Yes, you read that correctly, and yes, I may be crazy.

My kids think so.

“Are you putting toothpaste on your face?!”

“Yes, I’m putting toothpaste on my face. Show me the rule that says you can’t put toothpaste on your face.”

In hindsight, I probably shouldn’t have fed them the “show me the rule” line. I have a feeling I’m going to hear that one back to me.

This started out as purely toothpaste. I had no premonition I’d start smearing it on my face. But one day, after brushing my teeth with my new homemade toothpaste, feeling how awesome the peppermint essential oil made my mouth feel, and thinking how much I liked my peppermint shampoo, I splashed a little water on my face, took just a pinch of this toothpaste, and started scrubbing my face with it.

It was as refreshing and cleansing as I thought it would be.

So now it’s a toothpaste slash face scrub.

And who cares what people think?

Show me the rule that says I have to.

This is an alternative to commercially produced toothpaste. It uses very simple ingredients. I’m not a dentist and don’t pretend this stuff has magical powers and will be better than anything else, including nothing. I often brush my teeth with only water.  There is talk about the calcium in the shells remineralizing teeth. I don’t know if enough research has been done on this to substantiate such claims. As for the coconut oil, if you follow the same sort of blogs and feeds I do, you know that coconut oil is the best thing since the beginning of time, so there’s that. Winky face.

Mainly I can make it myself. I like it. That’s about it. If you have a distaste of eggshells, you may find this isn’t for you, but I kind of like a little crunch. Horror face. Smiley face. Am I the only one?

The following recipe is for those who like exact proportions, but the instructions which follow are more of a guideline for any amount of ground eggshells. Experiment to see what’s right for you.

Peppermint Toothpaste/Face Scrub

2 Tablespoons ground/powdered egg shell

2 teaspoons baking soda

5 teaspoons coconut oil

1/4-1/2 teaspoon peppermint essential oil

Save a bunch of your eggshells.

If you have white shells the toothpaste will be a little more aesthetically pleasing to those accustomed to commercial toothpaste. I don’t, so my toothpaste turns out brown, but that isn’t an issue for me.

Rinse them out as you use them and when you have a bunch, say 8-12, boil them up in water to cover, let simmer a few minutes, then drain and set out to dry completely, preferably overnight.

You can also bake your eggshells for a few minutes. I boil them to add some extra cleaning to the sanitizing process, but if your shells are perfectly clean baking is good, too. (Maybe bake them after boiling to speed-dry).

The next day, or whenever you know they’re completely dry, put them in a bag and crush them with a rolling pin or a jar or a glass–anything to save your hands from the sharp edges of the shells.

Put the crushed shells in a coffee or spice grinder and pulse until you can pulse no more–just pulse until you think they’re as fine as you’re going to get them.

Sift the ground shells through the finest sieve you have. I use an old tea strainer. The finer the better. The more coarse shells that won’t go through the sieve can be re-ground and sieved again. You can also use a mortar and pestle, but of course it will take more elbow grease. Any that won’t go through the sieve can be fed back to your chickens.

Once you have your eggshell powder, put it in a bowl and add baking soda. I like to use less baking soda than eggshell, but you can use up to an equal amount of baking soda.

Next add coconut oil. It’s summer at this writing, and the coconut oil is liquid. If your room is below about 70 degrees that won’t be the case. You can warm the oil or just smush it in with the back of a spoon. Add enough oil to make a paste-like consistency.

Add the peppermint essential oil, start with a few drops and test it to see if that’s enough for you. Add more if you want it.

Put the paste in a lidded container.

To use as toothpaste, dip out a little onto your toothbrush and brush as usual. It only takes a tiny bit. If you are concerned about spitting oil down your drain, you can dispose of it in your compost or however you decide to do it. I’ve never had a problem with it and I do most of the plumbing around here, but it may be a legitimate concern for you, so plan accordingly. If you practice oil-pulling, you are familiar with this issue.

To use as facial scrub, wet your face and get just a tiny bit of the paste on your fingertips. Rub around your face in a circular motion. Rinse with warm water or (see above plumbing comments) wipe off with a towel and then rinse.

I don’t scrub with it every day, but use it a few times a week. It has a light moisturizing effect and I love that I don’t have that tight moisturize-me-now feeling after I wash like I do when I wash with soap.

If you don’t want to use peppermint essential oil, you can use another eo or leave it out completely. Just look up the qualities you want in an eo and use that one. Rosemary and lavender would be good choices. For skin scrub use, I would avoid ones that increase sun sensitivity like citrus eo’s.

I think there’s a rule about that somewhere.

What about you? Are you avoiding commercially-produced toothpaste? Have you considered making your own? What do you think?