Rescue Dry Skin with DIY Scrubbing Soap Bars

This post is sponsored by iHerb. All opinions are my own.

I hate to say it, especially since we’re just barely into fall, but I can already feel my sensitive skin getting tight and itchy thanks to the cooler weather. If you’re also suffering from flaky skin, rest easy, there’s hope—I mean, soap—for that.

First things first: we’ll gently slough away dead skin cells so your skin feels fresh and smooth. Then we’ll replenish nutrients and lock in moisture.

All with this one magical DIY bar soap and a little in-shower scrub session.

We teamed up with our friends at iHerb to make these gentle scrubbing soaps to add to your fall skincare routine. They contain all-natural oat bran, which helps polish away dead skin without leaving you with that post-exfoliation burn.

And they’re infused with the most moisturizing body butter to replenish what’s been zapped by cool air. Plus, Vitamin E and essential oils like chamomile, bergamot and ylang ylang smell amazing, up the aromatherapy action and nourish skin.

I’m sure you’ve heard me talk about iHerb before (I’m a huge fangirl) but they’re a natural superstore with over 30,000 natural products—often at discounted prices—gracing their shelves. I’ll usually put in a huge order at the beginning of the month and impatiently wait for the box to arrive a couple days later.

Since they provide all sorts of discounts (quantity discounts, flash sales, and loyalty credits) in addition to their already low prices, I often get everything I need for a lot less than I can from other online retailers.

No kidding, I once purchased a box of monthly health and beauty supplies that should have cost $75 for less than $15 by stacking promotions, discounts and loyalty credits. I can’t praise them enough.

And did I mention they ship from climate-controlled distribution centers to ensure the quality of their products to over 180 countries (often with free expedited shipping on orders over a certain amount) and offer customer service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in 10 different languages?

They stand behind their products and their business model so you never have to worry about something going wrong.

Because these DIY soaps are so easy to customize, definitely checkout iHerb’s line of essential oils and body butters before ordering your supplies. You never know what other fun ingredients might spark your interest.

And trust me, after a couple weeks of using these babies, don’t be surprised if your friends are all, “You look so radiant!” next time you catch up.

DIY Scrubbing Soap Bars

While you can tell by the shape that these soaps will be effective, it’s the ingredients that really make them shine:

NOW Foods Organic Oat Bran – Small bits of ground oat bran help to gently exfoliate dry skin cells without damaging the skin or causing irritation that may make flakes worse.

Lake Avenue Nutrition Vitamin E – Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant that’s essential for maintaining healthy skin.

Sierra Bees Honey Almond Body Butter – Made with a variety of nourishing oils (sunflower, coconut, and jojoba to name a few) and butters (like cocoa, mango and capuacu), this rich body butter gives your soap a dose of healthy fat.

NOW Bergamot Essential Oil – Bergamot has natural cleansing properties that helps tone the skin. (Note: Bergamot comes with a photosensitivity warning so use it sparingly and apply sunscreen if you’ll be spending time outdoors)

Aura Cacia Ylang Ylang Essential Oil – Ylang ylang helps boost mood, which is a must (at least for me!) this time of year.

NOW Chamomile Essential Oil – A potent anti-inflammatory, chamomile is said to help calm and soothe the skin.

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Oat Bran + Essential Oil Scrubbing Soap

These scrubbing soap bars will leave your skin feeling smooth and hydrated thanks to gentle oat bran, nourishing body butters and essential oils.

Prep Time10 mins

Cooling Time8 hrs

Total Time8 hrs 10 mins

Course: Bath and Body Soap

Cuisine: Beauty

Keyword: essential oils, shea butter, soap

Yield: 6 bars

Author: Stephanie Pollard

Cost: $20

Equipment

• Massage bar soap molds
• Medium microwave-safe bowl

Materials

• 2 pounds melt and pour soap I used the shea butter kind, but use any kind you like!
• 3 tablespoons Sierra Bee’s Honey Almond Body Butter
• 1/3 cup NOW Foods Organic Oat Bran
• 6 Lake Avenue Vitamin E 400 IU capsules
• 8 drops NOW Bergamot Essential Oil
• 5 drops Aura Cacia Ylang Ylang Essential Oil
• 12 drops NOW Chamomile Essential Oil

Instructions

• Chop the soap into cubes and place in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals until just melted (be sure not to overcook it or it might change the texture of your soap).
  
• Add the oat bran and body butter and stir well.
  
• Let the mixture cool slightly before adding the Vitamin E (use a knife to create a small hole in the capsule and squeeze out the oil) and essential oils. Stir again.
  
• Pour the soap into your molds and let cool completely (I usually let mine cool overnight) before removing.
  

Notes

If you pour the soap mixture into your molds while the soap is still hot, the oat bran will sink to the bottom. If that bothers you, let your soap cool to almost room temperature, give it one last stir (it will be slightly chunky by that point), then pour it into your molds. This will help suspend some of the oat bran throughout the soap.

Your soap should last at least 6 months. If needed, feel free to halve the recipe to make fewer bars.