Before You Begin :

• Always start with a clean face.

• Pull your hair away from your face.

• Ensure access to your décolleté.

Apply your favorite high-quality face oil to your face and décolleté, you might notice that you don’t need as much oil for Gua Sha as you do for cupping. Use a clean towel to dry your hands afterward for a secure grip on your Gua Sha.

I recommend beginning with lymphatic drainage, to maximize the detoxifying benefits of Gua Sha:

• start at the center of your chest, just below the collarbone. Glide the smooth wave of your Gua Sha as flat as possible against your skin, from the middle of your chest to your armpit, 3 times.

• find a point under your earlobe called the waterwheel. Glide down the side of your neck 3 times. Feel free to play around with different sides of the Gua Sha to relieve any extra tension.

• locate the point under your chin. Using the flat surface of your Gua Sha, glide below your jawline toward the waterwheel point, 3 times.

• Finally, we’ll connect these three movements: glide from under your chin to the waterwheel, down the neck to the collar bone, and from the sternum to your armpit, creating a zigzag motion. Do this sequence 3 times.

• Repeat everything on the other side.

You’re now ready to move on to Gua Sha for your face.

Forehead :

• using the smooth wave, glide your Gua Sha from between your eyebrows to your hairline 3 times.

• move to the medial half of your eyebrow and glide upward 3 times.

• glide from the top middle of your eyebrow upward 3 times.

• glide from the lateral part of your eyebrow upward 3 times.

• Finally, glide from your temple to your hairline 3 times.

• Repeat this sequence on the other side.

Lower Face :

• Using the deep curve, place it on your jawline and glide from your chin to your ear, 3 times. It might feel a bit bumpy here, so use gentler pressure if needed.

• From to the corner of your lip, glide towards your ear 3 times. If you’d like, you can use your other hand to hold your lips gently in place.

• Next, using the smooth wave with the ridged side up, glide along your entire cheek 3 times.

• After you’ve finished these motions, you can zig zag once just like you did before.

• Repeat on the other side

Scraping

• Scraping can be done using either the smooth line or the ridged side of your Gua Sha. The ridged side is more intense, so avoid using it on the delicate skin around your eyes.

• Facial scraping is a bit different from body scraping; you can do it horizontally or vertically with a tiny back-and-forth movement over wrinkles. Do this for a few seconds, or until you feel some heat. If your skin starts to turn red, stop, as you don’t want to bring up a Sha that’s too intense for the face.

• After you’ve worked on an area, it’s good to smooth everything out a few times before moving on to another area.

Scraping is great for boosting collagen production, so use this motion on the areas you’re most concerned about, like:

• Frown lines

• Forehead lines

• Crow's feet (using only the smooth line)

• Nasolabial folds

• Upper lip

• Corners of the mouth

• Lower lip and chin

If, like me, you hold a lot of tension in your upper body, scraping your neck and top shoulders at the end of your routine can feel amazing. For this, scrape in one direction rather than back and forth. You can use stronger pressure if it feels good. And don’t be alarmed if you see some redness; it’s common if you’re carrying tension. Just stop before it gets too red to avoid a Sha.

Finishing Touches :

• To conclude my routine, I like do some effleurage with my hands on my face and neck. This helps to integrate all the previous movements in a soothing way.

• If your skin still feels a bit oily afterwards, gently dab your face with a tissue to absorb any excess.

Treat Cleanup as an essential a part of the ritual

• Thoroughly cleaning your Gua sha  after each use will remove any buildup of oil and impurities.

• Wash your Gua Sha with warm, soapy water.

• Remember that your Gua Sha is breakable, so if you’re worried about dropping it in the sink, place a towel at the bottom for safety.

• Dry your Gua Sha with a towel before storing it in your Elemental Beauty Case.