Exfoliate with Coffee Grounds

TIP: Use old coffee grounds (cooled) as a mild exfoliant for your face and body—the grainy texture will slough off dead cells.
— Beautylish (@beautylish) February 27, 2014

credit: cosmosmagazine.com

Since I have decided to start using natural beauty products I have noticed a lot of DIY (do it yourself) recipes. One of the more popular recipes types are scrubs. I tried a few with Brown Sugar and Raw Sugar, but I felt guilty taking items from the kitchen that were precious to my sweet tooth. So when I saw this tweet by Beautylish, I was super excited to try it. Coffee grounds are something we throw out anyway, so why not repurpose them?!

Now when I make coffee I collect the used grounds in a non-breakable kitchen storage box and keep it in the refrigerator till I'm ready to exfoliate. Before my shower I add a  little of my favorite skin oil to lightly coat the coffee grounds, I would suggest Jojoba. Once in the shower I take small handfuls of coffee ground and start rubbing (arms, legs, back...) I should tell you this can get messy and will make your bathroom and body smell like coffee for a short while. After a good scrub my skin feels soft and renewed. This works very well on areas like knees, elbows, and feet. Quick tip: if you exfoliate before shaving you get a closer shave! After a scrub down, I proceed to washing my body with my usual body soap and get on with the rest of my shower.

Caution:

• NOT FOR YOUR FACE! I would not suggest using coffee ground on the face as they are coarse, especially if you have sensitive skin. Look for something that will exfoliate more gently. One of my favorite ways to exfoliate gently is with a mask.
•  DON'T SLIP! Make sure you are not leaving any oil residue on your shower floor.

Non-Toxic Product Identification Tools

credit: tiger.lilytse.com

Now that you know what you should avoid in the beauty aisle thanks to my last post ,The Dirty Dozen, you can begin to make better choices.

• To help you find products that are natural and free of harsh chemicals and toxins you can visit the EWG’s Skin Deep Cosmetic data base. I suggest you find product with a 0 – 3 rating. They also have a phone app called SkinDeep for your smartphone.
• A good resource for the gadget users out there is the Think Dirty application. This app is only currently offered for iPhone users through the AppStore.
• The GoodGuide helps you identify products that are healthy, green and socially responsible by evaluating products in three categories:  health, environment and society. They offer an application for both Apple and Android. 
• A tool I stumbled upon here was developed for acne sufferers to check if products are comedogenic, a term used to indicated if an ingredient clogs pores and causes skin irritation. They have an app called Skingredients for Android. This tool in particular will not tell you if the product is toxic, but it will help you evaluate a products impact on your skin.

While, these tools don’t contain all brands and products, it provides a start to quickly identifying what is natural in your own bathroom and on store shelves.

Please let me know if you have any tip and tricks that you use when it come to evaluating products in the comments down below!

BIRTHDAY BEAUTY HAUL

Out with the old in with the new! My shipment from Vitacost.com just came. My birthday beauty presents are finally all under one roof. I can't wait to try out my new products and tell you all about them.

Brands Shown:
Acure Organics
Honeybee Gardens
Organic Wear (Physicians Formula)
Tarte
Alba Botanica
MyChelle Minerals

What are some of your favorites natural beauty items?