Contents
Looking to treat yourself without a pricy trip down the skincare aisle but don’t know where to start? You can make your own homemade body scrub fresh at home with a few simple ingredients. Most of them can be made with staples you probably have on hand already with a touch of extra fruit or vegetables thrown in.
Here are a few simple recipes to get you started with ingredients selected to tackle some common skin woes and leave you feeling refreshed and rejuvenated in the comfort of your home.
Clarifying Tropical Body Scrub
- ½ Cup Fresh Pineapple
- 2 Tbsp. Coconut Oil
- ¼ Cup Brown Sugar
- Squeeze of Lime
Blend the fresh pineapple and coconut oil in a blender until smooth. Stir in the brown sugar and lime juice, and use immediately.
You don’t have to hit the beach in the tropics to get your glow on. This recipe packs a powerful one-two punch of clarifying and acne control plus exfoliation without being drying.
You probably already know pineapple is a rich source of vitamin C, but did you know it is also packed with antioxidants and a protein known for its skin benefits?
Oxidation reactions within the body and on the skin are a major contributor to the aging process. Antioxidants reduce these reactions, helping lower inflammation and slowing the signs of aging.
Pineapple is also rich in alpha-hydroxy acids and bromelain. What does this mean? Bromelain is a gentle exfoliant with anti-inflammatory properties, so it helps the scrub to work better while also reducing inflammation in your skin. Alpha-hydroxy acids, or AHAs, also assist with exfoliation. Plus, they are known to assist with reducing the visibility of fine lines, encouraging the production of collagen, reversing discoloration, preventing acne, and improving skin absorption of other products.
Likewise, lime juice is packed with antioxidants and can assist with correcting areas of hyperpigmentation. It also has some astringent properties, so you may want to omit this ingredient or follow up the use of this scrub with a good moisturizer if your skin is on the dry side.
Coconut oil acts as the main binder for this scrub, but it has other added benefits as well. It aids in balancing out the acids in the pineapple and lime to prevent the scrub from being too drying while enhancing the exfoliation. Additionally, coconut oil is antimicrobial, meaning it helps rid the skin of bacteria, viruses, and fungi that can lead to acne or skin infections.
Lastly, brown sugar is one of the gentlest abrasive elements most homes have on hand, making it perfect for a mild scrub. It is coarse enough to help slough off dead skin cells without irritating the skin.
Anti-Aging Peach Scrub/Mask
- ⅓ Cup Peaches (mashed)
- ⅓ Cup Banana (mashed)
- ½ Dropper of Rosehip Seed Oil
- ½ Cup Brown Sugar
Mix ingredients until well combined. Apply and allow to dry for 10-15 minutes. Massage to exfoliate and rinse with warm water.
Peaches are not just tasty fruit. These fruits are packed with vitamins A and C, important nutrients, and antioxidants. Both vitamins assist in protecting your skin from the damage caused by free radicals and play a role in collagen production. This provides your skin with dual protection and recovery to slow the progression of time.
Plus, peaches are another potent source of AHAs. Remember some of the things these complex molecules can do for our skin? This is yet another way peaches help boost collagen production, which gives our skin its elasticity and firmness, so you can imagine how far this can go in increasing the youth and vitality of your skin’s appearance. Also, it can improve areas of discoloration and improve skin’s absorption to make your other skincare products more effective.
Rosehip seed oil is not exactly an everyday item, but it is well worth the investment if you are serious about your skincare and improving your skin’s elasticity. This is another great source of vitamin A and fatty acids. This gives you additional antioxidant protection from free radicals. Plus, it is a highly moisturizing essential oil. This not only prevents your skin from becoming itchy and irritated from dryness but sufficiently moisturized skin is more “plump” than dry skin, adding to the more youthful appearance provided by improved collagen.
Bananas are also a source of vitamin A, but their benefits go beyond that. They make for an excellent moisturizer, and they have anti-inflammatory properties. So, adding them to your body scrub helps to reduce redness and mild swelling while adding to the benefits of the other ingredients.
Moisturizing Cinnamon and Honey Exfoliating Mask/Scrub
- ½ Cup Honey
- ¼ Brown Sugar
- 1 Tbsp. Cinnamon
Mix all ingredients until well combined.
Note: Individual reactions to cinnamon may vary, so be sure to test the balance before use as a mask. You should feel a tingling sensation but no burning. If it burns, wash off the test and add a few more tablespoons of honey and sugar. If you feel nothing, add a half teaspoon more cinnamon.
Apply the mixture like a mask and allow it to sit for 15-20 minutes. Massage to exfoliate and rinse with warm water.
Honey is both antibacterial and a powerful humectant. What is a humectant? It is a substance that attracts water vapor to itself. This means honey is an ideal moisturizer that also happens to fight acne-causing bacteria. So you can moisturize dry skin and help protect it from an acne flair up at the same time.
Cinnamon amplifies this with its antibacterial and antifungal properties. Plus, it is full of antioxidants and helps promote improved circulation. If you are drinking enough water, this aids in moisturizing your skin from the inside out while helping your body flush more wastes from the skin and lowering inflammation. However, this is also why it can be irritating in too high of a concentration or when left on for too long. Everyone’s sensitivity to it is different, so make sure to adjust the recipe to fit your individual needs.
This exfoliating mask and the scrub combo is an ideal once a week self-care treat. Because of cinnamon’s potentially irritating effects, it is not one you would want to use every few days.
The Callus Buster
- ¼ Cup Coffee Grounds
- ¼ Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tbsp. Cinnamon
- ½ A Banana (mashed)
Mix well. Apply scrub to extremely dry or callused skin and allow to sit for 10-15 minutes. Massage vigorously to exfoliate and rinse with warm water.
Some tough areas of dry or dead skin need something a bit more intense than the scrubs listed above. Both coffee grounds, a normal grind for a drip coffee maker, not espresso, and granulated sugar are much more coarse than brown sugar. This means the exfoliation provided will be much more intense. Keep this in mind if you decide to use this recipe, which is designed for areas such as feet, knees, and elbows or thickly callused hands rather than the more delicate skin of the face, torso, back, arms, and legs.
Coffee is a rich source of antioxidants. Spent grounds do not have as many to offer as fresh grounds, of course, but some benefit may still be had from their use. However, their main purpose in this scrub is as an exfoliating agent.
Bananas are packed with vitamin A as well as minerals like potassium and magnesium. This makes them a powerful moisturizer and nourishing for the skin. Allowing the scrub to “soak in” for a few moments before massaging helps soften the skin for improved results.
Cinnamon provides some minor exfoliation, but this spice’s inclusion was added mainly for its antimicrobial properties and the improvement of circulation for lasting skin health.
