Steel Gua Sha Tool

What are Gua Sha tools?

Gua Sha tools are used to sweep across skin, using short or long strokes to promote circulation and increase blood flow. Always use on skin that has been lubricated with oil or water. Gua Sha tools come in a variety of materials and shapes, Blue Labelle stocks natural Rose Quartz Gua Sha and these Steel ones.

Gua Sha tools aim to:

• Relax muscles.
• Get energy and blood flowing.
• Reduce puffiness in the face.
• Encourage healthy blood circulation.
• Eliminate toxins and generate fresh oxygen and nutrient flow.
• Encourage the skin to make new collagen.
• Drain and clear the lymphatic system.
• Smooth wrinkles and fine lines - you'll never get rid of them totally, but regular massage will stimulate the collagen and skin underneath to lessen their appearance.
• Reduce dark circles.
• Soften smile lines.
• Improve neck area - lift and firm up double chin and jawline puffiness.
• Lift eyebrows and area under eyebrows that can sag as we age.

How to Use Your Steel Gua Sha

How to use Gua Sha on Face

Before we begin: Make sure you skin is wet or has oil on it, never use your Gua Sha tool on dry skin. Facial oils are perfect for going on the skin before a Gua Sha massage. Your tool will slip and glide over your face with minimal friction.

On the face always go from centre of the face outwards, and upwards, and it's good if you can end your sweeps by then going down the neck to clear lymphatic.

Hold your tool at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to your skin or less. The higher the angle at which you 'scrape', the more intense the effect and a redness can occur, the lower the angle to the skin the more gentle the massage.

When working the tool across your skin, always move in one direction.

Start at your neck stroking down from beneath the ear to the collarbone, to drain the lymphatic. Do both sides. Using the curved edge. This is like cleaning a kitchen surface before beginning to prepare a meal.

Now you can begin the routine -

• Going up the neck from collarbone, giving the Gua Sha a little wiggle when you get to the top of the neck, to stimulate the acupressure point and release tension. Be gentle when going up across the front of your throat, or simply avoid going across this area.
• Puffiness should be reduced, and muscles will be relaxed, through the stroking action. A redness / flush may occur as you stimulate the blood flow. Make sure you don't press too hard, allow the weight of the gua sha to do the work for you.
• Now using the top of the tool go along the jaw with the indent at the top of the tool locking along the jawline, start at your chin and sweeping up to the ear, then down the neck to drain, Repeat 5-9 times. This can really reduce the tension kept in the jaw.
• Now using curved side sweep from the side of the nose up to the temple, up to the cheek bone but not above on the delicate eye area.
• Carefully go across the eyebrows using the indent top of tool and sweep up.
• On the forehead - hold skin taut and go up from eyebrows into hair line using curved side, always again giving a little wiggle at the top.
• Any wrinkles or frown lines can be focused on with the bottom of the Gua Sha tool, wiggle it right into those areas to stimulate collagen and aim to lessen the frown lines.
• If you want to go around the eyes simply press the cold Gua Sha tool along the delicate under & above eye area, do not scrape.
• Now go from forehead back into hairline, this is great at reducing tension and headaches.
• After completing the face and head always then go back down the neck from under ear to collarbone on both sides, to drain all the lymphatic system and stagnant energy that you have unlocked with your Gua Sha massage.

Tips & Safety Considerations

Tips for your massage with gua sha tools

• Always use light pressure, imagine the pressure of writing on a page with a pen.
• Be consistent, the best results come when you use Gua Sha tools regularly, even if it's just for a few minutes every day.
• You could start doing the Gua Sha for face routine once a week, building up to more frequently, then once you're ready to you can perform the massage every day.

Safety considerations

• Not recommended for those with rashes, sunburn, blood coagulation issues.
• Do not use if you are prone to broken capillaries.
• Do not use on acne areas, or broken skin.
• Proper Gua Sha done on the body in Chinese medicine is meant to make red marks (that's what the Sha means!), but of course we are being more careful on the face, so go lightly. Any red marks that you do create show you are stimulating and clearing the skin. If you do press too hard and make a little bruise then it will go after a few days. Best not to though - light pressure is all you need to have great effects with these wonderful gua sha tools.

Pascale Says

After a long day there's nothing I like to do more than give myself a gua sha massage. It just feels so nice, and rejuvenating! I know it can be a bit daunting to learn the technique but once you have i'm sure you will love it too. I cleanse my face first using my cleansing oil, then add a few drops of facial oil to my face & start the routine. It doesn't take long, and it feels really relaxing, plus it's doing all of the lymphatic drainage and stimulating of the skin needed to give a pep back to your face!