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When someone with a glowing complexion spills their skin care secrets — you take notes.

In a recent Refinery29 article, four models  dished the details on their skincare regime. While each one’s routine was different, they all were loyal followers of one technique that is cheaper and safer than Botox  — it’s called facial massage. 

What is facial massage?  In Japan, facial massage came from the ancient, traditional anma, which literally means ‘to press and stroke.’ Apply a deep rub to specific areas of your face, focusing on relieving the tension that causes lines and wrinkles. This type of massage has been a secret weapon of aestheticians and makeup artists for decades because it literally wakes up the face. 

Why does it work? Many people don’t realize that the face has muscles, and just like any other part of the body those muscles need to be stretched.  By stroking and rubbing your face you increase the lymph and blood flow, and remove toxins and dead skin cells, which improves the overall health of the skin. Other benefits include increased facial muscle tone, wrinkle reduction, brighter complexion, reduction of puffiness, and softer skin. 

How do you do it? The best part about facial massage is that you can do it yourself and still notice immediate results.  Follow these steps to give yourself an incredible facial massage:

1. Start on your cheeks. In an upward motion, draw big circles using your fingers or knuckles.

2. Focus on one side of the face at a time. With long upward strokes, rub from the mid-jaw to the cheekbone, applying pressure for a moment at the top. 

3. Use upward strokes to work the smile lines. Start at the corners of your mouth and work to the corners of your nose. 

4. With your fingers, lift and hold both brows to open up the eye area. Rub in a circle around the eye socket out to the temples, eventually expanding to include the forehead.

5. To plump lips, use thumbs and index fingers to quickly pluck all across the top and bottom lip, which stimulates blood flow.

Photo by:  Coco Mault – via Flickr