One of the most satisfying things that I love doing is making my own handmade beauty products with natural ingredients – that way I know what I use is good for my skin and the best part of it is that it doesn’t take that long to do! It also saves money in the long-run 🙂

The key thing about making your own products is being open to experimenting and not being afraid to do so – that’s part of the fun! And if you are starting out and new to making your own yummy goodies, there are plenty of online websites and videos that are dedicated to guiding you and getting you on your way!

As the weather is colder, our skin/face/body care routine may change to include much more moisturising products to keep softness. Why not include your own sugar scrub to gently exfoliate and remove dead skin cells, leaving you with beautifully soft and fresh skin!

My favourite uplifting homemade sugar scrub recipe:

(For a basic sugar scrub recipe to experiment from, click here)

Ingredients: 50% finely granulated white sugar cane, 50% sweet almond oil, a 1-4 drops of lemon grass essential oil, 1/2 teaspoon of organic honey, a teaspoon of vitamin E oil.

To store: Glass air tight jar container with a wide opening top.

Method:

Start by pouring in the sugar into your container – fill it half way.
Take your sweet almond oil and gently pour in to container of sugar, stirring every now and again. Stop when the oil has completely covered and saturated the sugar. If you prefer a thicker scrub, you may want to stop there but if you like a thinner scrub, add more oil. Be sure to keep some space in the container for other ingredients too!
Add the teaspoon of vitamin E oil, then stir.
Add the honey in, gently stir.
Finally, add your drops of lemongrass essential oil and stir.
Done 🙂

To Use:

This scrub can be used on the face or body.
Avoid use if you have sensitive skin or skin conditions such as eczema, and avoid use on wounds, cuts, abrasions or damaged skin.
Scoop a tiny amount of the scrub onto your fingers and apply to wet skin.
Scrub gently in a slow, circular motion. Do not grind the scrub into your skin.
Rinse off.
If desired, follow the exfoliating scrub with gentle cleansing.
Moisturize the skin with a natural moisturizer after exfoliating.

Shelf Life:
With the exception of the natural anti-oxidant properties of the Vitamin E oil, this sugar scrub does not contain preservatives.

For maximum freshness, use the scrub within a month and discard any that hasn’t been used within that time.

Because you will be exposing your scrub to bacteria and other contaminants each time you reach into the container to take out product, this scrub will have a much shorter shelf life than similar commercial products.

Ideally, use a clean utensil to scoop the desired amount of scrub into a clean, tiny jar and work from that small portion as you exfoliate. That will help keep your primary quantity of scrub from being contaminated.