DIY Body Scrub Basics

The seasons are changing: the sun’s working shorter shifts, and the temperature is steadily dropping. You might notice your skin going through some changes, too: dryness and itching creeping in, and skin losing its brightness and luster. To get skin back to it’s happy place, why not add a DIY body scrub into the mix?

Body scrubbing is great for stimulating healthy blood flow, removing dead skin cells from the surface, and allowing our skin to better absorb moisture and emit that soft skin glow. If you don’t already have a full body scrub in your body care inventory, this is the perfect time of the year to start scrub-a-dub-dubbing in the tub. Scrubs have benefits for our skin, smell and feel lovely, and making one DIY-style allows you to customize it to your needs! You can keep the scrub for yourself, make it with friends, or give it away as a gift. Check down below for the benefits of using a scrub on your skin, and for all the steps to make this indulgent treat at home!

Body Scrub 101

A body scrub is a simple combination of an exfoliant and a moisturizing oil, to restore smooth skin and give a refreshed, nourished glow.

The Exfoliant

Start off by selecting your exfoliating component. The most common options are sugar and salt because they are always on hand and easy to find. One of the reasons a sugar scrub (versus another type of exfoliant) is so good for our skin is that sugar acts as a humectant, drawing moisture into the skin to keep it hydrated and soft. But the scrub options don’t stop with sugar!

Ground coffee is great for stimulating blood flow to reduce puffiness, inflammation, and redness. It’s also a powerful antioxidant that helps repair sun-damaged skin. Coffee grounds also make good exfoliants for DIY face masks, for reducing redness after sun exposure, or de-puffing after long nights.

You can also try soothing oats or ground almonds for more gentle scrubbing action. These exfoliants are readily available in most pantries, and pack their own nutritional benefits for skin. Oats are known skin-soothers (remember getting oatmeal baths when you had chicken pox?), containing saponins that ease inflammation and cleanse the pores. Try tossing your oats in a food processor and pulsing, to get a fine oatmeal powder that’s easy to spread over skin. Almonds contain skin-healthy vitamins and antioxidants to support healthy, glowing skin.

For an extra scrubby texture try sea salt or jojoba beads. Salt helps reduce skin inflammation and ward off acne-causing bacteria, in addition to regulating oil. Jojoba beads are a great alternative to common plastic exfoliants found in scrubs, and are made up of moisturizing jojoba wax.

Any of these exfoliants will give your skin a super stimulating scrub that smells and feels luxurious. When shopping for scrubs at your favorite stores, it’s important that the product uses environmentally safe exfoliants. Most importantly, avoid microbeads: small bits of plastic that can end up in bodies of water, where they can wreak havoc on ecosystems. We advise to avoid any product where the scrubbing component isn’t something you can eat.

The Oil

Now your exfoliant needs an oil BFF. Pure vitamin E oil is a popular option, but any oil in your pantry will work just as well. Cold pressed olive oil is a great option for its restorative fatty acids, almond or coconut oil for their warm, tropical fragrances, or pure Argan oil for its lightweight texture and nourishing, softening abilities. Imagine how luxurious a sugar-coconut combination will feel on the skin. Or how a coffee-almond scrub will perk you up with visions of your piping hot morning coffee (yes, we can hear you ooh-ing and ahh-ing through the screen). Your one-way ticket to luxury is as simple as blending two ingredients for a quick and effective scrub to suit your mood.

The Extras

Want to jazz up your scrub? We’re with you, girl! Essential oils are the perfect way to add a little flavor to the mix. Try lavender oil for soothing the skin and calming the senses. Blend in energizing citrus oil, or even citrus fruit zest, for a bit of cleansing and brightening. Or give yourself an exotic escape with anti-aging sandalwood oil. A few drops of your favorite essential oil can really customize this DIY scrub. So each time you make it, you can create a new treat!

The Recipe

Now that you’ve got your ingredients nailed down, it’s time to whip up your body scrub! The basic rule of thumb is to use a 2:1 exfoliant-to-oil ratio, with 2 cups exfoliant to 1 cup oil being the most common recipe. If you’re adding essential oil, we recommend starting small at 3 drops, and smell-testing before adding more. It’s all dependent on which oil you choose; oils like lavender or tea tree will smell stronger than oils like vanilla or rose.

Once you’ve measured your ingredients, combine them in a clean bowl and mix with a fork or narrow spatula. An important tip: if you’re using an essential oil, use a non-porous tool that won’t pick up its scent. Especially if it’s a tool you plan to cook with in the future! Mix well until combined, with oil and exfoliant completely blended.

Storing Your Scrub

So how do you store and preserve your scrub? Some oils, such as lemon essential oil and coconut oil (or even honey if you’d like to add that in) are great natural preservatives. They can keep your scrub in good shape, long enough to use the entire batch. Ultimately, we suggest making smaller batches of this DIY recipe so that you’re able to take advantage of the ingredients while they’re most potent.

Store in an airtight container, at room temperature (avoid extreme hot or cold) for up to 3-6 months. We’ve got the perfect container for storing your scrub! The 100% PURE Blood Orange Cleansing Balm tub is environmentally friendly, sealed for shower safety and bonus, you may already have this container at your disposal! Other alternatives might be an empty body butter tub or mason jar, as they have tight lids to keep your scrub fresh. Just be careful using slippery glass jars in the shower!

More Tips for Body Scrub DIY

Don’t Put These In Your Scrub!

Dun-dun-dun; the other shoe is about to drop. What you put in your DIY scrub is just as important as what you leave out. We definitely do NOT recommend adding microbeads, cheap oils, synthetic fragrances, or chemical preservatives to your scrub. We know you want your scrub to last and last, but most synthetics and preservatives are bad for the environment and bad for our skin. Cheap oils won’t give you lasting moisture, and synthetic fragrances and perfumes can cause irritation. Why add these synthetic ingredients when you can keep it pure, potent, and clean?

Body Scrub After-Care

You didn’t think the pampering ended at the scrub, did you?! Speaking of body butter, it’s important to lotion up after a body scrub! All that freshly exposed baby skin will need some moisture to keep it soft, smooth, and protected. Use a cream that’s gentle and soothing, rather than stimulating or extra strong, as freshly exfoliated skin can be a bit sensitive. Our Honey Almond Whipped Body Butter, French Lavender Nourishing Body Cream, or Coconut Whipped Body Butter are great places to start! Each is easy to pair with coconut or almond scrubs. Happy scrubbing!