5 DIY Body Scrubs You Can Make Right Now

Body scrubs are a great way to pamper your skin. They exfoliate the surface to remove dead skin cells which provides a host of benefits such as allowing your skin to absorb moisture better, unclogging pores, and preventing ingrown hairs. Your skin will be smoother and more even since dry dead skin cells can build up to make your skin look dull and feel rough to the touch. 

In the case of exfoliation, there really can be too much of a good thing. Over exfoliation can cause skin to become tender. For the best results, stick to exfoliating once or twice a week to keep skin glowing. 

We recommend our Sea Salt Body Scrub which smooths the skin with the power of Celtic sea salt. It's also packed full of beneficial essential oils like clary sage, and frankincense. Clary sage fights inflammation while moisturizing your skin and frankincense helps repair skin and encourages the growth of new skin cells.

For a facial scrub, our Feng Shea Facial Scrub is the perfect all-natural solution! This scrub is made with Irish moss and rosemary essential oils and is formulated for the more delicate skin on your face. Irish moss contains 92 essential minerals and is rich in vitamins A and C. Rosemary essential oil is anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial to help fight breakouts and redness.

We're also sharing our five favorite DIY body scrub recipes that you can make with 5 ingredients or less--most of which you likely already have in your kitchen! Let's get into it!

Scrubs in 5 Ingredients or Less

Easy 2 Ingredient Sugar Scrub - The Basic That's Anything But

This recipe is for total beginners, or people who just like to keep it simple. From this base scrub, you can customize to your heart’s delight! This recipe makes a little more than 8 ounces of scrub, so you’ll likely have some leftover. Shelf life of this scrub is about 4 months if you don’t get water in it.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable/carrier oil of your choice (coconut oil, sunflower oil, jojoba, etc) 

Instructions:

Combine ingredients - Place sugar into a bowl. Add in 1/2 cup of oil and stir until well blended. If the sugar scrub seems too dry for your liking add more oil, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you get the consistency you like. This is completely up to your personal preference. We promise you can't mess this one up! 

Store your scrub in an airtight container.

Coffee & Brown Sugar Body Scrub 

The sand-like texture of coffee grounds makes a great exfoliant in homemade scrubs. The grounds work to gently remove dead skin cells, which boosts circulation and helps rejuvenate the skin. Leave this one on for several minutes before rinsing!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup fresh ground coffee*
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil (or your preferred carrier oil)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

*The coffee grounds in this recipe don't have to be freshly ground, we just like the smell. The grounds can also be from the cannister, or dried coffee grounds from your morning pot of coffee—talk about upcycling!

Instructions

Mix together 1/2 cup fresh ground coffee and 1/2 cup brown sugar. Add 1/2 cup coconut oil into the coffee mixture and 1 tsp. vanilla extract (optional). Mix until well combined and store in an airtight container.
 

(Green) Tea Sugar Scrub 

Green tea is a wonderful anti-inflammatory that helps soothe blemishes and scars. If you prefer another type of tea, great news--all teas contain tannins, which are antioxidants and antimicrobial.

Ingredients

• Contents of 2 green tea bags (or any other tea)
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup of soft or melted coconut oil (or your preferred natural oil)

Instructions

Mix tea and sugar together and add your oil. You can use more or less of the oil depending on if you prefer the scrub to be more oily or drier. Store in an airtight container

Honey Citrus Sugar Scrub 

Fresh citrus is such a refreshing scent. Combined with humectant powerhouses sugar and honey with moisturizing natural oil, this scrub will leave you feeling dewy and sweet.

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated or raw sugar
• 1 tsp pure honey
• 1/4 cup olive oil (or preferred oil)
• 2 tsp fresh citrus zest 

Instructions

Mix the honey and olive oil in a cup until well combined, stir the honey-oil mixture into 1 cup of sugar. When you've achieved the desired consistency, stir in the citrus zest and store in an airtight container. 

Himalayan Salt Scrub 

Himalayan salt has naturally-occurring trace minerals that make it fantastic for scrubs, and because the salt dissolves easily as you scrub, there's no worry about over exfoliation. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup of fine-grain Himalayan salt
• 1/2 cup of your preferred natural oil
• A few drops of your favorite essential oil (optional)

Instructions

Place 1 cup of fine Himalayan salt in a bowl. Measure out 1/2 cup of natural oil. Add oil by the spoonful until you achieve a consistency you like. As with the sugar scrubs, this can be stored in an airtight container. Avoid getting water into the scrub to keep it from spoiling.

Pro tips:

• Sugar or salt can be pulsed in a blender to get a finer texture, making for gentler scrubs if you have sensitive skin or just don’t like how coarse the sugar/salt is. Blending it down into finer grains makes converting any of these recipes into a face scrub a piece of cake.
  
  
• Moisturize while damp. Exfoliating allows your skin to absorb moisturizers easily. After you rinse off your scrub, pat yourself mostly dry and rub any leftover oil from the scrub into your skin. Now is also the time to follow up with a moisturizer of your choice!
  
  
• Salt and sugar scrubs made with shelf-stable ingredients that do not contain water do not need a preservative so long as no water is introduced. Never store your sugar scrub in the shower or dip into the jar with damp hands. Water will cause bacteria, mold, and yeast to grow in your scrub. Instead, scoop out a single use (however much that is for you) into a shatter-proof container and take that into the shower with you. Leave the full jar nicely dry on your shelf, ready for next time!
  
  
• If you’re feeling crafty and want to gift these on the holidays, there are quite a few organic and natural preservatives that can be added.

Bonus tip:

Dry brushing

Want to try something a little bit different? This Ayurvedic practice is centuries old. Dry brushing is a great way to exfoliate dry skin. It also increases blood circulation, encourages lymphatic drainage, unclogs pores, and stimulates your nervous system. Stick to natural fibers—bristles made from plant fibers will be stiffer and animal-hair brushes will be softer.

1. Start with completely dry skin. Dry brushing is best done right before a shower.
2. Start at your ankle and move the brush over your skin in long, circular motions that go in the direction of your heart.
3. Maintain an even, slightly firm pressure as you brush -- never apply full pressure.

Avoid dry brushing if you have eczema, psoriasis, or broken skin such as cuts or rashes. Dry brushing can exacerbate serious skin conditions.