My dear friend Stacy just moved into a new house & we decided to meet at her new place before our girl’s night out last night. Thankfully, I knew of the perfect last minute housewarming gift.
Chances are you have everything you need to make a homemade body scrub in your pantry already. For this one I used raw sugar but in the past I’ve used brown sugar, sea salt or kosher salt. I think the raw sugar is going to be my new go to though, I really love how it makes a nice firm, get that nasty flaky old scaly skin right off scrub. Super fine body scrubs anger me. I’m like seriously? Do you know how rare it is that I have the time to EXFOLIATE? And now I open the jar & it’s as scrubby as an old washcloth?? IN-furiating. I want a scrub that means business.
It’s not all rough & tough though, lemon extract & vanilla extract smell like baked goods heaven. I’ve also used vanilla with almond or even a splash of peppermint extract for holiday presents. Essential oils such as chamomile, rosemary, lavender or rose make a great herbal scrub. As for the oil I love the scent & lusciousness coconut oil brings but you could always just use olive or whatever you have on hand. (my pink post-it recipe above calls for 1 tbs of “lt olive oil”, that means “light”…extra virgin can smell a bit too strong for my taste)
Basically oil+salt or sugar+scent= Body Scrub.
Mix all your ingredients well & then toss it in a pretty jar with some ribbon & call yourself Suzy Freakin’ Homemaker. Just don’t forget to make a little extra to keep for yourself.
Have you ever made homemade body scrub before?
Want More Scrubby Goodness? Check out my post on personalized Mother’s Day scrubs here.
One of my favorite homemade scrubs is mixing about 2 parts coffee grounds to 1 part coarse salt with enough oil to make it stick together and then a splash more. Mmmmm, I love coffee. Sometimes I’ll actually use leftover grounds (spread them out on a pan to dry), but once I bought a chocolate flavored coffee just to make the scrub with as gifts. It makes my skin so soft, but my husband says it makes the shower look like I’ve been potting plants in there, haha. 🙂 I’ll have to try this one out though, especially with the vanilla and almond. I like the light sting you get when you get part coarse salt too. And I’m totally with you on the super fine exfoliants – what is the point??
Have you ever heard of using baking soda to exfoliate your face? You put a small spoonful in the palm of your hand, enough water to make a paste, and gently massage all over your face and then rinse off. Softest skin ever. Unfortunately, I have had acne since puberty, and it is just the gift that keeps on giving. That’s to say…baking soda is BASIC on the pH scale. Most acne washes are ACIDIC. This is basic chemistry, but sometimes if you don’t think about it beforehand, you’ll end up in the shower crying while a science experiment burns your face. So handle with care if you decide to wash your face with another soap afterward to remove all leftover residue. Baby shampoo is a good choice for that. 😉
Wow, you my friend are just the gift that keeps on giving!!
I’m off to buy coffee grounds (self-proclaimed Keurig addict) & baking soda (and possibly baby shampoo) immediately!
Thanks so much for the tips, maybe one day we should do a homemade spa day where we can all contribute great ideas like to one another!
Seriously baking soda?! This makes me so happy! I’ve also had a problem with acne, and have probably tried everything under the sun. I’m definitely going to try this! Thanks!
Be careful! 🙂 It’s a great exfoliant, but I have found that exfoliating too much makes me break out even more. I guess it makes my skin more susceptible to clogged pores? The absolute best thing I use for acne is called Acne Statin. Their website is a little janky, but that stuff is amazing. And I, too, have tried everything Rx and OTC under the sun. It gives me the best skin possible for me. 😉
I always heard that if you exfoliate too often (especially your face) it will actually stimulate oil glands and therefore make you break out more. I think once a week is probably fine though…and I really use it most for my legs anyway. Good tip though!
I’m certainly going to try this.
Love the homemade spa day idea! And this scrub sounds like it smells really yummy! I just pinned it to try later! 🙂
I love making my own soaps and scrubs. I just have to remind my husband that even though they may smell edible they may not taste that way! And I’m totally with you on the weak scrub, but my husband says it’s just because my skin is smoother – it’s just smoother than his. Great Post!
Thank you for sharing this! I really want to try making some that smells of coconut and vanilla. (To indulge in my wanting to escape to a far away place, but cannot until next year!)
Hi Natasha! I just made this yesterday and LOVE LOVE LOVE! 🙂 Didn’t have any lt olive oil so substituted vitamin E oil and it turned out great! thanks so much for the awesome recipe! 🙂