Everyone knows when fall comes around that it’s time for all things pumpkin! Pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin pie, or even pumpkin spice lotion. I’ve been wanting to make a pumpkin scrub for a while now because pumpkin is amazing for your skin, and I finally got around to it. And seriously, it is my new favorite pumpkin anything.

This scrub is all natural and full of ingredients that reduce inflammation for your skin. It feels and smells amazing. It is a nice gentle exfoliant that gets rid of that extra dead skin and reduces inflammation to boot. Pumpkin lovers rejoice!

I love using skin products that are healthy and natural. Making your own products ensures that you are getting something healthy that is good for your skin. And you can save money on them too!

So if you’re ready for a little fall themed spa day, keep reading to see the full tutorial.

I like to explain why I chose the ingredients in my products, so you can understand what this awesome scrub does for your skin!

If you click any of the ingredients you will find either the exact product I used in this recipe or one that I recommend.

Ingredients:

• Pumpkin: Full of vitamin A which soothes inflammation, and vitamin C which is an antioxidant that remedies damage from free radicals. Enzymes in pumpkin help break down dead skin cells for extra exfoliating power. Vitamins E and T help reduce inflammation.
• Sugar: A natural gentle topical exfoliant that gently removes dead skin to make way for newer healthier cells. A natural source of glycolic acid that also helps exfoliate.
• Turmeric: A power house for reducing inflammation. Full of cucurminoids which are powerful antioxidants that have anti-inflammatory properties.
• Essential oils (optional): For scent, and can have added benefits depending on which oils you use. If you want the pumpkin spice feel for this mask, use 1 drop cinnamon essential oil, 1 drop ginger, and 1 drop nutmeg.

And you’ll need a few supplies:

• A mixing bowl
• A spatula
• Small air tight jar

I promise that it is super easy to make. You can watch how it’s done in the video below.

Keep on scrolling for the full recipe!

This stuff is a real powerhouse. Each ingredient has powerful benefits for your skin, with the pumpkin and turmeric combining to make it a great anti-inflammatory. Soothing inflammation is one of the best things you can do for your skin.

Since this mask is so effective at exfoliating, you’ll want to follow up with a good sunscreen to protect those new cells from damage!

This scrub seriously feels amazing. The texture and feel are super luxurious.

It feels like a $50 spa treatment, and for less than $2 for you to reproduce. Chances are you have all these ingredients in your kitchen already!

Looking at these pictures kind of makes my mouth water. You’ve gotta love a skincare product that is healthy and natural enough to eat!

Seriously though, this scrub is so easy to make that you have no reason not to! Your skin will thank you.

Let me know how making your own pumpkin face scrub goes for you!

supplies used in this post

The post Homemade Anti-Inflammatory Pumpkin Face Scrub appeared first on Pins and Procrastination.

Last weekend we had a picnic for my boyfriend’s brother’s birthday. It was a lovely time and the food was delicious. Lars’s mom is a great cook/baker and she made an incredible gluten free red velvet cake. Anyways, when I read the terrible ingredients in my sunscreen, I decided not to wear it. I stayed in the shade a lot. Well, that didn’t work out and I got a sunburnt nose anyways. (Meaning it’s time to make a homemade sunscreen, but that will be another post).

My nose was starting to peel so I figured it was time to come up with a new exfoliator. I love my coconut lavender face exfoliator, but coconut oil on my face has been making me break out lately, so I figured I would make a more acne-friendly version. And I’m in love with the results.

Oh, and it only costs 75 cents to make one batch of it.

You’re also doing a favor to the environment if you make your own exfoliator. Most of the exfoliators you can buy in stores contain microbeads- which are made of plastic! I don’t want to wash my face with plastic! Let alone send it down my drain every day. These microbeads are becoming an epidemic in our waterways and Illinois just banned them in personal care products. So do yourself a favor and use an exfoliator that exfoliates with something other than plastic.

All you need to make this scrub are a few simple ingredients:

• Honey: Naturally anti-bacterial, good for acne, natural humectant (attracts moisture to the skin)
• Baking Soda: Gentle natural exfoliator
• Cinnamon: Natural acne treatment, antiseptic, cleanses pores, stimulates blood vessels on surface of the skin
• Lemon Essential Oil (optional): astringent, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, natural acne treatment

I need to warn you: you will need to resist the desire to eat this face scrub. Especially if you love honey anywhere as much as me. The honey and cinnamon together smell amazing. And if you use lemon essential oil it will smell even MORE amazing. Like snickerdoodle cookies.

You could eat it and be just fine- but I don’t think it would taste good with the baking soda in it. But that’s the beauty of these homemade recipes. You literally could eat them with no worries. 

My skin feels so fresh and amazing after using this scrub. The cinnamon definitely added a tingly-ness that lasted about 10 minutes after. I love that feeling. And the scrub took off all my peely sunburnt skin.

Don’t you love the fresh feeling after you’ve exfoliated? Well, with this scrub you get that feeling PLUS the amazing, natural, scents.

Just looking at this picture I feel like I can still smell it. Is it bad to exfoliate multiple times a day? Probably. I will have to use restraint not to use this all the time because it smells so incredibly amazing. 

Try making this incredibly easy exfoliator- and let me know how it goes for you!

The post Honey Cinnamon Face Exfoliator/ Scrub appeared first on Pins and Procrastination.

If you haven’t already been convinced by my 13 ingredients to avoid in cosmetics to avoid toxic chemicals in your beauty products, you should still try this exfoliator for its luxuriousness. It is simple and smells like lavender and coconut. And it’s great for sensitive skin. Does it get better than that?

Exfoliating on a regular basis is good for your skin. Your body is constantly shedding and producing new skin cells. Since your face has more sensitive skin than most of your body, it sometimes needs a little help getting rid of the dead cells. Too many dead cells left on the skin can clog pores and lead to breakouts. So using a natural exfoliator like this not only helps avoid the chemicals in most store-bought exfoliators, it also can help prevent breakouts and moisturize at the same time. Oh, did I mention it’s also anti-inflammatory?

It’s so easy to make with so few ingredients

The ingredients are all great for your skin:

• Coconut oil: moisturizes skin more efficiently than water or petroleum based lotions, naturally antibacterial, full of antioxidants and nutrients your skin needs (make sure to get an organic, non-refined, cold pressed oil to get the full benefits)
• Baking soda: gentle, non-irritating exfoliator
• Lavender essential oil: anti-inflammatory for skin, relaxing scent (look for 100% pure therapeutic grade)

Lavender Essential Oil. 30 ml (1 oz). 100% Pure, Undiluted, Therapeutic Grade.

And here is the full recipe:

The coconut oil and baking soda will look cloudy mixed together

If it is especially warm out you might want to put this in the fridge right after mixing to let the coconut oil solidify more quickly. If it takes too long for the coconut oil to re-solidify the baking soda tends to separate. It’s easily fixed by just stirring it up- and it can be used on a hot day even if the coconut oil is melted- just make sure it is mixed well. Using this scrub may take a little getting used to at first. If you are used to oil-free products, the feel of using a coconut oil based scrub may be strange. Trust me- once you get past the initial weirdness it just feels amazing. And I usually can skip my moisturizer after I use this scrub because it moisturizes well enough on its own. I’m becoming a big fan of lavender essential oil. It is supposed to be great at helping with rashes and skin conditions like eczema. Anything anti-inflammatory is ok by me! I use this exfoliator about every other shower. My other face wash is the three ingredient honey face wash I posted last week that I use between exfoliations. I’m planning to make a new moisturizer soon- so keep your eyes open for that recipe in the coming weeks! Try out this awesome homemade exfoliator- and let me know how it goes for you!

The post Homemade Coconut Lavender Moisturizing Face Exfoliator/ Scrub (Only 3 ingredients!) appeared first on Pins and Procrastination.