Body Smoothers - Salts Scrubs and Masks

from bath and body

When the seasons change and your skin is shedding like a snake's, a body scrub salt glow, herbal wrap, or mud mask is an alternative way to exfoliate and pamper yourself at the same time.

For an at home salt rub, run a warm bath ankle high or stand in the shower, away from the water. Wet your body. Take a palmful of bath salts, moisten your palm, and massage the salts, gently, in circular movements, directly onto your skin with your fingers. Stand at your feet and work your way up, always working inward, from your extremities toward your torso. Finally, scrub your torso. (Never apply to your neck, face, or broken skin, and avoid your décolleté.) Rinse with warm water.

When you're done, empty and refill the tub, throw in a small scoop of bath salts, and take a muscle-relaxing soak. At home, I always keep a big glass jar of bath salts on my shelf, with a flat seashell inside the jar. I use the shell to scoop up the salts, and toss a couple of shellfuls into the bath. Contrary to what you might think, bath salts do not dry out the skin - too much water does. Rinse with cool water.

You can easily make your own bath salts by spiking sea salt with a few drops of essential oil (your choice). Bath salts mixed with essential oils pack a three fisted punch: the salt exfoliates the skin, the aroma therapeutic oils soothe the spirit, and a mineral rich soak afterward can relax tired muscles.

There's a reason why bath-and-body shops are almost as ubiquitous as Starbucks: some of the store-bought bath salts are irresistible, and they last forever because a little goes a long way.

Read the labels, and you'll usually find three main ingredients: sea salt, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), and essential oils. Remember: this is a case where less is more. Lists that go on with endless ingredients are loaded with dyes, fragrances, and preservatives. These products contain just the good stuff: Bliss Hot Salt Scrub (Dead Sea salt with rosemary oil), Burt's Bees Dead Sea Salts, Ahava Dead Sea Bath Salts, Elizabeth Arden Green Tea Tub Rub, Essentiel Elements Essentiel Oil Bath Salts, Fresh Brown Sugar Body Polish (a pricey splurge!), Origins True Grit Fruit-Sloughing Body Gel (apricot pits and peppermint). Here are a couple of body scrub recipes for all skin types. You can use your fingers, a sponge, or a washcloth to apply a body mask or scrub. Avoid a loofah or brush, because the combination is overly abrasive.