Friday, February 22, 2013

DIY Orange Spice Body Scrub

As I mentioned in my Natural Skincare Haul yesterday, I have a couple DIY scrub recipes to share with you.  Today I have an Orange Spice Body Scrub recipe that you can make as-is or adjust in a number of ways to create your ideal body scrub.  A couple years ago for Christmas a close friend of mine gifted me the most lovely homemade scrub that she had scented with sweet orange and clove essential oils.  I was inspired to make an orange spice version of a basic scrub recipe I found via Martha Stewart since I had loved the orange spice scent of the scrub my friend has previously given me.

To make your DIY Orange Spice Body Scrub you will need the following ingredients:

1 1/2 cups organic cane sugar (I used raw turbinado sugar since it was a little more course)
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
5 drops sweet orange essential oil
3 drops clove bud essential oil

The essential oils will provide a wonderful aroma to your body scrub and may also provide a number of skincare benefits, depending on the oil(s) you choose.  You will want to be careful when adding these to your scrub as a little goes a long way.  Some essential oils (such as the ones I have shown here) will include a little stopper in the cap which will allow you to carefully dispense a drop at a time in your recipe.  If your oils aren't bottled in this manner, use a pipette or a very cautious hand when adding these to your mixture.

In addition to your ingredients, you'll also need a measuring cup, a medium bowl, spoon or spatula, and a container with an airtight lid for storing your finished scrub.  I found the perfect acrylic container for storing my scrub at T.J.Maxx.  Anything will work from a small rubbermaid container to a mason jar.  I wanted something with an easy to remove lid (I find screw on lids can be a little annoying to work with in the shower) that was shatterproof since I'm prone to dropping things.

Once you have all your ingredients and tools gathered, you're ready to mix up your scrub.

In your bowl, stir together the grapeseed oil and your essential oils.  Add the sugar and stir until evenly combined.  Feel free to add more sugar and/or oils as needed to achieve a texture/scent you like.  Spoon the finished scrub into your jar and enjoy!

Keep this scrub on hand in your shower for a great exfoliating and moisturizing treatment.  I like to use this scrub on my body after cleaning with soap, focusing on dry areas like knees and elbows.  Even after rinsing, the grapeseed oil in the scrub will provide light but generous moisture to your skin.

You can certainly experiment with the ingredients in this scrub, trying out different combinations of carrier and essential oils for different scent combinations.  I think a combination of almond oil and vanilla and lemon essential oils would make a lovely sugar cookie-like scent!

If you try this scrub, I'd love to know what you think.  And if you have a favorite DIY scrub recipe, please share in the comments below.

Check back tomorrow as I'll be sharing another DIY scrub recipe!

*I purchased the Grapeseed OilSweet Orange Oil and Clove Bud Oil through Vitacost.  I find they have some of the best prices on natural oils.  If you'd like to order through Vitacost, you can save $10 on your purchase of $30+ by clicking through my referral link.  (You will save $10 and I will also receive a $10 credit if you use the referral link.)


*Check out my friend Hillary of Homegrown in KY who posted today about a sample swap we did recently.

5 comments:

  1. what is the shelf life of your scrubs?

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    Replies
    1. If you haven't begun using them, I'd say they'd keep well for at least a couple of months. However, once you've began using them (and thus introduce bacteria), I'd recommend trying to use them up in 2-4 weeks.

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  2. Hello Amy, is there a way to make this orange scrub with real orange juice (I have fresh oranges at home) or it has to be from orange oil. This is my first attempt to make a scrub and thanks for your awesome page.

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    Replies
    1. I wouldn't recommend substituting orange juice for the orange essential oil. The essential oil is MUCH more potent and will provide a lot of scent without adding much liquid. You could try using the zest from the oranges instead, though that may reduce the shelf-life of the scrub. Since I haven't tried using fresh juice or zest myself, I'm not sure how it would turn out.

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  3. Lovely recipe! Storage in acrylic could be a problem. I'm not prepared with an article to link to, but you may wish to do a little research about storage of essential oils and products that contain them. Essential oils are known to leach chemicals out of plastics. If you're trying to use natural products for the purpose of avoiding potentially dangerous chemicals, you might wish to use glass in the future.

    Orange spice is just about my favorite scent combination, and the turbinado sugar is such a lovely choice! Can't wait to try this recipe!

    ReplyDelete

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