We love our morning coffee. And I mean love. But there's so much more to those fresh grounds than just perking us up in the morning. Going beyond the mug, fresh coffee grounds can be used in more ways than you can count. Diy projects, beauty products, and chemical-free repellents just to name a few.
If you're ready to use these beans to their fullest potential, grind some up and let's get to work with these 10 clever uses for fresh coffee grounds.
1. Make a Body Scrub
Fresh coffee grounds are your ticket to livelier skin. When used in a body scrub, they act as a natural exfoliant doing wonders in removing dead skin cells and nourishing it at the same time.
If you want to look and feel rejuvenated, try making your own scrub. You don't have to be a beauty products expert to do this. All you need are some fresh coffee grounds, coconut oil, brown sugar, and this simple recipe.
2. Keep Cats Out of the Flowers
Cats damaging the flower beds? Use coffee grounds. According to Hunker, cats hate the smell of coffee. They also apparently hate citrus. To keep them out of the flowers, sprinkle some coffee grounds around and throw some orange peels out there too while you're at it.
While they recommend used coffee grounds, I have a feeling using fresh or mixing it with some warm water and sprinkling damp grounds has the same effect.
3. Repel Mosquitos
Coffee grounds not only keep cats out of the garden, they'll keep pesky mosquitoes away too. You can do so by turning them into a natural repellent. If you want to stop all that terrible buzzing, then try this easy fresh coffee ground mosquito repellent method by Natural Living World.
What I like about this method is it's simple, doesn't requires spraying your body down with pesticides, and requires material you already have on hand.
4. Garden with Them
Not all plants do well with fresh coffee grounds. Acid-loving plants like blueberries, azaleas, and hydrangeas, on the other hand, seem to thrive with their help. Sprinkle the grounds around the plants to give them a boost. But be careful. Before you go spreading them around the flower garden you'll want to make sure you have the correct PH-level. Find yourself with too high acidic soil and you may run into problems.
The best thing to do is add them to your compost pile and stir in a little bit of organic material like mulch. The spent coffee grounds make great compost material along with eggshells and dry grass clippings. Your tomato plants will be the healthiest veggies in the neighborhood.
5. Make Wood Stain
Have you ever noticed how terrible wood stain smells? If you'd rather take a more natural approach and eliminate the use of chemicals, make your own wood stain with fresh coffee grounds. Sustain My Craft Habit has a ridiculously easy DIY tutorial you can follow.
It should be noted the longer you let the stain sit the darker it will be. I recommend trying it out on wood samples first to see which aesthetic you like the most.
6. Create an Air Freshener
Love the smell of a freshly brewed cup of coffee? Have that smell all the time by turning fresh coffee grounds into an air freshener. One fun and easy way to do this is to use a coffee filter. Simply load it up with coffee grounds, tie it together with a ribbon, then hang it anywhere you want the fresh scent of coffee. Smell that? That smells like a fresh morning cup.
7. Make Soap
Other than smelling delicious, coffee ground soap is great for your skin for a few reasons. It acts as an anti-inflammatory, it rejuvenates skin, and it reduces water retention. Try your hand at making your own with this four-ingredient recipe. It would also make an excellent gift for any of your coffee loving friends.
8. Reduce Stinky Shoe Odor
Things get smelly. It happens. And coffee grounds can help. Brightnest recommends pouring some fresh coffee grounds into a pair of nylon tights, tying it off, and stuffing them into your shoes. While your feet will probably wind up smelling like coffee, at least they won't smell like funky foot odor.
9. Make a Smoky Meat Rub
Fresh coffee grounds can do wonders in enhancing the flavors of your food. And one place it really shines is in meat rubs. There are a few ways you can go about it, but I would start with this Trader Joe's copycat organic Smoky Coffee BBQ Spice Rub. It's a little smokey, a little sweet, a little garlicky, and definitely tastes like coffee. Just imagine how good this would taste on some skirt steak or a pork tenderloin.
10. Make Ice Cream
When life gives you coffee grounds, make ice cream. My personal favorite use of coffee grounds, fresh coffee is the key to making a rich, creamy coffee ice cream. And what better afternoon pick-me-up than that!
This tasty recipe uses instant coffee granules to make the base. While you could use your favorite fresh coffee beans from the local coffee shop, instant coffee doesn't require any brewing. Meaning one less step to worry about.
This article was originally published August 22, 2018
