Body scrubs are a wonderful way to exfoliate your skin whilst moisturizing at the same time. While store-bought body scrubs can be expensive and sometimes full of questionable ingredients, homemade ones can be very economical, fun to make, and can be tailored to suit your skin’s needs.

Exfoliating is an important step in keeping your skin glowing, fresh, and free from clogged pores. Though our body naturally sheds dead skin cells regularly, certain body products, some clothing, and make-up can result in a build-up of dead skin cells, leaving us with dull skin that is more prone to breakouts.

With just a few simple ingredients found in most kitchen cupboards, you can make a body scrub that works perfectly for your skin type. You should note that body scrubs and facial scrubs are different. The skin on our faces is much more delicate and requires a much softer touch.

As well, if you have specific dermatological issues, be very careful with exfoliating and check with a specialist first.

How and When to Use Body Scrubs

When in the shower or bath, get a good amount of body scrub between your fingers and start to massage it into your wet skin. Move in circular motions with gentle pressure. Do not focus too long on one area of the skin, as it could cause irritation. As well, vigorous exfoliating can strip your skin of its natural moisture, so you should not exfoliate every day. Once to twice a week is sufficient.

The Basic Ingredients

To make homemade body scrubs, you will need something to act as an abrasive. This could be coffee grounds, fine sea salt, sugar, or ground oats. As well you will need something to bind the abrasives together. This can be as simple as adding an oil such as jojoba, olive, coconut, or almond oil. You might also want to add some essential oils for their medicinal and aromatherapeutic benefits.

Some folks like to also add body butter such as shea butter or cocoa butter to their body scrubs for extra nourishment.

Unless you have only made a batch large enough for one treatment, you will need a clean jar to store your body scrub in for future use. Be careful with glass jars in and around the shower, especially with wet or oily hands.

Coffee Grounds

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Making your own body scrub is an excellent use for used coffee grounds. Before you toss them in the compost, lay your used grounds on a tray to dry out. Next, pour two tablespoons of melted coconut oil into a clean jar and add about a cup of coffee grounds. You may also add 3-5 drops of your favorite essential oil at this point, too. Stir everything together.

Feel free to substitute the coconut oil for a different carrier oil of your choice.

Sea Salt and Epson Salt

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Sea salt works wonders as an exfoliant. You want to get finely ground sea salt as coarse would be too abrasive. Sea salt is thought to help draw out toxins from the skin and is better used on tougher areas such as the knees or elbows.  Epsom salt has long been used as a bathtime buddy. It is used to help ease tired and stressed muscles and works as a great teammate to sea salt.

In a bowl, mix 1/2 cup of Epsom salt, 1/2 cup of fine sea salt, and 1/2 cup of carrier oil of your choice. Again, you may add 3-5 drops of essential oil, too. Mix everything together and store in a jar until needed.

Sugar

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Sugar is a great candidate if you are looking for a milder body scrub. Sugar is a lot less abrasive than salt and melts away quite quickly. This makes it ideal for more sensitive and tender areas of the body.

A basic recipe of one cup of sugar to 1/4 cup of carrier oil, such as almond or olive oil, is a good start. You can add 3-5 drops of essential oil of your choice if you are looking for fragrance or medicinal properties.

Oats

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Oats have long been used as a treatment for skin complaints. Due to their anti-inflammatory properties, oats can be used to soothe and replenish damaged skin.

A very simple body scrub can be made form tossing some oats into a blender and whizzing them onto a powder. You can decide how fine you wish the powder to be. You can simply add water to the oat powder to make a paste or use a carrier oil or vegetable glycerine for extra nourishment.

This article is for informational purposes only. See medical advice before using home remedies to treat medical conditions. Do research on all essential oils for use and dosage recommendations. Never use undiluted essential oils on the skin. 

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