Sugar Scrub Recipe: Easy Homemade Body Scrub & DIY Exfoliator

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This sugar scrub recipe is a DIY exfoliator, homemade body scrub, and natural home remedy for skin. It’s fast, easy, and inexpensive to make.

I’ve tried a number of different DIY exfoliators across the years, and one of my go-tos is the sugar scrub recipe—e.g., homemade body scrub—and not just because it’s sweet.

Sugar scrubs provide a whole gamut of finely-ground variations from cane sugar and brown sugar to organic monk fruit. Even beet sugar does the trick.

Here are key points:

Non-toxic: your sugar scrub recipe is organic and clean.
Optimization: adding moisturizers and essential oils that specifically target your skin.

Individualization: issues you may be having such as sunburn, blemishes, eczema and psoriasis, or dry chapped skin and its opposite—excessively oily skin.

So let’s have a look at why exfoliation is important and how sugar scrub recipes work.

Homemade Sugar Scrub & Exfoliation Benefits

A girl sitting on the bathtub edge by a bowl of sugar and hygiene products. — Sugar scrubs remove dead cells, boost circulation, and rejuvenate skin.

Exfoliation is an important part of any skincare routine, and there’s nothing like the right sugar scrub recipe to nail it.

It removes dead cells, supports lymphatic drainage, boosts circulation, rejuvenates skin, and enhances the effects of other nourishing products while enabling your skin to breathe.

Because like all things, skin cells wear out and die. And when surface cells die, they can linger.

Which not only impacts the way your skin looks and feels, it can cause issues. Such as clogged pores, acne, rashes, and other irritations.

That’s why it’s important to exfoliate, though you don’t want to do it all the time. Even when we’re gentle it still creates abrasion on the skin.

So I personally use a sugar scrub recipe once a week or less, and I’ve gone as long as months.

It’s also extremely important to use finely ground (superfine) sugar crystals and go easy, e.g., don’t rub too hard, or you can damage your skin.

And especially on your face.

In fact some folks say you shouldn’t exfoliate your face with sugar at all, but here’s what New York City dermatologist Marisa Garshick has to say:

Unlike some other scrubs, the particles [sugar] tend to not be as harsh on the skin, especially when compared to salt granules . . . sugar granules tend to be more round and less abrasive.

But of course she’s talking about ‘superfine.’

Regarding larger crystals:

These can be too irritating, especially on the face, as they can lead to micro-tears in the skin barrier and cause redness and sensitivity.

Which only makes sense.

You wouldn’t rub gravel on your face, right?

So what’s key is using superfine granules in a sugar scrub recipe combined with oils, butters, and other moisturizers you add, which nourish and protect your skin.

So here are some benefits of exfoliation:

Exfoliation Benefits

Removes dead cells.
Supports lymphatic drainage.

Boosts circulation.
Rejuvenates skin.
Enhances other products.

Enables your skin to breathe.

So let’s move on to sugar scrub recipe additions for various skin types: oily, normal, dry, and combination.

Sugar Scrub Recipe & Herbal Remedies

Top view of sugar bowl surrounded by herbs. — Sugar scrub recipes with herbs.

There are so many different herbs you can add to a sugar scrub recipe the possibilities are endless.

Such as aloe vera, lemongrass, calendula, rosemary, and more.

Here are some herbal remedies for your homemade sugar scrub recipe according to skin type:

Oily Skin

Tea tree oil.
Peppermint.
Aloe vera.

Lemon/lemongrass.
Sage.
Calendula.

Lavender.
Cucumber.
Rose.

Thyme.
Rosemary.
Flax.

Grape.
Yarrow.
Fuller’s earth.

Tangerine.
Licorice.

Normal Skin

There’s a lot of wiggle room if your skin is generally healthy and normal, so any botanical herbs including but not limited to . . .

Chamomile.
Horsetail.

Aloe vera.
Garlic.
Nettles.

Cilantro.
Calendula.
Parsley.

Sage.
Mint.
Oregano.

Holy Basil.
Turmeric.
Ashwagandha.

Charcoal.
Alfalfa.
Oat straw.

Nettles.
Comfrey.
Dandelion.

Chickweed.
Rose hips.

Dry Skin

Oat straw.

Astragalus.
Aloe Vera.
Chamomile.

Fennel.
Calendula.
Neem.

Tamarind.
Papaya.
Wheat germ.

Marshmallow.
Rose hips.
Avocado.

Jojoba.

Combination Skin

With combination skin just target specific areas at specific times. It likely changes a lot due to environmental and internal factors.

So let’s look at some of the best essential oils for a sugar scrub recipe:

Sugar Scrub Recipe: Essential Oils

An array of essential oils against a backdrop of wildflowers. — A sugar scrub recipe using the right essential oil is key.

One of the benefits of making your own sugar scrub recipe is the ability to handpick among a wide variety of nourishing essential oils for your skin type.

And even add powerful antioxidants like vitamins C, E, and A into the mix.

So here’s a variety of essential oils and healthy nutrients you can add and also apply directly to your skin.

I use a lot of oils on my skin, and particularly Castor oil (used by the late Edgar Cayce in healing):

Vitamin C serum.
Vitamin E oil.

Castor oil.
Jojoba oil.
Tea Tree oil.
Olive oil.
Coconut oil.
Avocado oil.
Argan oil.
Rose hip seed oil.
Aloe Vera oil.
Flax oil.
Marula oil.
Moringa oil.
Pomegranate oil.
Grape seed oil.
Almond oil.
Sesame seed oil.
Camellia seed oil.
Carrot seed oil.

You can also add moisturizers and body butters to sugar scrubs.

Making Your DIY Exfoliator

Close on a bowl and spoon of sugar. — Making a sugar scrub recipe is fast, easy, and inexpensive.

Exfoliating your skin with a homemade sugar scrub recipe is fast, easy, and inexpensive.

You can add a variety of nourishing essential oils and herbs that target your skin type and any issues you have.

So here’s what you’ll need:

Ingredients

1/2 cup organic sugar of your choice.
1/2 cup organic unrefined oil, moisturizer, or body butter (your choice).
Additional herbs and essential oils (your choice).

Equipment

Mixing bowl (glass, stainless steel, ceramic, maple, walnut, beech, teak; formaldehyde-free bamboo).
Food storage container (ceramic, glass).
Flatware (stainless steel, maple, walnut, beech, teak; formaldehyde-free bamboo).
Cutlery (stainless steel).
Cutting board (hardwood like maple, walnut, beech, teak; formaldehyde-free bamboo).
Crockery (ceramic, glass, lead-free porcelain, maple, walnut, beech, teak; formaldehyde-free bamboo, stainless steel, lead & cadmium-free).

If you haven’t invested yet in high quality non-toxic kitchenware, it’s well worth it. Properly cared for it lasts a long time and supports health.

You can also recycle glass jars and non-toxic containers from products you already buy and use them as food storage containers—which helps the environment and your wallet.

Look for conscientious packaging (BPA & phthalate free, etc.) that you can reuse.

Instructions

Combine the sugar and oil, moisturizer, or body butter in a bowl.
Mix well to achieve the right consistency (not too moist, not to dry).
Prep and add any herbs and essential oils.
Gently scrub whatever areas of your skin you wish to exfoliate, leave on for 5 minutes, then rinse off.
Immediately apply your favorite moisturizer.

Extras can be stored in the fridge or freezer.

Your skin will feel sensitive for a while to UV rays and other environmental factors because you removed a layer of protection, even if it was dead cells.

There are also plenty of prescription exfoliators that dermatologists recommend, such as tretinoin, glycolic acid, and more.

Be radiant!