Some of the best things I make aren’t planned.
They happen because something is nearly finished, already used, or about to be thrown away.
No measurements. No precision. Just feel.
- A handful of Himalayan salt
- Crumbled used coffee grounds
- Enough hemp oil to bring it together
- A few drops of Ho Wood essential oil
Nothing fancy. Nothing bought specially. Just what was already there.
I crumbled the coffee, added salt, poured in enough hemp oil to bind it all together, and finished with a few drops of Ho Wood. That was it - Coffee and Salt Scrub!
And honestly - it was one of the best showers I’ve had in ages.
Why this worked so well
Each ingredient did exactly one job.
- Himalayan salt for texture and grounding
- Used coffee grounds for gentle exfoliation and circulation
- Hemp oil to soften skin without leaving it greasy
- Ho Wood for a calm, quietly comforting scent
No emulsifiers. No foaming agents. No unnecessary extras.
The coffee will go mouldy if not used quickly but make enough for a good all over body scrub, then repeat the recipe next week.
A note on reuse (and restraint)
I’ve been thinking a lot about the idea of using what you have, reusing where possible, and keeping ingredients to the minimum necessary.
Not as a rule. Not as a purity test.
But as a way of paying attention.
When you work with fewer ingredients:
- you understand them better
- you notice texture, scent and feel more clearly
- you stop chasing the next thing and start trusting your hands
I'm the worst for wanting to try new and exotic ingredients and it has it's place, but I think 2026 might have to be a use what you've got year.
Fall back in love with my classics (Hemp, Calendula and Jojoba to name a few).
