Making this DIY hand and body lotion is a surprisingly easy process, perfect for beginners. This recipe makes a thick, creamy lotion that will moisturize your skin, keeping it healthy and glowing. Make a batch for yourself, or increase the recipe and give it as a homemade gift!
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Where can I buy lotion ingredients?
We bought our lotion ingredients at a local soap supply company. Most cosmetic or soap supply companies will have all the supplies you need!
Do homemade lotions need a preservative?
We recommend using a preservative when making a homemade lotion. Bacteria grows very quickly where water is present, and it will grow long before you can smell or see it. We used Optiphen Plus to preserve our lotion, which is a highly effective broad spectrum antimicrobial preservative. If you don’t want to use a preservative, you must keep your lotion in the fridge, where it will only last for 1 – 2 weeks before having questionable bacteria growth. Your other preservative free option is to make a body butter, which only contains oils. If you’d like to read more about using preservatives in lotion, The Nerdy Farm Wife has a great article about natural preservatives for skin care.
Can I add a scent to this lotion?
Yes, if you like a scented lotion I definitely recommend adding in some essential oil or fragrance oil! Generally you’ll want to add fragrance at 1% (so 1 g for this recipe — though we found that even 10 – 15 drops add a nice subtle scent). You can add the scent at the same time you add your preservative.
How should I store this DIY lotion?
You can put it in a glass jar, like we did. You can also put this lotion in a pump bottle, add a pump lid to a mason jar, or pour it into a lotion tube. These are actually the safest options, because you won’t be introducing any bacteria into the lotion by sticking your fingers into it.
How long does homemade lotion last with preservative?
Generally homemade lotion will last around 6 months. It’s impossible to say exactly, because it depends on the preservative used, the shelf life and age of the oils, how the lotion is stored, etc. To get the most out of your lotion:
Use distilled water in the recipe. Store your lotion in a room without fluctuating humidity (i.e. keep it out of the bathroom). Use sanitized equipment. The Nova Studio has good basic article about hygiene when making lotion.
Can I switch up the oils in this recipe?
Yes, you can absolutely use different oils in this recipe. There are so many great oils that you can use, like sweet almond, avocado, sunflower, or jojoba. You can also replace the shea butter with cocoa butter or mango butter. Just keep in mind that every butter and oil has a different consistency (eg. cocoa butter is harder than shea butter; coconut oil is solid at room temperature, while sweet almond oil is not, etc), so you may need play around with the percentages. Not every mixture will result in the same creamy texture that this recipe has.
How much lotion does this recipe make?
This is a 100 gram recipe, which fits in a 4 ounce (1/2 cup) jar. If you’d like to make a larger batch, simply increase the recipe amounts. Our recipe uses:
70% water 10% shea butter 10% emulsifying wax 9% coconut oil 1% preservative
Learning how make lotion is SO EASY, and I really like the idea of controlling what I’m putting on my skin. Pamper yourself with this velvety and luxurious DIY lotion that will keep your skin soft and refreshed!
Here’s even more ways to pamper yourself:
How to Make Bath Bombs
DIY Lip Scrub
Homemade Lip Balm
DIY Shower Steamers
Our book Low-Mess Crafts for Kids is loaded with 72 fun and simple craft ideas for kids! The projects are fun, easy and most importantly low-mess, so the clean up is simple!
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