My Second Favorite Exfoliant, and Other Mishaps That Turn Out OK
Exfoliation is the key to happiness. Or, at least the key to smooth, glowy skin. I realized long ago that I needed to find a different holy grail physical exfoliator, because while my favorite, perfect, my-skin-loves-it scrub is totally affordable and available at the drugstore, it's only readily available in the United Kingdom... and I live in America.
I've been eking out the last bits of my precious, ludicrously named Superfacialist by Una Brennan Rose Brighten and Refine Facial Scrub, but I needed to find a domestic replacement, and quick. I saw Acure's Brilliantly Brightening Facial Scrub at Target, read the ingredients, thought it looked worth a whirl, and bought a tube.
I had no idea what this scrub was going to look like, but I did not expect it to be seaweed green. The second I squeezed some out onto my fingertip I exclaimed, out loud, to no one but the ghosts that haunt my bathroom, "This looks exactly like Exfolikate!"
Listen, I thought I was about to knock the socks off the beauty world with this dupe scoop. It had been a minute since I'd used Exfolikate, but any time Sephora has a tiny tube as a perk to buy with your points I grab it. So... while I've never splurged on this very expensive cult favorite exfoliator, I have used it many times. Apparently not recently though, because I grabbed a sample at Sephora to prove that I had found a cheap alternative and... these two exfoliators are not remotely similar.
The Acure scrub has oxidized a bit, so it is more green at first use, but it is clearly a physical exfoliant while Exfolikate is more chemical. Also, Exfolikate is super expensive, no matter how amazing it is (A standard 2oz tube is $85).
So I didn't discover a dupe, but I did find a great scrub that works just as well as my beloved Una Brennan (which is still my number one, and if the day comes when I can buy it stateside HOO BOY) and is easy to find and easy on the ol' pocketbook. My skin doesn't get dried out or feel tight after using Acure's scrub, and my skin still feels nice and smooth, and looks bright and radiant.
Added bonus: If $10 for a fantastic scrub isn't enough of a deal for you, I've seen Acure's whole range in an entire endcap at my local TJ Maxx. That's right - not just a scrub or a serum here or there. We're talking the entire collection, and at least ten boxes of each item. The scrub was $5!
