more, well, corpse like. Marta's advice got my attention (and I paraphrase):

"Dullness is the first sign of aging, which is why daily exfoliation is the most important beauty step to keep skin youthful. You need to make sure the dead skin cells don't build up a layer on your face that blocks your glow."

I was instantly convinced and convicted—I need to exfoliate! I want to glow! I don't spend money on high-end skincare products, but I do see the signs of aging in my 36-year old face and I'm eager to do anything that's quick, inexpensive, and effective. Exfoliator was on my shopping list, so I detoured down the beauty aisle at Safeway really hoping for a club card deal. And there it was (possibly glowing): St. Ives Apricot Scrub on club card. It was like being reunited with a long lost friend—I used this product back in high school when I was a veritable glowworm and had no business exfoliating.

You can imagine my delight when I saw that the tube is now stamped with: Allure 2013 Readers' Choice Award Winner. And, with the club card deal, one tube cost only $3. Was it my lucky day or what? I was tempted to buy in bulk, but then stopped myself; I'd made that mistake before. I activated my self-control and bought just one.

Men and women alike, I highly recommend you include exfoliation in your skin care routine. St. Ives has a wide selection of inexpensive exfoliators. There are three levels of classification: gentle, moderate, or deep. Apricot Scrub is given a rating of deep; because of this, I'm exfoliating my sensitive face just 2-3 times a week. I think a more gentle scrub would better suit my skin. Next I plan to try their Oatmeal Face Scrub & Mask (rated gentle).

Keep glowing!