How to Make Peppermint Sugar Scrub

Co-authored by Lorena Barcal and Hannah Madden

Peppermint sugar scrub is a great DIY gift that you can make for your friends and family around the holidays. Since it only takes a little bit of time and a few ingredients, you can throw together a batch in a single afternoon for a quick, thoughtful gift. Try adding twine or a ribbon to your jar of peppermint scrub to dress it up and make it look adorable.

Ingredients

2 cups (256 g) of granulated sugar
¹⁄₂ c (120 mL) of melted coconut oil
15 to 20 drops of peppermint essential oil
2 drops of red food coloring

Yields about 2 cups (256 g) of peppermint sugar scrub.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Combining the Ingredients

1
Pour 2 cups (256 g) of granulated sugar into a bowl. In a medium sized bowl, pour 2 cups (256 g) of white granulated sugar. If there are any clumps, sift it through a strainer as you pour it into the bowl.^{[1]
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- The sugar is the main ingredient in your scrub, which is why you need so much.
2
Mix in ¹⁄₂ c (120 mL) of melted coconut oil. Scoop ¹⁄₂ c (120 mL) of coconut oil into a microwave-safe bowl, then microwave it on high for about 15 seconds. Pour the oil into the sugar, then mix it in with a wooden spoon.^{[2]
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- You can use cold-pressed coconut oil. It preserves more of its nutrients.
- Or you can put Vitamin E oil. It is good for the skin.
- You can also use fractionated coconut oil since it’s already melted.
- If you need to, you can add more coconut oil to get the scrub to the right consistency.
- Coconut oil is the best carrier oil to use for a sugar scrub since it’s moisturizing.
- If you don’t like coconut oil, try using jojoba oil or almond oil instead.
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3
Drop 15 to 20 drops of peppermint essential oil into the mixture. Open up the lid of your essential oil and carefully use the dropper to drop it in. Add a maximum of 20 drops for an extra peppermint smell, or stick with 10 for a more mild scrub.^{[3]
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- Use caution around essential oils, and keep them away from children and pets.^{[4]
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- Never put essential oils on your skin without diluting them first.^{[5]
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4
Divide the scrub into 2 equal parts. Grab a second bowl and scoop out about half of your sugar scrub. You don’t have to be precise with your measurements, but get the bowls to roughly the same amount.^{[6]
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- There should be about 1 cup (128 g) of scrub in each bowl.
5
Mix in 2 drops of red food coloring into 1 part of the sugar mix. Grab a bottle of red food coloring and carefully drop about 2 drops into the mixture. Use a metal spoon to stir the coloring into the scrub to make it a bright red.^{[7]
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- Try not to use too much food coloring to avoid staining your skin when you use the scrub.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Storing the Peppermint Scrub

1
Add alternating layers of white and red scrub to a glass jar. Grab a tall glass jar and start adding spoonfuls of your scrub, alternating between white and red. Keep going until you fill the entire jar to make a cute candy cane design.^{[8]
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- The red may bleed a little bit into the white layers, but they’ll just turn slightly pink for an even cuter candy cane.
- Depending on how large your jar is, your mixture could fill 1 to 3 jars.
- A regular 16-ounce mason jar can hold all of the sugar scrub, and it looks super cute too.
2
Press down on the sugar scrub with a spoon to compact it. Once you’ve filled your jar, press down on the top with the back of a metal spoon. This will push down the top layer of the scrub to make it easy for the lid to go on.^{[9]
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- If you need to, you can scrape off a little bit of the top layer to make it flat.
3
Seal the jar with a lid to keep it airtight. To keep your scrub from drying out, screw the lid onto your jar tightly. If you use your scrub, make sure to seal it back up before you store it.^{[10]
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- Try to use your sugar scrub within 6 months.
- You can use a sugar scrub to exfoliate your legs, hands, and feet and remove dry, flaky skin.
4
Stick a label onto the front of the jar for a cute gift. If you’d like to, print out a label that says “Peppermint Scrub” or use a sticker to add a label to your jar. You can also tie a piece of twine around the neck of the jar for an added holiday decoration.^{[11]
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- Sugar scrubs make great gifts around the holidays.
- Try taping a real candy cane to the outside of the jar for a sweet treat.

Warnings

Use caution around essential oils, and never use them without diluting them first.^{[12]
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