Gimme Some Oven

DIY Coffee Sugar Scrub

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All you need are 3 ingredients to make this yummy coffee scrub. | gimmesomeoven.com

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of coffee. I love pour-over coffee, I love cold-brew coffee, and I always love it iced. But over the past few months, I have also been experimenting with using leftover coffee grounds as part of my skincare routine. Have you all tried this?

I am no health expert, and will never claim to be. But other experts on the webosphere claim that coffee (and caffeine) apparently do all sorts of good things for your skin. Namely:

1) diminish the appearance of cellulite
2) tighten and tone the look of your skin
3) serve as an exfoliant, when you use the grounds as a scrub

Plus, coffee is naturally a great antioxidant and anti-inflammatory. And the smell of coffee is one of my favorite things ever. So I jumped on the bandwagon and have been experimenting with using it as a body sugar scrub. And I have found it to be quite delightful. :)

DIY Coffee Sugar Scrub -- all you need are three ingredients for this all-natural body scrub | gimmesomeoven.com #beauty #diy #tutorial

I have been mixing up DIY sugar scrubs for years, and love experimenting with whatever “hot” new ingredients people are recommending. But the ingredients in this scrub are about as simple and straightforward as it gets. You need:

1) coffee grounds (you can either ground the coffee fresh, or use pre-used grounds like I do)
2) sugar (I used turbinado, but any sugar will work. I would recommend a more finely-ground sugar, like brown sugar, if your skin is sensitive.)
3) oil (coconut oil and olive oil are my two favs)

Just mix them all up, and you will be ready to go with a scrub that smells like your morning cup o’ jo in minutes. I don’t know if it has honestly made that much of a difference for me with cellulite, but I find the smell of the coffee grounds to be totally energizing and delightful. And the coconut oil is a great moisturizer.

The one warning I will give is that the coffee grounds make this one much darker than most scrubs. So don’t freak out if your tub looks looks like it’s full of dirt for a minute before it drains! :)  Also, as with any scrub, be sure to use this with hot water so that it doesn’t clog up your drain.

All in all, it’s natural. It’s a great way to use up leftover coffee grounds. And it feels good on my skin. So I’m a fan!

DIY Coffee Sugar Scrub
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Yield: About 1/3 cup

Ingredients

3 tablespoons finely-ground coffee (I used recycled grounds)
2 tablespoons oil (I used melted coconut oil)
1 tablespoon sugar (I used turbinado sugar)
(optional) 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
Stir all ingredients together until combined. Store in a sealed jar for up to 2 months.

DIY Coffee Sugar Scrub -- all you need are three ingredients for this all-natural body scrub | gimmesomeoven.com #beauty #diy #tutorial

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70 comments on “DIY Coffee Sugar Scrub”

  1. Big fan of the coffee sugar scrub! I also use my used coffee grinds. I love experimenting with different oils or adding more than just one in my scrubs.

  2. love this! I’ve been saving my grounds for composting but have been meaning to make a new sugar scrub…

  3. Great idea that I’ll definitely try!

  4. What a fantastic way to use up the coffee I have laying around!

  5. Do you find that the coffee beans stick to the shower/tub?

  6. Ooh I love the smell of coffee and facial scrubs so I will definitely be trying this!

  7. Yep, definitely making this!

  8. It basically improves the look of cellulite for a few hours due to it’s diuretic qualities. Not a cure but a temporary cosmetic aid.
    .

  9. I’m definitely going to have to try this. Then I can literally say I love coffee so much I bathe in it!

  10. Awesome scrub. I also add honey sometimes. 

  11. I love this idea but if we don’t empty our coffee filters into our drains because the grounds will clog, how does it work with this scrub running down our pipes?

  12. can I please ask, how do you stop the grounds from going furry? Mine get a mould growing on them?  Am I doing something wrong?

  13. Je fais la même chose que vous mais à la place du sucre, j’utilise du gros sel de Guérande. C’est vrai que cela diminue l’effet peau d’orange. Bonne journée, Véronique83 (Var en France).

  14. BTW one “serving” fits in a Gerber baby food jar

  15. I’ve been using this regularly and it makes my skin looks awesome!! & it smells great. Thanks for sharing xx

  16. I’ve been using this recipe for about 2 months now and good LORD it works.
    It gives you that summer glow in the dead of winter. 

  17. I am enjoying this coffee scrub a couple of times per week.  My skin feels GREAT afterward and much smoother.  I wonder if with consistent use, I might be able to smooth out some of those adolescent stretch marks on my legs!  Admittedly it does dirty up the tub and I spend a good 5 extra minutes trying to wash the grounds off the tiles and the tub sides and bottom.  Also, make sure to swish some soapy water around as well when you’re done, it can make the tub rather slick.  FYI, the first time I made a large batch and sealed it in a Weck jar it got moldy in just over a week.  Now I only make 2-3 uses at a time.

  18. Why have I only just found you!!
    ahhh I need to go shopping to try allll your recipes!!! ♡♡♡

  19. To the people getting moldy scrubs:
    One thing that can help is to make sure your grounds are completely dry before using them. Also, don’t bring the large container in the bathroom with you. Moisture is the enemy here. You can keep it in the refrigerator too, but it will turn into a solid.

  20. I love this too! I use a coffee grinder to fine-grind both the sugar and the coffee. And I add some turmeric for more anti-inflam action! It’s a lovely brown-yellow mess all up in my face – luckily once I wash it off my face just glows! 

  21. Came across this DIY scrub. Definitely will give it a try. Good thing I am a coffee drinker. Thanks for sharing :D

  22. Hello
    I have used straight up used coffee grinds and not only is it a self tanner but it does tighten the skin. The problem is that it does stain the shower. We have upgraded to marble so I will be bringing it to the gym…lol

  23. Great recipe! Looing forward to reading more from your blog. I’m obsessed with homemade beauty recipes.

  24. Hi, 
    I don’t take coffee so no coffee grounds for me. If I have to get grounds from the office or coffee shop will any flavor be ok to use?
    Also can I use store bought ground coffee instead?

    • Hi there! Yes, you can use any kind of coffee grounds for this. We hope you enjoy!

  25. ive just found this and its amazing ????? thank you it works so well !!

  26. Not being a fan of iced coffee, can I use this same recipe and just heat it up in the microwave for hot coffee? I’m hoping cold brew will prevent the bitterness of regularly brewed coffee!

    • Hi Renee! We’re a little confused about your comment — we think maybe you meant to leave this comment on the iced coffee recipe, instead of the coffee sugar scrub recipe? There is no iced coffee in this sugar scrub. If that is the case, yes, you should be able to use the iced coffee recipe and just heat it up.

  27. Can I use any other oil like almond oil ???

  28. Love Coffee
    I just love the smell of coffee sugar scrub!!!
    Made it for friends and family. Awsome for feet… Fabulous for face… Everyone just loves it…

  29. Very eager to try this. Is there a reason to use the vanilla other then smell? Thank you:)

  30. Thanks for the recipe! Quick question: do you dry out your pre-used coffee grounds before you put them into the scrub, or do you just use them wet?

  31. The best scrub I’ve found so far. My skin feels very soft and smooth. And I feel less wasteful not throwing my grounds out.

  32. I try it for the first time n the first use my stretchmarks get black maybe is the olive oil cause i here that the it make your skin dark. I don’t know .

  33. Hey, I am thinking about trying this. Quick question though – what do you with the leftover coffee before making the scrub. Because they are wet – should I roast them? or dry them first?

    • Hi Jay! No need to roast/dry the leftover coffee — you can use it as is. We hope you enjoy this!

  34. GLORY…GLORY…GLOURIOUS!My niece gave me a jar of her self/made coffee/sugar scrub for Christmas.  OMG, I can’t say enough good about this!  I am almost 70 yrs young, have extremely dry skin and still (3 yrs) recovering from cancer treatments. There is NOTHING (to my knowledge) on the market like this…incredible, simply incredible.  Like you, I can’t say much about the cellulite, however, my skin condition, tone and overall appearance is incredible (face to toes).  Thank you, thank you, thank you……PLEASE continue your experiments and helping others.  CDW@COMCAST.NET

  35. Wow!! Thanks so much for this recipe. I used olive oil, my friend dislikes the smell of coconut oil. Coffee grounds from my espresso machine and added a few drops of tea tree oil to get the benefits of Tea Tree added to the scruffer. What a great way to re-utilize things that would end up in the trash. I always have it on hand in the shower. I will be making gifts with your recipe.

    • You’re very welcome, Marla — we’re so happy you loved it, and we like your idea of adding tea tree oil to it! :)

  36. Thanks for the Coffee Scrub recipe, I know you said we can keep it up to 2 months in a sealed jar. I also wonder if I can refrigerate it? Because besides using it as scrub, I probably use it as my dark eye circle mask to reduce puffiness, so the cold should feel nice I figured. :)

    • Hi Bonnie! Yes, you could refrigerate it — we hope you enjoy!

  37. I think this is the best scrub I have ever tried!! With previous recipes, my skin was left dry and not smooth at all. But with these ingredients you suggested I was very happily surprised!! Also, I added half teaspoon of honey just to stick everything up!:) Thank you very much!
    Calliope

    • Thank you so much, Calliope, we’re so glad you loved this! :)

  38. This is the first DIY I’ve done in years and I love it, thanks so much for posting it! I’ve made three batches – one for me, and one each for my friends who are about to have their birthdays :)

    • Thanks for sharing, Claire, we’re happy you like it and we hope your friends do as well! :)

  39. I was wondering how ground the coffee beans should be? Would the size for pour over coffee work well, or would you recommend a finer grind?

    • Hi Amanda! We think somewhere in between is a good size for the grounds (you don’t want them too big so they don’t scratch, but you want them big enough so that they actually can exfoliate). We hope this helps!

  40. This is such an amazing idea! Is there an alternative to sugar for people who avoid keeping sugar in the house to avoid eating it all? XD

  41. Pro tip: after you mix the ingredients, place into an ice tray to solidify, move scrub “cubes” to a mason jar and each cube is perfect sized for single use.

    • Megan, Fantastic idea. I have old ice trays I no longer use. I was using mini muffin silicon molds for my other scrubs. :)

  42. Quick question.. would you recommend using the 3.2.1 ratio even for a Larger batch?

  43. How cute an idea is this! Here is the same that I’m a big fan of coffee. I appreciate you for your brilliant sharing. Keep sharing more with us. Can I share this post on my Pinterest to see my followers?

  44. Have you ever tried the flavored K-Cups coffee grinds?

  45. Can I store it for 2 months??!
    Without refrigerating??

  46. Do you measure the oil before or after melting?

  47. Hi, tried for the first time today, it tingles. Love the smell of coffee. I used fresh but found your site and discovered I could use the already used grounds. Much better since coffee is getting so expensive. I used only two teaspoons of coffee, one teaspoon of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of olive oil, but it seems to work. Thanks for the post.

    Have wanted to try the scrub for ages.