Make Your Own - Face Scrub

Hello lovelies, as part of my Zero Waste section I’m starting a sub-segment called Make Your Own, which is all about making your own skin products, toiletries, cleaning products etc in the comfort of your own home, avoiding any extra plastic and unnecessary packaging. Being Zero Waste doesn't mean you have to give up on your favourite goodies! I haven’t been making that many products so far, mainly because I’m still trying to finish a bunch of half-used face creams and stuff that I thought would be worth bringing all the way to New Zealand with me. However one thing I haven’t used for months while I was travelling is face scrub. I used to suffer from mild acne a couple of years ago and my dermatologists recommended that I stopped using face scrubs altogether until my skin was cured. So I thought it was about time to re-incorporate a good old scrub into my skincare routine.

My favourite scrub in the whole universe is Ocean Salt by Lush. I had decided that during my transition phase towards a 100% Zero Waste lifestyle Lush products would be my one exception, as all their containers are recycled and recyclable (AND everything smells so amazing). But alas, Lush costs an arm and a leg in the Southern Hemisphere! So whatever I can make, I make.

So here's my face scrub recipe. Good news: you probably already have all the ingredients in your pantry. Also: disclaimer! This face scrub works ON MY SKIN. But everybody's skin is different! So it might not wor on you.

Ingredients

• Coconut oil

• Ground coffee

• Baking soda

• Olive oil

• Sea salt

• A squeeze of lemon juice

As for the dosage, this is really up to you. Coconut oil is going to be your base so you want to use more of that compared to all the other ingredients, and also you don’t want to overdo it with the baking soda (it’s abrasive). But what you have to do is basically just mix the ingredients all together until they look smooth and blended. The coffee might be hard to mix in (it's stuck to the top in the picture below), but as long as you make sure you scoop a little bit out when you actually use the scrub you'll be fine.

My skin is dry, very sensitive, and acne-prone, therefore it's always been super hard for me to find a scrub that would get rid of the impurities without leaving my face like it's been polished with sandpaper. What I LOVE about this scrub is that it's not harsh at all on the skin. In fact it’s super moisturising because of the coconut oil and olive oil. The ground coffee and the sea salt will softly rub away any dead cells without leaving your skin dry. Plus it smells amazing! I know you wouldn’t say that by looking at the ingredients (weird combination) but trust me, it’s going to be hard not to eat it.

I would recommend to only use this scrub once a week because, as much as it it moisturising, it's still a scrub, and you wouldn't want to be too hard on your pretty face.

I love the idea of making my own toiletries/skin care products because it’s fun, educational, and you know exactly what's in them. Plus of course, there's no extra packaging involved.