DIY Body Scrubs: Make custom exfoliants with natural ingredients
Exfoliating the skin of the body, as well as of the face, is a beauty ritual known since ancient times to give brightness and smoothness to the epidermis. Depending on the parts of the body on which you act, you need to use exfoliating products, or scrubs, which have varying degrees of delicacy.
The degree of abrasiveness of scrubs is given by the grain of the products that are used to exfoliate with, as well as by their concentration. Then, to the abrasive ingredients are added nourishing and emollient components, so as not to irritate the skin too much and to pamper it in the right way. There are countless similar products on the market, but when you find yourself short of your favorite body scrub, you can easily make some at home.
Ingredients you can use:
- Fine salt: mix a spoon of salt with a spoon of honey and then some oil (olive, sweet almond, argan or coconut) or shea butter and rub the product on the skin, preferably after having just moistened it. It will then be up to you to decide whether to increase or decrease the amount of salt, which is quite abrasive.
- Coffee grounds: when you empty the mocha filter, leave the grounds out to dry well in a saucer or dish placed in a dry place (they must not form a mold). When they are perfectly dry, crumble them into a jar and the mix a tablespoon or two of coffee grounds with two of oil (almond, argan or coconut) and use them on the body. Leave on for 5-10 minutes and then rinse off.
- Sugar: you can use granulated sugar, but in general we prefer that it is coarse-grained cane sugar. It can be mixed exactly like the salt or coffee (see above), and then there are those who mix it with a couple of tablespoons of plain yogurt (unsweetened), or Greek yogurt.
- Rice starch: If you need a very gentle exfoliation, then rice starch is for you. Mix a tablespoon with a level teaspoon of sugar and then enough oil (argan or sweet almond oil are more suitable) to get a mixture that is easy to spread but which is also not too liquid, since the starch is very powdery.
If you do not find the indicated types of oil and butter at hand, as an emergency solution you can also add a tablespoon of coffee grounds or sugar to the normal amount of shower gel you use. Put everything in one hand, mix them both and then rub on the body. After exfoliation with a scrub it is always necessary to wash and dry the skin and then use a very delicate product (without artificial fragrances) to moisturize - therefore creams, milk or emollient oil are ideal. And this is even more true if you have used the "emergency" scrub with a bubble bath.
How often do you exfoliate? Generally it is recommended at least a couple of times a month, although there are those who use a more delicate product and do it even more often (perhaps as frequently as once a week). It also depends on the characteristics of your skin, and it is always better to start with lighter products, eventually moving on to more aggressive ones only on certain less sensitive areas of the body (legs and especially elbows and knees) and only at a later time.
