It’s always nice to get a little pampering in, especially as a busy mom. It’s even better when your pampering time nourishes your body, eliminates toxins, and even fights cellulite. With this grapefruit mint Himalayan salt scrub, you can accomplish just that.
Why a Scrub?
Just the act of rubbing the skin helps to stimulate fluid flow, reduce cellulite, and improve the overall tone and health of your skin. Dry brushing is a great way to accomplish this, but a Himalayan salt scrub will also stimulate your skin and provide even more benefits. By adding some essential oils, you’ll up the skin benefits even further and add a hearty dose of mood-improving aromatherapy.
Most scrubs include a carrier oil of some kind to help the scrub glide over the skin. This recipe uses coconut oil for its amazing skin benefits, and some lighter sweet almond oil to tone it down while still moisturizing. I’ve also included a small amount of castile soap to help cleanse the skin as you moisturize, for a truly all-in-one scrub.
Himalayan Salt Benefits
Himalayan salt is my favorite sea salt to keep around because it’s so rich in minerals and trace elements, like calcium, magnesium, and iron. When consumed it can help to eliminate toxins, balance electrolyte and pH levels, strengthen bones, and support circulation to name a few things. In this scrub you’re nourishing your skin with all of the minerals and trace elements of the salt (source).
Why Grapefruit Essential Oil?
Grapefruit essential oil helps to stimulate the lymphatic system and eliminate excess water weight. It also helps to boost circulation and diminish the appearance of cellulite. This study found that even smelling grapefruit can boost metabolism and speed weight loss. It’s also very high in limonene, which helps protect cells from free radical damage (source).
Soothing Peppermint
Although more commonly used for digestion and to aid in clear breathing, peppermint oil with its menthol content also makes an invigorating salt scrub. Peppermint helps wake you up and increases energy. It can also help to balance oil production for clearer skin. I like using it to help soothe headaches. Being a very strong oil, make sure that you only use it properly diluted, and not on little children.
Himalayan Salt Scrub Ingredients
- 1 cup finely ground Himalayan salt
- 1 T coconut oil
- 2 T sweet almond oil
- 1 T castile soap
- 20 drops grapefruit essential oil
- 2 drops peppermint essential oil
Instructions
- In a small glass bowl add the coconut oil, essential oils, and sweet almond oil. Mash it all together with a fork or rubber spatula.
- Add in the castile soap, and the Himalayan salt.
- Store your Himalayan salt scrub in an 8 oz glass jar. To use, rub all over your body to cleanse and exfoliate, then rinse off.
Tips for Using
- Since this product is made with oil, be careful when using it in the shower as it can make the floor slippery.
- Some aromatherapists consider grapefruit essential oil to be phototoxic, which means it can cause sun sensitivity if left on. There shouldn’t be a concern since the product is washed off, but if you are sensitive to sun or going out in the sun right away, use caution.
Ever used a salt scrub? What’s your favorite combination to make them?
Hi Katie. Usually your essential oil links link to Mountain Rose Herbs website. I see the grapefruit and peppermint oils here link to plant therapy and eden’s garden. Do you typically use these brands and so you still buy essential oils from mountain rose herbs?
I buy from both 🙂
What Castile soap scent would be best, peppermint? Almond?
Thanks 🙂
There’s also citrus castile soap and unscented. I was just thinking about making this with the unscented Dr Bronners. I usually use the citrus one in the orange bottle.
Coconut oil is so stiff. What do you use to mix it? Just a sturdy wooden spoon or what?
-T.
Do you ever add magnesium salts to your salt scrub?
Yes, sometimes 🙂
The grapeseed essential oil… is this the regular grapeseed oil that we get in big bottles or is it different?
I’m afraid of using the glass jars for a container since I tend to drop everything. Is plastic OK?
I’m not a fan of using plastic: https://wellnessmama.com/23757/dangers-of-plastic/
Does anyone have a suggestion on an oil to use besides peppermint? I will be breastfeeding soon and can’t use that then…
Lavender is a great all purpose oil, very calming.
Hello! Thank you for making this easy to follow DIY himalayan salt scrub. 🙂 I’ve read somewhere before that this type of salt has a lot of benefits, and generally being a salt, it contributes a lot to the improvement of the skin since it gently exfoliates dead skin cells without being to harsh towards the body’s natural protective layer so I think this is really a good alternative from those scrubs that can be seen from the malls.
@ Khyati. It’s Grapefruit Essential oil, not Grapeseed carrier oil
How long does this scrub keep for?
How far in advance can you make this? Can you make bulk of it for shower favors?
Hi there,
Sorry if these questions seem a little stupid but I’m from the UK and I’m not sure exactly how much a “cup” is. Would you be able to let me know? And also, when you say “1T” coconut oil, what exactly is “T”?
Finally, if I choose not to use the castile soap, what should I use more of instead, the coconut oil or almond oil?
Many thanks
Hey,
A cup is a us measurement which translates to roughly 125ml. I have found regular tea cups to hold roughly the same amount.
The other measurement refers to a teaspoon (tsp) or a tablespoon (tbsp) and for those you can just use a regular spoon instead of the fancy measuring spoons used here since a scrub recipe doesn’t have to be exact science.
Can this be used on your face? And can it be used every day? Or should it be used only once a week?
I use it daily, all over, face included, however I leave out the peppermint. I make my batch for the moth and I store in glass. Wellness Mama recipes are my go to!
Can this be used on your face? How long does it stay good for? How often should it be used? Once a week? Or can it be used everyday?
Do I have to use Castile soap? Can I just skip it or it’s really nessesary?
You can certainly leave it out, I just find it makes it slightly less oily.