Maybe you've seen them on social media or at your local holistic beauty store. Maybe you were rummaging through a friend's medicine cabinet one day, or overlooked it in another friend's fridge. Whatever your first encounter with the soon-to-be ubiquitous , you won't forget it easily. Handheld tools are all the rage right now, and for good reason.
Jade rollers - as the name implies - have been around since the 17th century and were originally used by Chinese royalty and members of high society. The roller is made of solid jade, with one larger stone for the larger areas of the face (cheeks, chin, forehead) and one smaller stone for the harder-to-reach areas (under the eyes, mouth).
Okay, so why am I telling you to roll spherical crystals on your face? First of all, jade is a stone that has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine because of its purifying properties as well as its ability to heal and restore the skin. Add to that the fact that you may use a jade roller for lymphatic drainage and facial massage, and the tool is essentially a knife and needle free alternative to plastic surgery.
I know it sounds extreme, but specialized rollers can't get enough of the tool, and as a convert, I can vouch for the effectiveness of the Jade Roller in reducing puffiness, minimizing fine lines and ensuring your daily serum penetrates deeply into your skin. By using the Jade Roller daily (sometimes twice a day if you are feeling indecent), you are actually giving yourself a gentle facial massage. Not only does this massaging action increase circulation (hello, plump, firm, glowing skin), it also breaks up any stagnation in the lymphatic system that may be causing puffiness or blemishes, and provides some much-needed thin layers of chromatography to your neglected facial muscles. (Tight muscles = wrinkles, FYI.)
Convinced yet? Here's how to use the Jade Roller.
Cleanse + Treat.
You should only use the Jade Roller on clean skin. Like I said before, the massaging action will help any products on your skin absorb more deeply, and the same goes for old makeup and grime. So, before you consider picking up your Jade Roller, wash your face first.
If you plan to roll around in the morning to reduce the puffiness from last night when I barely slept, consider putting your jade roller in the fridge overnight. Cool jade will reduce swelling by constricting blood vessels. It also feels great on tired skin.
Rolling at night? Complete your standard cleansing routine, remove all traces of the day, and apply any serums and/or oils you like before bed. After giving them a minute to soak in, take your mind off of them. The jade roller will help the skin absorb them before they have time to evaporate or rub into the pillow.
Start rolling.
Here comes the fun. There is no right or wrong area to start with your face, but make sure you roll from the center outward. I also like to use my nose as a divider to visually divide my face in half and work on one side at a time to make sure I'm not missing anything.
Starting at your chest, press gently, stroking the jade roller along your skin outward and upward. Rub across the same skin three to four times, always moving to the outer edge of your face. When you need to return the roller to the starting point, pick it up and place it back (do not roll backwards).
Move up from the chest: neck, chin/jawline, cheeks (roll from the nose toward the ears), under the eyes and eyelids (use the small end of the roller here and very gently move the temples from the inner corners of the eyes outward), eyebrows (switch back to the larger side and roll down, following the contour of the brow bone), forehead (start in the middle and roll).
Now do the same thing on the other side.
Finish by rolling soothingly upward from between the eyebrows to the hairline.
The whole process should take two to four minutes, depending on how many passes you make and how many facial areas you hit. As you use the jade roller, you'll see your skin start to redden - and that's a good thing! This means circulation is increasing.
Clean that roller!
If you want to use an extra serum or moisturizer, go for it. If not, your final step should always be to thoroughly clean the jade roller with warm soapy water. This stuff touches your face every day: keep it clean.
