In our previous post, we heard from a few friends how they use coffee in some food and cocktail recipes, adding a distinctive touch and, sometimes, an extra hit of caffeine. Today we’ll look at a third way of sending coffee goodness straight into your body, via your skin.
You may have seen it before: coffee grounds in handmade soap bars at the local market, a couple of shots of espresso in your grandma’s secret face mask recipe… Looks like coffee grounds and caffeine extract have been appreciated for their cleansing and revitalising qualities for as long as people have enjoyed coffee’s flavour. But are those magic tricks a myth, or is there any actual science behind it?
We reached out to Sukin, a well-respected Australian beauty brand known for its transparent and evidence-based approach to beauty, to know a bit more about the benefits of coffee in beauty products.
Caffeine is “the most famous lipolytic [meaning that it breaks down lipids (fats)] ingredient for slimming formulas as its efficacy has been proven for many years. It helps to reduce dark circles, puffiness and swelling around the eyes.” As for coffee grounds, their effect is a bit easier to understand. When scrubbing them against your body, they “lightly remove dry and flaky skin cells from the surface of the skin, resulting in a more refined complexion. We source them locally from our office coffee man Jack.” Wow. he must drink a lot of coffee! We hope he’s a BrewCrew subscriber.
Seems like adding coffee to your skincare routine is not just magic, and there’s quite a bit of science behind it! So what are some different ways to put coffee in your body, rather than your usual morning/arvo cup? Channelling their passion for a life full of coffee, we let our team pick their own favourite caffeinated beauty products:
Front of house’s choice: Natural Coffee & Coconut Exfoliating Masque to look fresh and pretty. “A blend of Aloe Vera, Coconut Shell and locally sourced coffee beans (from the Coffee Cart that visits Sukin HQ in Melbourne) gently exfoliates the skin, to leave it feeling energised, polished and silky smooth!”
Roaster’s choice: Energising Body Scrub Coffee & Coconut to wash off the sticky dust after those long roasting days. “It blends locally-sourced, ground aromatic Coffee Beans as well as Coconut Shell to exfoliate and revitalise the skin’s texture. Coffee Extract and Caffeine promote circulation and even skin tone, while Aloe Vera, Coconut, Jojoba and Sesame Seed Oils provide lasting hydration to soften and smooth the skin!”
CEO’s choice: Reviving Eye Cream - Purely Ageless to compensate for the stress and multitasking of running a small business. It uses “green coffee as its key ingredient to reduce the appearance of dark circles and wrinkles - yes please!”
And what about you? Do you use caffeine in your morning routine, outside of your cup?