Make Your Own Body Wash and Scrub
This probably isn’t breaking news, but…unless you choose your beauty products very carefully, you are probably slathering really noxious stuff on your skin. From E numbers to palm oil and gasoline, there are a host of unpleasant ingredients that make our beauty world turn.
Realizing this doesn’t work (for me), I did heaps of research, stocked up on raw materials and started experimenting with making my own stuff from pure organic ingredients. Several months of trial and error ended in my staple body wash…nowadays, I make pretty much everything our family puts on their skin. This not only saves us a fortune on store bought organics, but also allows me to tailor every product we use to our specific needs. And believe it or not, it’s fun!
I’ve kept the recipes as simple as possible to encourage participation. How about taking a slow Saturday morning at home to cook up some skincare?
BODY WASH BASE
Organic body wash is the cornerstone of any natural beauty regime, so if you learn to make only one thing this should be it. My proportions have been considered pretty carefully, but I have also explained the ingredients below so you can tailor your basic body wash to the way you love it most.
Castile Soap – This is the ingredient which does the cleaning. Derived solely from olive oil, Castile Soap is incredibly versatile as a cleaning agent but when used on its own for skin care, leaves your skin stripped of crucial natural oils. Dr. Bronners make a really fabulous unscented version, but you can use any brand as long as it’s pure castile soap and nothing else.
Vegetable Glycerine – Derived from plant oils, glycerine is widely used in body care as a humectant – a substance which attracts moisture to the skin. It is also fantastic for helping with emulsification of the other ingredients and gives that “sudsy” feel which we all like.
Guar Gum – An ingredient used in gluten-free baking as a binding and thickening agent. The benefit of using it for your body wash is that it thickens the mixture and also aids bonding of the other ingredients together.
Essential Oils – These are oils cold pressed and derived purely from source. These oils are used in skin care to address problem areas and promote healing. I won't go into this as it's beyond the scope of my blog but I do mention some great resources online.
Ingredients
1/2 c water, 1/2 c castile soap 2 tbsp vegetable glycerine 2 tsp guar gum. (or xantham gum)
Method
Combine equal parts castile soap and filtered water. Mix guar gum into the glycerine until it fully dissolves – this is crucial as guar gum doesn’t emulsify in water or soap. Add glycerine mixture to the castile soap mix. Shake ingredients vigorously or blend with a stick blender. If ingredients separate overnight shake or blend again.
Here's how to tailor it!
1. Moisturising Body Wash – add 2 tbsp melted coconut oil and 10 drops of Rose Geranium 2. Reviving Body Wash – add 10 drops rosemary and 5 drops peppermint essential oils 3. Soothing Body Wash – add 2 tbsp rosehip oil, 1tbsp aloe vera gel and 10 drops of chamomile oil 4. Baby Body Wash & Shampoo – Substitute coconut milk for water and add 7 drops lavender oil, 10 drops rose geranium, and 1 drop citronella oil
VANILLA SUGAR BODY SCRUB
This recipe is so easy, you will be tempted to try it at home – and the ingredients are widely available in the supermarket. I live in an extremely dry climate and this scrub leaves my skin silky all day long, without the hassle of applying lotion after every shower.
Ingredients
1/8c sunflower oil 1/8c coconut oil, melted 3/4 c sugar 1 tsp vanilla essence
Method
Combine melted coconut and sunflower oil with the vanilla. Add sugar and mix thoroughly until it becomes a paste. Scrub on your body and rinse off.
A quiet day spent mixing concoctions at the beauty lab, and you’ve now got glowing skin to boot!
NB: It is beyond the capacity of this blog to go into great depth about DIY skincare but if you love this as much as I do, definitely check out the following blogs: