christmas Archives - Busy Moms Helper

Gift Idea: Cute Treat Tubes

December 15, 2018 by Danielle Leave a Comment

A couple years ago my mom and I saw these adorable little Treat Tubes at a craft show, and couldn’t wait to make some of our own! It took some practice getting the shapes just right, but finally they turned out just like we’d hoped, and our friends LOVED them!

Cute Treat Tubes with Free Printable Patterns / Busy Mom's Helper

You don’t have to spend hours figuring out the shapes, because I’ve included a printable for your to print and cut out – then all you have to do is trace and assemble!

Supplies Needed

Thin, long tubes to fill with the treats. I got packs of them from a Stampin’ Up consultant

Hole Punch (helps with the small circle shapes)

Glue or 2-sided tape

Googly Eyes

Elf: Green paper, Red paper, Skin-colored (peach/pink) paper, White paper (or puff), Ribbon

Santa: White paper, Red paper, Skin-colored paper

Reindeer: Dark brown paper, Light brown paper, Red paper

Snowman: Blue paper, Dark brown paper, Green paper, Orange paper, Black paper, Ribbon

Directions

Print out this pattern sheet. Some you will use for multiples, but I only included them once per sheet. Cut out (preferably on card stock) and use as stencils.

For the squiggly circle (2nd from right on top row) – you can use a tiny puff instead.

For the Elf:

Cut out the shapes as follows……

Green on bottom, then red

Then skin-colored

The ears tuck behind the peach, then the nose in center.

Draw a smile, add the eyes, ribbon and squiggly circle or puff. Attach to the tube – DONE!

For Santa:

Cut out the shapes as follows. For the white I used a patterned paper, to make it more fun.

First assembly….

Then this – VIOLA! That’s one sexy Santa Claus!

For the Snowman:

Cut out the shapes as follows. I used patterned for the blue (different ones) for fun. The black dots are simply hole punched – keep it simple

His assembly is probably the easiest….But he’s sure one adorable Snowman!

For the Reindeer:

I’m so sorry, but I did forget to take a photo of the reindeer pieces. What you will need for him:

Two ornament shapes in Dark Brown

Two antler shapes in Light Brown

One nose shape in red

Two ear shapes in Dark Brown

Insert the ears and antlers between the 2 ornament shapes, then the nose, eyes and draw a smile on front. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer!!! Ya, you know you just sang along with that 😉

When you’ve got them all done, just add cocoa and marshmallows, or treats like M&Ms….give and enjoy!!!

12 Days of Christmas Printable Tags

December 3, 2018 by Danielle 8 Comments

Although I have no idea how we got from July to December, it now seems like this month is FLYING by! There’s so much I need/want to do, and such little time to do it in. Yikes! One of the things I’ve wanted to do better this year was show Hubby some Christmas lovin’, and not just focus on making it fun and special for our little superheros. So we have The 12 Days of Christmas Printable Tags!!! I’m having so much fun picking out little (budget-friendly) yet useful/fun gifts to include with each tag.

12 Days of Christmas Printable Tags

Here’s the printable:

It prints nicely onto a normal sized cardstock page.

I then just taped a bit of ribbon behind each, to tie the tag onto the gift with. And VIOLA – you’re done!

The Ultimate Free Christmas Printable Round Up

December 1, 2018 by Danielle Leave a Comment

I couldn’t do a Christmas in July week without doing an AMAZING list of the most adorable, fun and elegant prints I could find, so here y’all go: The Ultimate Free Christmas Printable Round Up!

There’s a TON of beautiful, artistic and down-right funny prints on this list, and they’re all FREE! Yup, I’m a lover of free things, especially ones that will help with my holidays! So without further ado, check out this Free Christmas Printable list!

So many great ideas in this list of 20 Free Christmas Printables from DIY Candy

I had so much fun making these 12 Days of Christmas Printable Tags last year!

You can’t go wrong with this amazing list of 100 Free Printable Gift Ideas for Christmas from Craftionary

I really need this When you stop believing…from That’s What Che Said, for my Wonder Woman who is starting to doubt!

I love chalkboard printables, and these Free Christmas Chalkboard Printables from Mother Thyme are simply lovely!

Look at all the fun prints in this Round-Up of Free Christmas Printables from Pampers, Play Dates and Parties

This Holiday Cheer Printable from Today’s Creative Blog has such cute colors, and love the words she chose to use!

I’m for sure printing off this Jesus is the Reason for the Season Free Printable from How To Nest For Less for my mantel (or on top of my piano) this year! LOVE LOVE LOVE!

So yes, this Free Printable Christmas Planner from I’m An Organizing Junkie is from 2011…but you could still make it work! It’s just too cute to not include here 🙂

Seriously, Desiree from The 36th Avenue is such a talented (and super sweet) lady, and I’m loving her Bright Christmas Printables

Oh my gosh, how fun are these 11 Free Christmas Printables from My Blessed Life?! Super fun, I say!

These Christmas Subway Art & Banner from Mod Podge Rocks Blog are the perfect colors for the holidays!

What a simple-yet-fun print, this Eat Drink & Be Merry Printable from Two Twenty One would be a cute holiday item for my office this year!

My kids loved this Dear Santa: Kids Wish List Printable last year, and I’m hoping to put off this year’s lists at least a few more months!

Sassy Sites has More Than Thirty-Five Adorable & Free Christmas Printables that are just fabulous!

Ruffled Tree Skirt

December 7, 2017 by Danielle

Oh. My. Gosh – this skirt was a LOT of firsts for me, and can I just tell you I’m SO IN LOVE with it!!! I’ve always wanted a Ruffled Tree Skirt, and now I can make one anytime I want! Originally shared December 2013.

DIY Ruffled Tree Skirt / Busy Mom's Helper

It turned out better than I had hoped, and actually ended up being a lot simpler than I originally planned (once I stopped TRYING to do it the hard way)! If you couldn’t tell by now, I love Blue and Silver Christmas. Don’t know why, it’s just B-E-A-U-tiful to me. Love. It.

Now, this tutorial is based on how I did MY skirt – you may want different sizes, pattern, materials, etc. Change it based on what YOU want, but I can only write from my experience with the one I made. I wanted a big skirt, so my measurements are all based on 52″-ish skirt.

Supplies Needed

Sewing Machine/thread OR Hot Glue (lots of it)

Fabric – amounts will vary based on your pattern and TYPE of fabric (see Step 6)

Good Scissors

Fabric Pen (I used a normal pen)

Fabric Measuring Tape

Ruler or Yard Stick

Directions

#1: Take a base fabric (flannel, cotton, scrap – it won’t show). Mark your center and pin the measuring tape there, then tie a pen to the 26″ mark on your measuring tape. Carefully draw a circle evenly (as much as possible) 26″ from the center all around.

#2: Using your Ruler or Yard Stick, draw a line from the center all the way to the edge, doing 90 Degree angles all around. Mark a noticeable X in the middle of the circle.

#3: Now mark 3″ out from the X in the center, doing a large 3″ circle all around the center.

#4: From the X in the center again, do a circle 7″ out. Then 11″. Continue, adding 4″ every circle until you’re to the edge – your last row may not be 4″.

#5: On one of your lines from the center to the edge, cut straight in. This will be where your skirt opens. Now cut out that 3″ circle in the very middle – this is where it will be around your tree bottom.

#6: This is where it gets a bit tricky and ‘guessy’. How much fabric you use will depend ENTIRELY on your pattern and what TYPE of fabric. For example, the dark blue I used ruffled more than the silver, so I had to use more to go further. Here is what I used on my skirt, using the fabrics and pattern I did. Measurements are what I CUT them, so PRE-RUFFLING

Center Row: 1 – 6″ x 52″ strip of dark blue

2nd Row: 2 – 6″ x 52″ strips of silver

3rd Row: 4 – 6″ x 52″ strips of dark blue

4th Row: 5 – 6″ x 52″ strips of silver

5th Row: 6 – 6″ x 52″ strips of dark blue

6th Row: 5 – 6″ x 52″ strips of clear/sparkly silver

Cut your strips – keeping in mind you may need more/less, depending on how they ruffle.

I did allow a margin of error when I cut mine – and also keep in mind if you’re going to hem them. I just did a cross stitch.

Note: You do NOT have to use expensive fabrics. I just chose these fabrics for my own. You could do it just great with cotton, flannel, sheets….make the skirt how YOU want!

#7: I did a cross stitch around all of my strips. You could also hem them (keep enough room when cutting). Your choice.

#8: Now for the gathering. I used a Gathering Foot on my sewing machine – first time ever! LOVED it! You could also do a basting stitch. Another option is to just HOT GLUE the pieces to the large circle piece, gathering yourself as you glue it on. I didn’t do this, but it’s an option.

#9: Now you sew (or hot glue, if you choose) the pieces to your large circle base. START AT THE OUTSIDE!!! Pin a few pieces at a time (VERY difficult if you try to do a large row all at once), then sew (or glue) them on…..

……Continue until the row is complete, going clear to the other end. If it hangs over the last edge a bit, that’s perfectly fine.

#10: Continue with all of the other rows, working your way from the outside towards the inside.

If it hangs off too much, like more than 1/2-1″, trim it off.

#11: When you’ve done all of the rows, take the edges (the long line you cut earlier towards the center, where it will open and wrap around the tree) and hem them under.

And you’re done!

Note: I left the little gathering edge in the center, because I liked the look. You can always hem that, or wrap a ribbon/fabric piece around it, if you’d like.

Seriously, I absolutely LOVE my skirt – the colors, the ruffles, the size – it’s perfect (for me)! I also love how much EASIER it was than I originally thought – I should’ve made this years ago!

Pumpkin Bars

December 22, 2016 by Nikki Cole

November is the month for everything pumpkin and I tried some fun recipes one of which is Pumpkin Bars that turned out to be a super moist, melt in your mouth dessert that everyone in my family asked for seconds and thirds on. Pumpkin Bars are a sweet blend of pumpkin, cinnamon, and a cake like texture, topped with rich cream cheese frosting and is simple to add impressive but quick decorations to.

I know I said that my Cream Cheese Pumpkin Bread was amazing but these Pumpkin Bars are a whole new kind of amazing. The bread was great and worked perfectly for a quick breakfast and such but the Pumpkin Bars are an amazing dessert to impress even the pickiest eaters.

Ingredients

4 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar
15 – oz. can of pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cloves

Cream cheese frosting

8 – oz. cream cheese, softened
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the eggs, oil, sugar, and pumpkin in a mixer.
Add in remaining ingredients and mix well.
Pour batter into a greased and floured 18” x 12” jelly roll pan.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean and the bars start to pull away from the edges of the pan.
When the Pumpkin Bars are cooled make the cream cheese frosting.
Mix all cream cheese frosting ingredients except the powdered sugar well.
Slowly add in powdered sugar and mix until fluffy.
Spread onto cooled pumpkin bars.
To make a cool design dump some cinnamon onto a plate.
Get any cookie cutter, preferably small, and dip into the cinnamon.
Gently press cookie cutter into the pumpkin bars to make a design.

These Pumpkin Bars were amazing but did take a little work but don’t let that scare you away trust me, I’m working on a post with pies and wow, those are hard. This recipe is a little long but completely worth it and the steps are pretty easy just mainly mixing. I hope this recipe helps out with all your holiday plans and adventures.

Mint Thins

December 20, 2016 by Nikki Cole

Mint Thins are a perfect treat to enjoy on a cold winter night and fun to serve at all those holiday parties. These Mint Thins are impressive and simple to make without making a million dishes and breaking the bank or taking hours to accomplish something that will be eaten in a matter of hours or even minutes. The only down fall? not being able to stop eating the cookies!

Who loves girl scout cookies? Well I love girl scout cookies especially Mint Thins, I can easily eat a whole box in one sitting and not necessarily a long sitting either. Have you started to notice how pricy they are getting for such a small box? These cookies are amazing and now there’s a recipe that is almost exact replica of Mint Thins and are amazing, especially exciting to have the nice mint flavor cookies for Christmas.

Mint Thins are a mixture of cool mint and delicious chocolate that literally melts in your mouth. With this recipe it not only is easy and requires simple ingredients but makes a perfect neighbor or friend gift without hours of baking or shopping to find inexpensive gifts.

Ingredients

¼ cup whipping cream
¾ cup chocolate chips
1 package chocolate almond bark, divided
¾ teaspoon peppermint extract
2 9-oz. packages of chocolate wafer cookies

Directions

In a small saucepan bring whipping cream to a simmer over medium heat. Place ¾ cup chocolate chips in pan, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in extract, let cool for a minute.
Spoon a small amount onto one side of a cookie, place another cookie on top. Let harden in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
In a microwave melt the package of almond bark in 30 second intervals until smooth.
Line a cookie sheet with waxed paper.
Dip cookies in melted almond bark and place on the cookie sheet.
Let harden and enjoy.

This Mint Thin recipe is also really good for interchanging flavors. Instead of peppermint extract you can change it out to orange, raspberry, or even pomegranate. Different flavors makes different cookies and different exciting treats, these extracts are sometimes found just at a normal grocery store but pomegranate and anything real fancy will be found at a specific baking store.

Printable Holiday Gift Tags for Christmas

November 9, 2016 by Keri Houchin

They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but I always know a present is going to be amazing if the wrapping is eye-catching. Put these printable holiday gift tags on all of your Christmas presents this year to wow the recipients.

These gift tags are adorable with presents and stockings and ornaments. The background is a very light blue. They’re so bright and cheerful – which is perfect for Christmastime, of course!

I think the snowman is my favorite. {You can see him in the picture of the pages below.}

I made these printable holiday gift tags in a lot of different sizes so that they will be perfect for everyone on your gifting list.

6 – 1”x2” tags
4 – 2”x2” tags
2 – 2”x3” tags
6 – 3” round tags

The round ones fit inside the lid of a wide-mouth canning jar. You could trim them to fit the standard size too. Candy and homemade treats are always one of my favorite gifts to give and receive.

The smallest tags have “To” and “From” and the round ones have plenty of space for writing in the middle.

Oh, and there’s one tag that says “Happy New Year!” for anyone {like me, ahem} that might need to give someone a gift after the big day has passed.

Click to download both pages: Printable holiday gift tags

These print on regular 8-1/2”x11” paper. Cardstock is great for durability and these might be fun on specialty papers like textured or glitter.

Print at home or your favorite copy shop and then cut them out. You can punch holes to tie them to packages or print onto label paper for self-sticking tags.

Here are a few more printables to get you in the Christmas spirit:

Free printable holiday gift planner

Free printable coloring gift tags

Printable Christmas coloring & activity book

DIY Mistletoe Decor

November 7, 2016 by Danielle

November’s going by so fast already, so we’re all looking ahead to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I love the holidays, but decorating can sure be a headache sometimes! One thing I want to do is festive-up our banister to our stairs. Mistletoe Decor sounded like a lot of fun – so I made these cute cut outs. You can hurry and craft some up really quick, too, with this super-duper-easy tutorial! It’s this month’s Craft Lightning – lots of creative holiday-themed crafts you can do in 15 minutes or less!

DIY Mistletoe Decor with Free Printable Pattern / Busy Mom's Helper

Our banister looks much more festive now!

DIY Mistletoe Decor / Easy Christmas decorations & free printable

See, aren’t they so dang cute?! Okay, so first you need to get the stencil. Here’s the printable page:

Really, you can just use one large leaf and one small for the stencils. I added multiple in case you want to print it straight on to green paper. I preferred 2 small leaves paired with each large leaf, but you can do it differently if you’d like.

For the berries, you could just trace something round in 3 different sizes. I kind of put circles on this page, but they’re all the same size. Vary it up – looks more real, I suppose.

Cut out the pieces……

Then piece them together. I used mini glue dots, and they worked AMAZINGLY.

Add some ribbon and put a cute little bow. Hang it on a banister, the wall as a banner, or wherever – over door frames or your bed!!!

After tying the bow and attaching it to the railing, I wrapped the excess ribbon down in a spiral – really made it even cuter!

Viola – a fun yet oh-so-simple holiday decoration!!!

Now go check out the other amazing Holiday Crafts for Craft Lightning!

Chocolate Orange Cookies

January 2, 2016 by Danielle

I’m a sucker for a delish pudding cookie. Seriously – if we have any in the house, they don’t last long, much to the dismay of my ‘less sweets’ goal! They’re really easy to switch up with new flavors, so after Santa brought us a LOT of chocolate oranges in our stockings for Christmas, Hubby thought we should try adding those to cookies. Genius! These Chocolate Orange Cookies are super simple to make, and have the perfect amount of amazing flavor in every bite!

For those that follow this blog regularly, you probably heard that Hubby doesn’t like most chocolate. Weird, I know, but hey – more for me. He LOVES chocolate oranges, though – to the point that he jokes about cancelling Christmas if he doesn’t get any chocolate oranges. Needless to say, I make certain that Santa doesn’t forget any in his stocking!

You can whip up these yummy pudding cookies super fast – and it’s so nice to make an extra big batch then freeze the extras. Whenever you have a cookie craving, just nab one out of the freezer bag and enjoy!

Ingredients

1 1/2 sticks Butter, softened
3/4 cup Light Brown Sugar, packed
1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
1 Small Package INSTANT Vanilla Pudding (3.4 oz)
2 Eggs
2 tsp. Vanilla
2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 Chocolate Orange, crushed into bits

Note: makes about 32 cookies

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F. Spray or line a couple baking sheets, then set aside.
Use a fork (or mixer) to ‘smoosh’ the Butter, both Sugars and Pudding together well. Add the Eggs and Vanilla, mix until combined. Then add the Flour and Baking Soda, mix until well combined. Stir in the Chocolate Orange bits.
Scoop the cookie dough into 1″ balls and place onto the prepared baking sheets. Slightly press down.
Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until barely starting to brown on the edges. Remove, and ENJOY!!!

These moist treats and a hit with the whole family! Next year I plan to buy extra chocolate oranges early so I can whip up a few batches of the pudding cookies and give as gifts – the perfect festive dessert to please everyone!

Kid-Friendly Christmas Cake Topper

December 21, 2015 by Lynn Driver

Merry Christmas, Mamas! Today I’m sharing a Kid-Friendly Christmas Cake-Topper that you and your kiddos can enjoy making, just in time for the special day!

I’m Lynn, from Riggstown Road, and if your life is anything like mine, you have some enthusiastic little helpers when it comes to baking Christmas goodies. So it’s nice when the things we’re making are easy for little hands. (Side-note: At this point, my helpers are becoming better at this stuff than I am. And I am totally ok with that.) 😉 This cake-topper is easy enough for your preschoolers to participate in, fun enough for your older kids to enjoy, and special enough for all of them to feel proud of.

All you need are 3 simple ingredients to create a winter wonderland of trees on top of your favorite cake.

INGREDIENTS

1 box ice cream SUGAR CONES
1 container fluffy WHITE ICING
1 container sparkling white sugar SPRINKLES

DIRECTIONS

Prepare your cake with white icing.
Carefully cut some of the cones to different sizes for different sized trees. (I used a tomato slicing knife.)
Let kids spread icing on the cones, covering completely.
Help kids gently place the “trees” in the “snow” on top of the cake.
Kids can sprinkle the sugar crystals all over the trees and the top of the cake to create “ice” crystals.

Now stand back and admire the prettiness!

Cute enough for company, and trust me, this is waaay easier than decorating cookies!

As you can see, we weren’t too concerned with the rest of our (delicious) cake, but I loved it in all its messy glory. I called it a snow-covered mountain, but the girls were a little unsure about that. They seemed more impressed with their trees. I think sprinkling the sugar was the part that was the most fun for them. It was the, ahem, icing on the cake. 😉

I hope your kids enjoy it, too.

Polar Express Treats

December 20, 2015 by Nikki Cole

Polar Express Hot Chocolate!

Ever watch Polar express and see the hot chocolate scene and think how amazing that hot chocolate has to be? Every time I watch Polar Express I have to have hot chocolate and now have a recipe for Polar Express Hot Chocolate that is amazing!

This recipe is pretty simple but it does take longer than sticking a cup of water in the microwave and pouring in a packet. This recipe is also very versatile where you can take out things or adjust it to your liking, like when I am in a hurry I will usually just mix a little heavy whipping cream, milk, and hot cocoa mix together. With this recipe you can also have a fun hot chocolate party with your kids or in my case my sister and friends. So try it out, change it up, but grab a cup and the movie Polar Express and enjoy!

Ingredients:

¾ cup heavy whipping cream
½ can of sweetened condensed milk (14 oz.)
¾ cup milk chocolate chips (make sure they are milk because semi and dark make it not so sweet)
3 cups milk
½ teaspoon vanilla
Toppings! Marshmallows, chocolate chips, cool whip, candy canes, or whatever you like on your hot chocolate!

Directions:

Put all ingredients in a medium pot (except for toppings) and stir until chocolate chips are melted. Can also put in a slow cooker.
Once melted take off burner and let cool for 20 – 30 minutes or faster if you put it in the fridge. Usually getting it all melted boils the liquid and no one wants to burn their tongue so just make sure it’s not boiling when you try or your kids try to drink it.
Pour hot chocolate into a cup and top with desired toppings and enjoy!

Polar Express Cupcakes

Now we have our drink for the movie and you can’t watch a movie without some kind of treat. These Polar Express Cupcakes are perfect for those with a sweet tooth. These cupcakes also carry a little surprise in the middle of them.

I use a basic betty crocker cupcake recipe and a vanilla cream cheese frosting, but really you can use whatever recipe you like.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes

2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup hot water
2/3 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
¾ cup shortening
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 bag large marshmallows

Toppings:

Candy canes
Mini chocolate chips
Mini marshmallows
Mini candy canes
Christmas sprinkles

Frosting

½ cup unsalted butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
1 – 4 tablespoons milk (I usually end up using just over 2 tablespoons)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350⁰ F. Place cupcake liners into cooking sheet.
In a separate bowl mix flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder together and set aside. Mix hot water and cocoa together until dissolved; set aside.
In a large mixing bowl beat shortening until creamy, then slowly add sugar about ¼ cup at a time beating well and scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add eggs one at a time mixing well after each. Stir in vanilla.
Alternating between flour mixture and cocoa mixture slowly add to the mixing bowl and mix until well combined.
Divide batter evenly between cupcake liners filling them about 2/3 full. (about 24 cupcakes)
Cut 12 marshmallows in half and place in the middle of each cupcake, you don’t have to press them all the way down.
Bake 20 – 25 minutes. Marshmallows will have mostly dissolved and look messy but that’s ok because they’ll be covered.
Once you pull the cupcakes out place 1 marshmallow into the crater or you could just place a half marshmallow.
Place cupcakes back into oven for about 3 – 5 minutes just until marshmallows get softened.
Pull out and let cool completely, very important they are cool before you start frosting.

Frosting directions

Place butter in a mixing bowl and cream. Add cream cheese and mix until full combined and smooth.
Add vanilla and powdered sugar and blend on low until fluffy.
Slowly add milk a little at a time until the right consistency.
Beat until fluffy, about 1 – 2 minutes

Decorate! Frost the cupcakes, then add any toppings you would like. To finish it off place a mini candy cane on the side for a “Handle” for a nice Hot Chocolate Cupcake! Try adding ¼ teaspoon mint extract to the cupcakes or frosting for a nice mint flavor!

Peppermint Sugar Scrub

December 8, 2015 by Angela Paris

Making homemade gifts doesn’t have to be time consuming and hard. This luxurious Peppermint Sugar Scrub is ready in just a few minutes. It’s perfect everyone on your list that could use some pampering! #EasyHomemadeGifts

Every year, I made lots of different homemade bath and beauty gifts for my family and friends. I love coming up with new texture and scent combinations. This peppermint sugar scrub is a classic. It’s a must-have for the holidays!

The recipe below makes approximately 1 cup. This is a good size for a stocking stuffer type gift. You can make a bigger batch if you’re making it for multiple people. It is easiest, however, if you don’t multiply it more than 4 times. (It is difficult to dye the sugar and mix the essential oil throughout in huge batches).

Peppermint Sugar Scrub

Ingredients

½ cup coconut oil (room temp)

1 cup Sugar, granulated

5 drops Peppermint essential oil

1 drop Red food coloring

Directions

In a bowl, combine the coconut oil and sugar. Mix until well combined. You’re looking for a texture of wet sand.

Add the peppermint oil and mix well. If the mixture is not scented strong enough for you, add in small increments until you reach the strength you desire.

In a small container, place about 1/3 of the sugar scrub and combine with the food coloring. Mix well.

In a jar, start by layering the uncolored sugar scrub on the bottom of the jar, add the colored sugar scrub, and then top with the last bit of scrub.

Keep at room temperature in a covered container.

You can also mix this up in your stand mixer, or using a hand mixer. I like this method also, as the sugar scrub gets really well combined that way.

To use, simply massage into wet skin. The coconut oil helps to moisturize your skin. The sugar granules buff and polish. Skin will feel soft and smooth! (This is especially nice as a foot scrub.)

I hope you have enjoyed this easy homemade gift tutorial. Leave me a comment and let me know if you’d like to receive a Peppermint Sugar Scrub this holiday season!

Find More DIY Beauty Gift Ideas on Pinterest

Follow Juggling Act Mama – Ang Paris’s board DIY Health & Beauty on Pinterest.