Of all the trends going around recently, the phenomena of unicorn everything really speaks to me. Maybe it’s the hours I spent as a child watching My Little Pony. Maybe it’s the combination of candy colors and sparkling glitter. Or perhaps it’s just nice to take a break from the seriousness of life to create something that makes your girlfriends go “oooooh!!”
Whatever it is, I’ve been dying to hop on the unicorn train, and found the perfect opportunity while working on a recipe for whipped sugar scrubs. These moisturizing little jars of pink and purple goodness look good enough to eat—so much so that I didn’t dare scent them with too edible an aroma! (My husband still hasn’t forgiven me for that time he bit into a cookie-shaped bath bomb.) I went with a classic floral lavender for my scrubs, but these would be amazing scented with a yummy vanilla or sherbet fragrance.
Kids are bound to love these just as much as grownups. (OK, maybe even a little more.) In fact, this is just the right kind of project to make with a crafty youngster. Children and teens will love mixing up the colors and decorating the jars. I would have loved to make these during a sleepover party way back when.
Materials:
– 8 ounces refined shea butter
– 2 ounces apricot oil
– 1/2 teaspoon lavender essential oil (optional)
– 2 cups white sugar
– cosmetic mineral micas
– 8 2-ounce jars
– gold glitter adhesive foam
– permanent marker
Step One: Place the shea butter in the bowl of an electric stand mixer and whip on high speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). You can also use an electric hand mixer and mixing bowl for this step. Reduce the mixing speed to slow, drizzle in apricot oil and essential oil (if using) and mix slowly until combined. Bring the mixer back up to high speed and whisk for another minute or two—just until the butter has a gorgeous fluffy texture. Think buttercream frosting! Gently fold in the sugar, mixing the ingredients just enough to combine them fully.
Step Two: Divide the mixture into four bowls—one for each color you plan to make. Add a pinch or two of colored mica to each bowl and stir well to blend in the color. I used red mica to make pink, blue mica to make blue, and a pinch of red AND blue to make purple. I left one bowl white for contrast.
Step Three: Spoon the colored scrub into your jars, tapping the jars gently between each layer. The layers are likely to wind up a little uneven, but this adds to the whimsical beauty of the recipe. The bumpy layers remind me of little clouds or cotton candy. So cute!
Step Four: After placing caps on your jars, it’s time to decorate! Use a pair of scissors to cut tiny triangles from the sheet of glitter foam. I used gold for my unicorn horns, but you can customize this project with any glitter color you like—silver, pink, or purple would be gorgeous! Stick one triangle to each jar and use a permanent marker to draw on sleepy eyelashes.
Your scrubs will keep nicely at room temperature for about three months—though the colors may fade or morph a bit if exposed to sunlight for too long. Once the scrubs are opened, it’s best to use them up quickly since this recipe does not include a preservative.
I hope you’ll have fun making and sharing these sweet little scrubs. They make great favors for showers or birthday parties, especially because they are so quick and easy to make in large batches. Try doubling the recipe to make 16 scrubs at once! xo. Mary Helen