6 Gua Sha Stones For Super Easy Home-Facial Massages

It's the common denominator among Instagram flat lays, fancy facials, and traditional Chinese medicine: it's Gua sha. The centuries-old practice of "scraping" the skin to relieve tension and boost blood circulation has gone beauty mainstream — with Western brands getting in on the game in the name of sculpted cheekbones and healthier complexions. If you're not ready to return to the spa yet and have spent many quarantine hours attempting to learn DIY facial techniques — I'm a big fan of Williamsburg-based Lanshin's tutorials, which help me feel like I actually know what I'm doing — then getting into gua sha may be just the thing.

"Gua sha creates flow and movement under the surface to rid tension blockages and allow the tissue to be nourished, resulting in more radiant skin," FaceGym National Training Manager Madalaina Conti tells Refinery29. "Doing this is daily is best, but even a few times per week will yield great results." (If you want to deep-dive the origins of the practice — which involve using spoons, coins, and other objects — be warned that the real-deal photos are far from pretty.) Ahead, we do a deep dive into the various stone shapes to try (from jade to rose quartz and amethyst) along with the pro tips to help you along your at-home face-massage journey.

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