Two things… sometimes I want to be instantly gratified, and sometimes I want to be cheap. (I see no issues with either of these.)

Coming off of two trips where my legs spent a lot of time exposed to the sun (exposure that was earlier in the season than I expected, not to mention the wear and tear of travel in general), I realized that the more I age the drier and less elastic my skin is becoming. Sigh. In times like these my remedy of choice are sugar scrubs for exfoliation and more moisture! Alas, I’ve been out of any sugar scrubs for quite awhile. And sometimes, when you’re in a pinch (like visible evidence of one’s impending age) you just don’t want to go running all over town to track down what you need. (OK, that’s three things.)

Naturally, given the early hippie indoctrination, I decided to try to whip up my own sugar scrub. I mean, it’s sugar and oil, how hard can that be? (Besides, knowing how to make a sugar scrub could be very useful after economic collapse forces Bath and Body Works to close.) After a quick search on the Internet, including this very informative web page, I found out that it was pretty easy – you can basically make a sugar scrub out of any plant-based oil (mineral oil isn’t recommended), sugar, and fragrance – except that many of the recipes asked for lecithin. What the heck is lecithin?

However, after poking through the cabinet to see what ingredients I might have, I found an unopened bottle of Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Soothing Oil. Given to new mothers everywhere! And it had lecithin in it! Plus, collagen and other elasticity-building ingredients. Perfect!

So here’s what I did.

1 9oz bottle of Palmer’s Cocoa Butter (that’s travel size)

¼ cup canola oil (I would have used all Palmer’s if I had more)

½ cup of white sugar

20 drops fruit fragrance

I had the fragrance left over from previous soap making projects with Chance. Which, by the way, is NOTHING like making that horrid soap in 5th grade when we had to learn about colonial times so they forced everyone to make hand-dipped candles and wear bonnets and crap and the soap was made from ash and lye. That sucked. And square dancing! Do they even still teach square dancing in school?

Anywho. Nowadays you can get fragrances in any craft store with soap supplies.

In the end, the canola oil was a little heavier than I was used to in a scrub but the result was the same… my skin was smooth and moisturized! I was very pleased and it probably cost all of a dollar (on the high end) to make. I did find that the fruit fragrances couldn’t quite compete with the cocoa scent, so the next time I use Palmer’s I’m going to use brown sugar with some vanilla and a pinch of cinnamon. (I’ll smell like cobbler!)

This was so easy I’m also thinking about picking up some almond oil to try it again with a fruity scent.

And for those new mothers out there… now you know what to do with that left over Palmer’s. ‘Cause, really, how much of that stuff did any of us actually use?

          – the weirdgirl