This silky smooth DIY homemade lotion whips up in minutes and is made from 100% all natural ingredients like shea butter, coconut oil, and essential oils so you can make it whatever scent you like. It’s super soothing and smooth on your skin and is whipped up in under 5 minutes so it couldn’t be easier! Includes options for thinner lotion texture or thicker hand cream.
Homemade Lotion Vs Store Bought Lotion
I’ve loved soft and flowery scented lotions every since my first encounter with Country Apple and Sun Ripened Raspberry. Does anyone else remember those?
Ah…the good ole days. Except that I never knew to question what I was slathering all over my skin day in and day out.
My old favs were discontinued long ago, but here are the ingredients in Japanese Cherry Blossom, a top seller from that same bath and body store I used to love:
Water, glycerin, petrolatum, cetyl alcohol, cetearyl alcohol, dimethicone, fragrance (parfum), ceteareth-20, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter, simmondsia chinesis (jojoba) seed oil, tocopheryl acetate, carbomer, isododecane, neopentyl glycol diheptanoate, tetrasodium EDTA, disodium EDTA, sodium dyroxide, bhy diazolidinyl urea, methylparaben, benzyl alcohol, propylparaben, alpha-isomethyl ionone, benzyl benzoate, benzyl salicylate, butylphenyl methylpropional, cinnamyl alcohol, citronellol, coumarin, hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde, linalool
Aaack! What is all that stuff? It’s been a while since I took biochemistry, but I’m pretty sure some of is NOT supposed to be going into my body!
Sadly, buying more “natural” and “organic” alternatives can mean little more protection than the standard versions! This short clip from Environmental Working Group is pretty compelling:
Check out EWG’s database to help find safer commercial products….or just make your own from a few simple ingredients that God designed, and know for certain what’s going onto your skin!
If you’re a regular reader, you might notice that the ingredients in this lotion are very similar to those in my 1-Step Homemade Shaving Cream.
But, ever since I whipped up my first batch of shaving cream, I’ve been using it as my mainstay moisturizer – I love it so much, I started experimenting with other scents, and really thought this lavender blend deserved it’s own post.
How to Make Scented Lotion with Essential Oils
It couldn’t be easier to make your own scented lotions and if you use this homemade lotion as a base recipe you can make all sorts with as many essential oils you like.
Lavender is my favorite right now and I recommend adding 75-100 drops per batch. 75 drop equals to around 1tsp so it’s easy to measure, if you feel like you’d like a stronger smell just simply add a few drops more.
Other essential oils that would work really well are orange blossom, rose, ylang-ylang, lemongrass, and frankincense.
How to Make Homemade Lotion
Ready to make a batch of the best homemade lotion for yourself? You’ll just need an electric mixer, about 3 minutes, and 4 ingredients: Pure Shea Butter
, Pure Coconut Oil, Arrowroot Powder (or Beeswax pastilles, which are my personal preference since they add a thick, luxurious feel) and Lavender Essential Oil
(or any other essential oil).
And, with Mother’s Day just around the corner, this would make a great gift!
How Long does it Last?
The homemade lotion will last a long time because all the natural products used have a long shelf life and there’s no water added to the mix. I like to store my lotion in glass containers (you can opt for one large jar or smaller ones to take on the go) and it will store well for up to 6 months for best moisturizing benefits.
Tips for Making the Best Homemade Lotion
- Shea butters can vary widely in their scent. In my experience, the lighter (white) shea butters have the most mild scent and the darker (yellow) ones smell much stronger. I prefer the white for this recipe.
- You can substitute cocoa butter for the shea butter too, which would give it a light chocolate scent, similar to my white chocolate and double chocolate body butters.
- You can simply mix all ingredients at room temperature in a single step. But some have found it helpful to soften/melt the shea butter and coconut oil first to prevent any clumping. If you melt them all the way, you’ll want to chill the mixture before whipping it.
- If you like your lotion thicker like hand cream, be sure to add the melted beeswax pastilles.
- This recipe makes a large batch of lotion – at least 20 oz. You’ll need less of this than commercial moisturizers – just a dime size is plenty for both hands and arms.
Best Homemade Lotion
Ingredients
- 1 cup pure shea butter (softened in microwave or double boiler)
- 1 cup pure coconut oil (mine is in soft solid stage at room temperature)
- 1/3 cup arrowroot powder or 1-2 tsp melted beeswax pastilles* (optional)
- 75-100 drops of lavender or other essential oil (use more or less, to your liking - for reference, 75 drops is approximately 1 tsp)
- * NOTE: If you like thicker lotions and creams (try adding 1-2 tsp melted beeswax pastilles to the mixing bowl. Since I originally developed this recipe, I've begun adding the beeswax each time and LOVE the thicker, more luxurious feel!)
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a stand mixer or large bowl. Beat until soft peaks form, then transfer to glass storage containers.
Notes
- Shea butters can vary widely in their scent. In my experience, the lighter (white) shea butters have the most mild scent and the darker (yellow) ones smell much stronger. I prefer the white for this recipe.
- You can substitute cocoa butter for the shea butter too, which would give it a light chocolate scent, similar to my white chocolate and double chocolate body butters.
- You can simply mix all ingredients at room temperature in a single step. But some have found it helpful to soften/melt the shea butter and coconut oil first to prevent any clumping. If you melt them all the way, you'll want to chill the mixture before whipping it.
- If you like your lotion thicker like hand cream, be sure to add the melted beeswax pastilles.
- This recipe makes a large batch of lotion - at least 20 oz. You'll need less of this than commercial moisturizers - just a dime size is plenty for both hands and arms.
Looking forward to trying this one!
Excellent post and wonderful blog, this sort of interesting posts I really like, keep it up…
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I lI love this recipe it’s really the best one I’ve seen and it works so well on my eczema so easy to make and so creamy I’d like it better with arrowroot. Thank you so much for this recipe I’ve made it for years is the best one I’ve seen so far in the easiest one
I’m so happy to hear that, Roz! Thank you for the glowing review! 🙂
I followed the recipe and it was nice and creamy. Why is it once I put in the containers the cream got had?
Hi Pam,
That’s probably the beeswax in it – when it’s still cooling it remains soft, but it firms up quite a bit as it cools completely. I find that just rubbing it in my palms a bit before spreading it on warms it up enough to recreate that soft lotion-like texture. If it’s still too firm for your liking, you could decrease the beeswax by 1/3-1/2 on your next batch.
For the 1/3 c. arrowroot powder, do you add that plus the beeswax to make it thicker? Or is it one or the other?
Hi Alex,
I apologize I’m just getting back to you. It’s one or the other – even a small amount of beeswax will thicken it considerably more than the arrowroot. Hope that helps!
Will the consistency of this work in a squeeze bottle?
I haven’t tried it myself, but suggested to another commenter with the same question that they try leaving out the arrowroot/beeswax and replacing at least half of the shea butter with a liquid oil like vitamin E oil or jojoba oil. Let me know how it turns out if you try it!
How long will this lotion last in plastic container?
Hi Virginia, I’d say at least 3 months!
Hi. I understand the benefits of using astaxanthin. I am interested in receiving guidance on when and how much power astaxanthin to a body butter recipe. We plan to make 4 ounces the first time we make it. Thank you.
Hi Jill,
Yes, astaxanthin shows some promise for skin health, but I’ve never used it myself, so I can’t say for sure how much you should add to this recipe. Sorry!
I tried the make this and melted it all the way, how long should I chill it for?
You’ll want to chill it until it’s a soft solid, similar to coconut oil at room temperature. I would place it in the fridge and check it every half hour so it doesn’t harden to much.
I have not made the lotion yet but have a question. Can I use Apricot Oil rather than Coconut Oil ?
I’ve never tried it, so I’m not sure. I would think it would make the lotion runnier since apricot oil is liquid at room temperature vs. coconut oil that’s a very soft solid. You may just want to increase the beeswax slightly to compensate for that? I’d love to hear how it works out if you try it!
Will the arrowroot make the lotion thick? I know you said use that or the beeswax ,just wondering if the arrowroot works the same as the beeswax .
Even a small amount of the beeswax will thicken the lotion a lot more than the arrowroot will. I hope that helps!