Strawberry Hand and Foot Exfoliant

This is one our most popular spa at home recipes because it does a terrific job moisturizing and softening hands (particularly after gardening,  crafting or projects rough on your hands) and feet.

Strawberries have a purpose here; they contain a natural fruit acid which aids exfoliation. While strawberries are best harvested and used in the summer, we prefer to eat them in summer, but use them in treatments in other seasons.  The fact they are available nearly year round in grocery stores, but often with disappointing flavor, is a good reason to keep this on hand for winter home remedies.   Why?  Because while a strawberry  may lack flavor, or be too sour to enjoy, they still have that necessary active ingredient, which makes this a good year-round remedy.

Here’s what journalist Crystal Chow for Knight Ridder Newspapers said, when we first published this recipe in April  2005:

“What price beauty? Is it really worth shelling out $10, $20 or more for things like exfoliators and masques? Even if you scream “Yes!” you still might think about creating such products at home. Ingredients are usually right at hand, with preparations costing pennies per application. It’s a natural way to be nice to Mother Earth, too. But can DIY glamorizers stand polished toe to toe with the store-bought stuff?    My skepticism was sky-high initially. Why would I want to use strawberries as a beauty product rather than eat them? But wow! This treatment really made a difference — my hands were definitely softer. A caveat: The mixture is lumpy and messy, so apply in the kitchen and don’t wear good clothes.”

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Strawberry Hand and Foot Exfoliant

Strawberries have a purpose here; they contain a natural fruit acid which aid exfoliation.

Course: Hands and Feet

Cuisine: DIY Spa Treatments

Keyword: Rose, Salt

Courtesy of: SpaIndex.com Spa at Home Collection

Materials

• 8-10 Strawberries
• 2 tablespoons Apricot Oil you may substitute olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt such as Kosher Salt, or Sea Salt

Instructions

• Mix together all ingredients into a paste
• Massage into hands and feet
• Rinse
• Pat dry

Spa Index Kitchen Notes

SpaIndex.com Tip: You've heard the adage "Never cook with wine you wouldn't drink." This holds equally true for home spa remedies. Never use ingredients for your home spa treatments that you wouldn't want to eat. Your skin, the largest organ on your body, breathes and is porous. It will absorb the properties of the ingredients you are using. Don't "clean out the fridge or pantry" to create your home remedies. Use fresh, high quality ingredients for the best results, and do not store the assembled-treatment any longer than the shelf life of the *most* perishable ingredient. In addition, take care to research the properties of all Essential Oils you plan to use in a recipe. Some are photo-sensitive and can contribute to burning when in the sun, and others are harmful during pregnancy. See our Essential Oils List as a start, but research fully. Finally, insure the containers or jars you will be using are sterile by boiling them in hot water. This will help prevent contamination of your finished product, which could lead to spoilage.