DIY Beauty Bar: Sweet and Tough Olive Oil Scrub

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As far as I can tell, camp is all about nature. Which means at some point you get dirty. Laneia and I planned ahead and made a face scrub that’s good enough to eat (literally) and strong enough to scrub off a hard day of play.

Sugar Scrub

Ingredients
Sugar
Olive Oil

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Directions
Mix the sugar and olive oil together until you have a paste that’s the consistency of the sand you might use to build a sandcastle; not too wet and not too dry.

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Use
This scrub is best to use at night because the oil washes off dirt and makeup and the sugar gets rid of dry and peeling skin. Take a dab the size of a quarter and massage it into your face in an upward motion. First your chin and cheeks, then your nose and lips, then your forehead. Use soap and lukewarm water (hot water can dissolve the sugar, leaving a sticky mess on your face) on a washcloth to wash it off. Don’t let directions stop you from being creative, though! Try it on your feet, elbows, legs, or whatever body part needs a little bit of help in the smooth skin department.

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Etched Glass Jar

Ingredients
Glass container
Adhesive labels
Sharpie
Exacto Knife
Etching Cream
Paintbrush

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Directions
1. First plan your design out. Draw it out on a piece of paper and then throw it away and draw something 8 times simpler. Trust me, you’re going to have to cut this thing out.

2. Draw your final design on an adhesive label and then stick the label on the jar.

3. Using an exacto knife, cut out the parts that you want to be etched.

4. Coat the cut-out parts with etching cream liberally (because that’s the only way we do things around here) and then wait 12 minutes.

5. Wash the etching cream and sticker off the jar and–this part’s really important–be careful not to touch your eyes. It’s probably goes without saying, but since I’m the one who has touched my eyes after cutting serrano peppers twice this week, I’m going to point it out anyway.

6. Pour your scrub into the jar and ta-da! You’re ready to launch your very own Esty store.

This post goes hand-in-hand with A-Camp’s DIY Body Care Products with Laura and Laneia.

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Laura

Laura is a tiny girl who wishes she were a superhero. She likes talking to her grandma on the phone and making things with her hands. Strengths include an impressive knowledge of Harry Potter, the ability to apply sociology to everything under the sun, and a knack for haggling for groceries in Spanish. Weaknesses: Chick-fil-a, her triceps, girls in glasses, and the subjunctive mood. Follow the vagabond adventures of Laura and her bike on twitter [@laurrrrita].

Laura has written 308 articles for us.

24 Comments

  1. This reminds me of the best skin-related travel advice I can give you:

    Single serving sugar packets from cafés! When you need to exfoliate just take one, it’s the perfect amount and you can just mix it with your regular cleanser/water to scrub your face. It’s better than any store-bought scrub and you have less products to explode in your bag and get all over your clean underwear.

  2. I’ve been doing this for years, except i use it in the shower as a full body scrub when i shower at night, that way i can skip moisturizing when i get out of the shower. I also add a little bit of grated ginger and/or lemon zest. Smells better than the stale aroma of olive oil! You can ALSOOO use that honey that’s all hardened up! You can also use grapeseed oil, but it’s more expensive.

    Whatever you do, this shit tastes great.

  3. Cool!

    Here’s something I’ve always wondered: Why are you supposed to start at the bottom and work your way up, in that upward motion? I’ve read the same advice on the back of moisturizers and cleansers, but it never says why. To me it feels more natural to do the opposite.

  4. I skipped this activity at camp because I already have a lot of scrubs and skincare stuff (I work at a makeup store), and also because there were a bunch of other things I wanted to attend in the same time slot, but then later I saw the etched jars and I was like THAT IS AMAZING WHY DIDN’T I GO TO THAT??

  5. I just need to tell someone this: I’ve been using this scrub for my face and whole body since camp, and now my skin is so soft and smooth I can’t stop touching myself.

    Queers: if you want your sexytime friend(s) to never stop touching you, use this scrub.

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