Sabbats Almanac: Samhain to Mabon - Kristoffer Hughes 2018

Crafty Crafts by Natalie Zaman
Ostara

SPRING IS THE BRIEFEST (and maybe the most long-awaited) of seasons, so much so that you just want to bottle it—and you can! Spring is a time of renewal, and there’s nothing as revitalizing, refreshing—and exfoliating—as a salt glow.

Sparkling Spring Flower Salt Scrub

A quick tutorial on how to glow with salt: After you’ve bathed (in the shower or bath), take a scoop of salt scrub and gently work the salt into your skin. Use as much as you need to cover your entire body. The salt exfoliates, the essential oils leave a lovely scent and the base oil softens and moisturizes. You can apply the salt with your hands or a washcloth. Try not to use a brush or shower scrubbie; let the salt do the exfoliating. Rinse the salt off thoroughly before patting your skin dry. (Note: The scrub we’re making for this craft is for your body. Facial salt scrubs use lighter oils and scents as well as a finer grain of salt.)

A necessary supply needed to perform this bathing ritual is a salt scrub. Infused with flower essences, buds and scented herbs, this delicious mixture can be used for both practical and ritual cleansing. Use it as a part of a weekly self-care regimen to brighten and renew your skin all over (you shouldn’t salt glow every day), or incorporate it into a magical bathing ritual—extra decadent when coupled with a spring time milk bath! (See the suggestions at the end of Imbolc’s Crafty Crafts.)

Time Lavished: Prepping the salt scrub takes practically no time at all, maybe a half an hour, if that. This does not include drying time for the lavender (or any other herb or flower you might be using). You will also need to allow some time for the flowers, herbs and essential oils to infuse into the salt, at least twenty-four hours.

Coinage Required: I found that I spent the most money purchasing essential oils. I got lemon balm leaves and lavender buds from my garden, recycled a jar and had the salt and base oil in my pantry. If you have to purchase all of the ingredients to make your salt scrub, you’ll probably spend between $20 and $25.

Supplies:

2 cups of coarse sea salt. (If you want to really splurge, use Himalayan pink salt. The pink color is pretty, and the Himalayan salt has greater amounts of trace elements—calcium, magnesium and iron—and also has esoteric properties: strength, healing and grounding respectively.)

About ¼ cup of an unscented or lightly scented oil such as almond, jojoba, or sunflower. Coconut oil will work, but you’ll get a hint of coconut scent in your salt.

A handful of lemon balm leaves

1 cup of dried lavender buds

Lemon balm oil (Remember to dilute and test all essential oils for sensitivities and allergic reactions!)

Bowl

Spoon

Measuring cups

Mason jar or recycled jar

Lavender and/or light green powdered glitter. If you choose to use it, do so sparingly for a shimmery glow. Lavender and green together make for a lovely fairy-like sheen! (Note: omit glitter if you have any skin sensitivities!)

Pretty labels

One 6 × 6 inch piece of cloth

Ribbon or raffia in a coordinating color

I chose the lavender and lemon balm combination for several reasons: Both of these herbs are readily available in my garden, I love the scent of these herbs (clean and bright like springtime), as well as their healing connotations (cleansing, uplifting and nourishing). Try other spring flowers and essences such as lily of the valley, peony, camelia and nature’s astringent witch hazel.

The labels, cloth, and ribbon are optional for capping your jar—a nice touch if you’re giving the salt as a gift!

Before you begin putting the salt scrub together, prep your plants. Tear or cut the lemon balm leaves into little pieces and remove the lavender buds from their stalks. (Save the dried lavender stalks. They smell just as good as the buds, and you can bind them with string to make smudge sticks or tie them in bundles and dip them in beeswax to make fire-starters.)

In a large bowl, combine the salt, lemon balm leaves and lavender buds thoroughly, then give the mixture a sniff. It might be aromatic enough without adding any essential oil (you can always add some later). Next, add the base oil a little at a time. You want the mixture to be more packable than crumbly, but not soaking. If you add too much oil, don’t worry. Simply add more salt a little at a time until you get a drier consistency. You can also add more leaves and buds, but the salt should be the main ingredient.

Next, add the essential oils if needed. The amount you use (if any) is really a matter of taste. Add a few drops at a time until you’re happy with it. Lastly, add the glitter if you’re using it. (Keep in mind that when you use the scrub, the oils will ensure that bits of glitter will adhere to your skin even after you’ve rinsed off.)

Pour the salt mixture into the jar, cap it, then shake it up to mix it a little more. Technically the salt should keep anything from spoiling, but I still like to store homemade and handmade bath products in the refrigerator and use them within a month or two of making or opening. I also find that keeping the salt in the refrigerator helps in maintaining a more solid consistency. If you’re giving the salt as a gift, cover the lid with the square of fabric and tie it with the ribbon.

Just as with the milk baths (see Imbolc’s Crafty Craft, page 106), the salt scrub ingredients can be adjusted per the season. Try infusing salt with clove, orange peel and cinnamon oil for a spicy autumnal or winter glow. Again—and I can’t say it enough—remember to dilute and test any essential oil before using it on your body, especially with a salt scrub as it will exfoliate your skin, making for greater sensitivity.