There’s something special about homemade gifts. They typically take a little more forethought and effort than just picking an item out at the store, but I think it’s the love that goes into making a homemade gift that really shows through.
It’s probably pretty obvious that I love gifting edible delights, however you may be surprised to learn that sometimes I get creative and make other sorts of homemade gifts. I’ve made everything from wine cork cork boards to photo albums, coasters, and books with secret hiding spots.
This year I continued my infatuation with homemade beauty products and came up with a couple simple sugar scrubs using essential oils to give as gifts.
The scrubs are so easy they almost don’t require a recipe — basically you just use a 2:1 ratio of sugar and oil, then add your favorite essential oils if you want it to be scented.
I noticed that the in-house sugar scrubs at Whole Foods are made with safflower oil so I decided to test it out for the first batch. I mixed 1/2 cup safflower oil with 1 cup of organic cane sugar and 10 drops of orange essential oil. This batch smelled heavenly and the safflower oil worked really well.
Although I liked the safflower oil scrub, I really wanted to try out using coconut oil as well.
For the second batch I whipped coconut oil in my stand mixer on medium for 10 minutes, then stirred in the sugar and essential oils.
The whipped coconut oil made the scrub turn out thick and seem more luxurious. It also leaves your body ridiculously silky smooth after using it! It’s definitely my favorite of the two.
To give the scrub as a gift, I simply put some into a cute jar and added a little tag. Ta-da — a lovely little homemade gift!
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The scrubs are so easy they almost don’t require a recipe — basically you just use a 2:1 ratio of sugar and oil, then add your favorite essential oils if you want it to be scented.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, in solid form
- 3/4–1 cup cane sugar
- 10 drops lavender essential oil
Instructions
- Place coconut oil in a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whip for 10 minutes on medium speed.
- Add in the sugar and the essential oil and whisk a a little more until everything is blended together.
- Store in a covered container.
The essential oils I used are from doTerra. I’ve always known about essentials oils but didn’t really start using them regularly until this year. Isaac’s mom, Ellen, is a wellness advocate with doTerra so I’ve been learning a ton of cool stuff about essential oils from her. Not only do the oils add a lovely scent to the scrubs, but each one has it’s own therapeutic benefits as well.
For instance, the wild orange oil is excellent for disinfecting as well as killing fungus and pathogens. It also has very effective actions against colds and flu. The lemon oil is anti-bacterial and a good disinfectant. The lavender oil is calming and soothes skin irritations.
I have plans to snag some additional essentials oils for a little more variety soon! I already have a gingerbread scrub and a grapefruit scrub planned in the near future. 🙂
What’s the best homemade gift you’ve ever given or received?
Lauren @ The Bikini Experiment says
December 15, 2014 at 6:43 pmNice! I don’t experiment enough with making homemade things like this, but I love coconut oil. The best homemade gifts are usually pictures or frames. Especially since I print out so few now.
Brittany Mullins says
December 16, 2014 at 10:58 amI totally agree! We got married last June so last year I gave lots of family members photos from the wedding as their holiday gift. This reminds me that I need to get some pictures printed!
Ashley @ A Lady Goes West says
December 15, 2014 at 6:47 pmI really love getting home-made gifts, but I rarely get them. Baked goods are always nice though. This is really lovely, and I’d love to receive this scrub. Nice work!
Brittany Mullins says
December 16, 2014 at 10:56 amThanks Ashley!
Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says
December 15, 2014 at 7:01 pmI love this idea so much!
Christina @ The Beautiful Balance says
December 15, 2014 at 7:39 pmI love doterra and this scrub looks insanely rich and perfect for moisturizing your skin!
Nancy Lili says
December 15, 2014 at 10:25 pmI have a question about this. I’ve debated making similar things like this for myself before, but my hesitancy is the unknown shelf life. How long would this last? And is this something I’d need to keep in the fridge? When would it expire? I’d love to just make my own and save my money– the upsell on something like this is ridic– but I’d hate to make a big batch and it have mold or something.
Brittany Mullins says
December 16, 2014 at 10:56 amSince coconut oil, sugar and essential oils have really long shelf lives, I’d guess that the scrub will last at least 3-6 months, probably longer. The only issue would be keeping the scrub in your shower and water (or other contaminants) getting in it, which could potentially cause mold to grow. Ideally, you’ll want to store the scrub in a cool, dry place after each use. Hope this helps!
Kylie Burnside says
December 16, 2014 at 2:03 amOne of my favorite posts. Love this idea!
Andrew says
December 16, 2014 at 9:18 amGreat idea! I’ve been wanting to try coconut oil topically for awhile. I hear it does wonders.
Mattie @ Comfy & Confident says
December 16, 2014 at 9:20 amI love this! I am always looking for DIY body scrubs and face masks. This looks like one I can do!
hellotofit says
December 16, 2014 at 10:16 amGreat idea, and beautiful pictures! I did a sugar lip scrub last year, and this year I did homemade body butter.
Brittany Mullins says
December 16, 2014 at 10:44 amOhhh… I love those ideas! Did you post the recipes on your blog?
Rachel Nelson says
December 16, 2014 at 10:19 amHow can you make this without a stand mixer?!
Brittany Mullins says
December 16, 2014 at 10:46 amYou can use a hand mixer (if you have one) or you can simply mix the sugar and coconut oil together by hand. The coconut oil won’t be as “whipped” but you’ll still end up with a lovely sugar scrub.
Alex @ get big, go to work says
December 16, 2014 at 1:52 pmI love to give and receive homemade gifts. It really speaks to the individuals personality and shows how much time and thought they put into the gift! I love homemade sugar scrubs…really exfoliate the skin and make it smooth.
Taryn K. says
December 18, 2014 at 6:28 amBrittney, this is great! Thanks for the idea!
Jocelyn @ Peace Love Nutrition says
December 18, 2014 at 2:09 pmMy cousin did this for everyone last year! Such special gifts 🙂
Agnieszka says
December 20, 2014 at 8:16 amThis looks and sounds amazing! I will definitely try this out.
Shaun says
December 21, 2014 at 3:17 pmI just bottled up three of these for my kids’ teachers! I had a little left over for me!! We added peppermint oil…smells delish! Thanks for the inspiration!
Angie says
December 22, 2014 at 7:50 amLove love love this idea! I made a big batch for gifts and kept a little for myself. Wrapped them in gold & white chevron tissue paper. It was so nice to bring these to a get together last night!
chocolaterunnergirl says
December 22, 2014 at 10:20 amI just made a huge batch this past weekend. I did not even think about mixing it in my KitchenAid! I will try that for my next batch!! I put peppermint essential oil in mine but want to make some with lavender.
Thanks for this awesome post!
energywebring says
December 22, 2014 at 3:39 pmI need to make a batch of this for friends! Such a beautiful DIY 😀 happy holidays!
Carolyn says
December 23, 2014 at 5:00 pmI LOVE doTERRA Essential Oils, the skin care products and everything else they make! Everything smells wonderful and I use the oils to cook with. Thank you for this yummy body scrub recipe.
lmckissack2013 says
January 13, 2015 at 4:45 pmThis is so going to happen next Christmas! I’ll be experimenting with recipes until then. The best part is that I already have everything to get started. I use coconut oil as makeup remover so I have a big jar of that, and I have essential oils I’ve had forever that I never use. I was thinking of making a lavender vanilla one with lavender oil and a vanilla bean. Do you think the vanilla bean would make it mold faster? Maybe it would be ok if I buried it at the bottom. Oh well, I have 11 1/2 months to figure it out!
Lisa says
March 29, 2015 at 7:17 amWhere did you buy the little white spoon with the hole in the handle?
Brittany Mullins says
March 29, 2015 at 7:20 pmCrate and Barrel. 🙂
aidraspivogel says
April 14, 2015 at 4:33 pmThis is such a good idea! Thanks for sharing! But what is the difference if I whip it or not? Are there any benefits? Thanks again!
Brittany Mullins says
April 14, 2015 at 5:48 pmThere’s no real difference, the coconut oil just becomes soft and creamy after being whipped. 🙂
aidraspivogel says
April 14, 2015 at 5:49 pmOk thanks! I am going to go try it! 😉
Lillian bruns says
May 3, 2015 at 1:35 pmMy friends are very crafty I’m not I think I could make these scuba and surprise them
Lindsay says
May 6, 2015 at 4:45 pmThe coconut oil I purchased today is actually OIL. It is liquid form. Should I buy a solid oil instead. It sounds like from the comments that I may have bought the wrong thing!
Sorveros Unique Candles says
August 26, 2016 at 12:42 amif you got it out of the cooking oil section of say like walmart its more than likely 76 degree coconut oil which means temps higher than 76 degrees it becomes liquid i have some and its the hottest time of year here in georgia so mine is all liquid form right now but when i bought it it was solid.
★★★★★
KristinaB says
June 4, 2015 at 8:36 pmI love this recipe!!! I only used the sugar & coconut oil. It was perfect!! Creamy & fluffy and applied to skin nicely!!
Cristina Parson says
June 16, 2015 at 8:48 pmAdd a little almond oil to thin it a bit
Patty Young says
August 17, 2015 at 11:22 amWhat size WECK jar is in the picture? I want to use scrub for baby shower favors.
Brittany Mullins says
August 19, 2015 at 10:04 amHi Patty. Are you talking about the small one? I’m pretty sure it’s 5.4oz. http://bit.ly/1TURgV5
Donna says
September 2, 2015 at 8:54 amApproximately how much product does your recipe make. I need to make bridal shower favors and would love to follow your whipped coconut scrub recipe.
Brittany Mullins says
September 2, 2015 at 1:03 pmHi Donna! I’m not 100% sure because I didn’t measure it. You can make one batch, measure it and then decide how much you need for the shower favors. 🙂
Patti says
November 6, 2015 at 10:07 amI hate to sound stupid, but how in the heck do you measure solid coconut oil? I can stick a spoon in and hack off chunks, but how do you measure that? And will it really whip? Maybe what I have is not what you are talking about. Help!
Brittany Mullins says
November 6, 2015 at 11:59 amHi Patti. To measure it when it solid form, I just put the chunks into my measuring cup and estimate. I usually make it a heaping 1/2 cup to compensate for the gaps of space. You can also put your closed container of coconut oil in a cup of hot water to melt it a bit and make it easier to measure. And yes, it will really whip!
Clarence says
December 7, 2015 at 6:14 pmWhich safflower oil did u use the one form cooking depth or the cold press for health and beauty line
Brittany Mullins says
December 8, 2015 at 9:41 amI used the Whole Foods brand from the cooking aisle.
Marti says
April 29, 2016 at 3:21 pmHi, I received this scrub for Christmas and it hat turned stolid. If I whip it to soften it will the sugar disolve?
Brittany Mullins says
April 29, 2016 at 4:13 pmHi! Coconut oil is solid at room temp so that’s probably why it has turned solid. I would heat up a cup of water in the microwave and place the container in the water. I use this method whenever I need to melt coconut oil and it works like a charm. Once the scrub has warmed up a bit, the coconut oil will melt and then you’ll easily be able to get the scrub out and use it. Hope this helps.
Sorveros Unique Candles says
August 26, 2016 at 12:47 amI just found this recipe after i made one that was 1 cup sugar and 3/4 cup coconut oil but im definitely going to try this one soon
★★★★★
JANELLE RAY says
January 23, 2017 at 1:03 amHi how much did this recipe yeild?
★★★★★
Brittany Mullins says
January 23, 2017 at 11:40 amHi Janelle. ! I’m not 100% sure because I didn’t measure it but given the measurements I’d say about 3/4 – 1 cup.
Viv says
March 15, 2017 at 2:08 amHi! Just wondering if the whipped coconut oil scrub will make your body feel super greasy?
Laurie bouton says
November 30, 2017 at 1:22 pmI just made the whipped coconut scrub. Whipping allows the coconut oil to blen much better with the sugar. I added rosemary and grapefruit essential oils and yellow food coloring to get a nice grapefruit color. I reserved some and added a few drops of red to make a nice soft orange as a layer on top of the yellow. It’s really pretty and smells delicious! Spreads nicely when using it. This is going to be my go to method even though it’s a little more work, result is nicer sugar scrub. Thanks
Tiffany says
September 11, 2018 at 8:52 amJust wondering if the coconut oil you use is one that smells like coconut and how this will affect the scent of the essential oil you add in? I have a refined coconut oil at home that doesnt smell like coconut. I melted the oil and once it cooled, added the sugar and mixed…it turned out nice but after it cooled completely its super hard now. Wondering if another non refined/cold pressed coconut oil will mix better?
Michelle Brown says
November 26, 2018 at 7:10 pmMy sister and I make sugar scrubs and we use doterra holiday joy blend (you can only get it the months of November and december) it is a
Christmas in a jar….a…ma…zing.
Cheryl Smith says
December 11, 2018 at 2:40 pmHello..I made the whipped sugar scrub and was great for a day..then crystallized.? what happened?? Can it be reshaped? I’m bummed!
Brittany Mullins says
December 11, 2018 at 3:23 pmOh no!! I’m sorry. I’m thinking that maybe you were storing the coconut scrub in a cool place and the coconut oil hardened back up. Place the sealed jar under hot/warm running water or in a warm room. It should soften back up.