Homemade Sea Salt Scrub
You’ve probably noticed that there’s been a surge in the popularity of exotic salts lately. A dizzying array of choices can be found at upscale groceries: fleur de sel, Himalayan sea salt, Peruvian salt, Celtic salt.
And I shouldn’t forget to mention some of the delicious doctored salts like smoked salt and spiced salt and rose petal or hibiscus-flavored salt.
This new millennium trend toward fancy salt is not surprising when you consider that salt is one of the oldest and most revered minerals known to the humans. In days of old, salt was a rarefied luxury known only to the most decadent tribes.
Since then, salt became widespread. It’s not just a basic food item; it’s a basic taste — as far as your tongue is concerned — and one of only four (the others, of course, being sweet, sour and bitter.)
Salt is crucial to humans because it helps regulate the fluid balance of our bodies. It sometimes gets a bad rap because of its relationship to high blood pressure, but, truth is, we need a certain amount of salt to survive.
All of this aside, salt is also one of my favorite beauty ingredients. Salt is a great exfoliant when suspended in a skin-friendly oil. And here’s a little secret: you don’t need to buy an expensive prepackaged salt scrub. You can actually make your own concoction at home.
Following is a basic recipe, but keep in mind that you can’t go wrong with improvisation. PS: this is also a great Mother’s Day gift idea.
HOMEMADE SEA SALT SCRUB
1. A coarse-grained sea salt. (You can find this in the bulk section of your local natural grocery.)
2. A skin-friendly oil like jojoba, olive, almond, or sesame. (In a pinch, canola oil will do.)
3. Try essential oils. Spring is a great time to scavenge for local aromatherapy favs like lavender, rosemary or rose petals. Give them a few days to dry out, then crumble into your salt mixture. Or experiment with spices from your kitchen.
Give it a try. And if you don’t feel like making it yourself, I recommend the one my mom makes by hand for us at IO called Lavender Tangerine Salt Rub by OM OF NM. It’s fabulous, organic and made with love by my mom, Jane… so it’s almost like you made it yourself.
Salty and happy,
Amy
05 May 2009
Torey
I love the idea of making your own scrubs, thank you for posting this! I might do this for mother’s day and was wondering if the scrub needs to be refrigerated, or if it has an expiration?
11 May 2009
Amy
Torey: Glad you are considering making some salts of your own. In terms of expiration, salt is actually an age-old preservative (before scientists figured out other not-so-earth-friendly chemicals to “preserve” things) so that helps. Oils, on the other hand, can go ransid more quickly but not before 6 months to a year. No need to refrgerate. Best to strore the salts out of the sun which is pretty easy unless you are lucky enough to have an outdoor shower. Enjoy, Amy
28 Apr 2011
Patty
Hi, I make my own salt scrubs Nicali Bath & Body is my company. I find that it’s shelf life is very short and wonder how I can prevent it becoming gummy. I really don’t want to add preservative but my recipe is just salt,oil and essential oil combinations. Any clues?