Shaffali Detoxifying Exfoliant

Independent spirits and the initiation of taking a chance on something risky and different thrill me. The thought that someone will invent a new beauty line because there was a gap in the market that doesn't serve them inspires me.

G and I have been lucky in coming across more than one woman who fills this roll. Makeba Lloyd with her line of products called Butter is one, and more recently we've met Shaffali Maglani, a yoga instructor and the founder of the skin care line called Shaffali.

Shaffali has incorporated her lifelong lessons of ayurveda and natural skin 'rituals' into a line of products filled with spa-quality ingredients. Her daily life includes yoga instruction as well as touting her line of earthen products, inspired by Indian traditions and a natural approach to skin care.

Personally, I am very picky about what I use on my face. "Ayurvedic" or "natural" doesn't thrill me because I am more in the "does it work?!" school of thought.

Recently, Shaffali gave me the opportunity to try out her detoxifying enzymatic face exfoliator, $34 from www.shaffali.com (and coming to stores soon). The jar contains a pleasantly hearty, but not-too-thick facial exfoliator which smells of pineapple and peppermint.

I have problem skin: Large pores, uneven texture, dry/oily, prone to breakouts. You name it and I have the affliction. Products such as St. Ives' Apricot Scrub or this wretched walnut shell exfoliator from The Body Shop that I used as a teenager are my personal hells. Those large particles actually create micro tears on your skin and that is NOT the right consistency for exfoliating the delicate skin on your face.

Shaffali's enzymatic face exfoliator contains micro-fine particles, which are perfect for exfoliating my face. Her scrub is akin to this exquisite spa-level microderm prep scrub a wonderful French aesthetician had once given me. Her jar suggests everyday use, but with sensitive skin like mine, I use it about every 2 days.

The scrub has peppermint in it, which creates a wonderful cooling sensation, while the pineapple enzymes help slough away all the 'city dirt' I accumulate on my face. The cool rush is almost so thrilling, that if I didn't know better, I would use it every day. But that's excessive.

My skin is much smoother and my makeup application goes much quicker after using this scrub. Because of THIS ECONOMY, I had held off buying a new facial scrub until I could research and find where I would get the most 'bang for my buck.' I have been consistently using this scrub for over 2 weeks, and I feel I have at least 2 months of use left. A little goes a long way because of the very well-milled exfoliating agent.

In the interest of full "journalistic" disclosure: Even though G and I have had the pleasure of meeting with Shaffali and hearing the story about the conception of her line, I would not ever lie to you about the effectiveness of a product based solely on personal affiliations.

Good, that's out of the way now. Anyway, I love this facial scrub, I really feel my skin is better for it and I look forward to reviewing more of her products.

Glowing Kisses!

S.