Earlier this week, I had the privilege of speaking with About.com Skincare Guru, Jen Adkins.  As a skilled cosmetologist with a passion for writing, Jen has blessed us all with wonderful skincare tips on a budget.  She also always has product recommendations for whatever you may need.  You can read more about her here.

For spring skincare, Jen’s essentials are a good exfoliator, moisturizer, and spf.  To get over the dry and dull winter skin, exfoliate with a good scrub.  She recommends a good homemade scrub (like this) or Beautisol’s Go Slough Yourself.

After you remove all of  the dead skin, you will want to moisturize the new, fresh layer of skin.  Jen really enjoys the Sweet Lemon line from Body Shop.  She has also become a recent addict of argan oil.  You can use it in your hair, as  a facial moisturizer, or as a regular body lotion.  It’s a definitely a multi-faceted product worth the money!

After that, you’ll want to make sure you are protected from the sun, since 90% of aging is caused by the sun.  That’s enough to make me invest in a 10″ brim sun hat!  Jen’s pick is Clarin’s UV Plus with SPF 40.  It’s lightweight and doesn’t cause any build-up.

Lastly, we discussed makeup trends!  For eyes, it’s all about color!  If you can’t (or don’t want to) pull off the orangey/red hues of the season, you can try out the cat eye for a retro appeal.  Lips continue to be bright and red, which makes me a very happy gal!

What are your spring go-to skincare and beauty items?