As the weather gets warmer, I often think of summers spent on the west coast of British Columbia with my family as a kid. We’d poke about in tide pools, kayak around sandstone points, and explore island forests. With a blend of seaweed and sea salt, this face scrub reminds me of those summer days.

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This scrub (which can also double as a mask) is wonderfully simple and easy to whip up. Simply blend everything together in your DIY coffee grinder and you’re done! Thanks to the grinder it doesn’t matter how coarse your salt is—mine was quite coarse, but not after going through the grinder. I used Dead Sea salt (compliments of Saffire Blue—thanks!) for some added minerals, but if you don’t have Dead Sea salt, plain sea salt is totally fine.

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You’ll notice I haven’t called for very much seaweed powder. While it’s loaded with lots of great vitamins and minerals, it also stinks. It smells like seaweed, and even moreso when it gets wet. If you don’t like the smell of seaweed, you’re not going to like the smell of this mask and you might want to consider trying something else. The citrus essential oil compliments and brightens the seaweed, but it certainly doesn’t cover it up.

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Once you’ve got the scrub all blended up, all that’s left is to pop it in a jar and use it at your leisure. You can massage a palmful of it into your face with a bit of added water, or spoon some of the dry mix into a little dish and add enough water to make a smooth paste and apply that as a mask. Done and done!

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Seaside Face Scrub & Mask

1 tbsp Dead sea salt or sea salt
1–2 tsp seaweed powder
4 tsp white kaolin clay (USA / Canada)
5 drops red mandarin essential oil (or other citrus essential oil of choice)

Combine all the ingredients in your DIY coffee grinder. Blend to combine.

Spoon the mixture into a 125mL/half cup mason jar to store.

To use as a scrub, wet your face and massage a palmful of the powder into your skin before rinsing off.

To use as a mask, measure a teaspoon of water into a small dish and whisk in a teaspoon or two of the powder until you have a smooth, thick paste. Spread over your face, let it dry, and rinse it off. You’ll probably want to follow up with some argan oil.