How to make your own salt scrub at home

You can buy salt scrubs on any store, or you can make your own salt scrubs at home for a fraction of the cost. Salt scrubs are one of the easiest home spa products to make -- and a great gift if you put it in a pretty jar. With this easy salt scrub recipe, you can exfoliate your skin at home instead of paying a high amount to the spa.

Prep Time: 5 minutes Ingredients:

1/2 cup oil. Use sweet almond, grapeseed or another light-textured massage oil. Don't use simple cooking oil from your pantry.

1 cup sea salt. Baleine is a good choice. You can experiment with different textures to see what feels best for your skin. Don't use simple iodized table salt -- it's too harsh. If you have sensitive skin, make a sugar scrub, which is gentler.

5-15 drops high quality essential oils. The essential oil you choose for your salt scrub depends on the result you want. Lavender is relaxing, lemongrass is refreshing and rosemary is stimulating. You can experiment and do your own blend.

How to make your own salt scrub at home

1.    Find a jar to hold your salt scrub. Almost any jar would be fine. You can get one that locks or one that has a screw on lid. You can also use a plastic jar instead of glass, because this scrub will be put near the shower or bath tub, and a glass jar may slip out of your hands and break into shards! Plastic has its disadvantages too. A plastic jar will absorb any essential oils you add into the scrub, and that means that you can never use the jar in any other purpose. Make sure whatever jar you are using is clean. A plastic ziplock container will work well too. Even a little sandwich bag works too!

2.  Fill about half of your jar or container with your salt.

3.  Now, fill the jar with oil until it is almost full.

4.  Add a few drops of essential oils into the mixture. Stir the salt scrub after you add the essential oil.

5.  Put your salt scrub near the bathtub, shower or sink. Use your salt scrub while you are cleaning or soaking on particularly dry areas, like knees and elbows. This exfoliant works especially well on hands and feet too. Scrub skin in a circular motion using a loofah, shower puff, shower gloves, mesh scrubby, washcloth, or even just your hands. After waiting for a few minutes for the scrub to do its job, rinse off with warm water and pat dry with a soft towel. If your skin feels a tad bit too oily, you can wash it off with some soap, but it is not necessary because usually the skin would absorb all the oil and that would benefit dry skin more. Your skin should feel soft, moisturized, and exfoliated, with the hint of the fragrance you've chosen. No need to reach for the body lotion afterwards. The salt in the scrub had exfoliated the layer of dead skin on the surface, while the oil had already done the job of moisturizing the new skin exposed, leaving you with super soft skin.

Tips for Homemade salt scrubs

·       Add a few drops vitamin E (from two capsules) into your scrub for a natural preservative. This is optional, since salt by itself is a natural preservative, but it will make your scrub last longer.

·       This salt scrub will last longer if no water gets into the jar.

·       f the scrub seems too oily for you, use less oil to more salt. Some people prefer to have 1/2 cup oil to 1 cup salt.

·       Give your scrub texture and color if desired. For color, add in a few drops food coloring, and put in a few crushed flower petals or herbs or even ground flaxseed if you want a nice texture.