Homemade Products: Lotion

I am really hyped about this lotion. I made the body butter last week and it has been working great but is a little harder and I do like a creamy lotion. I found this recipe and I just whipped up two batches in less then 15 mins. LOVE IT! Keep in mind that the ingredients you buy can be used for many, many other things and so your investment over time is minimal. Let me give you the actual recipe and then I will break it down into what I did and how it turned out for me.

• ½ cup distilled water
  
• ½ cup oil (I usually use olive, almond, macadamia nut, or grape seed) 1 TBS liquid lecithin

You can experiment from here by adding essential oils, combining other oils; you can steep beneficial herbs into your water before you add your oil, etc. . .

Here is a nice winter lotion to get you started:

• ½ cup distilled water
• ½ cup olive oil
• 1 TBS lecithin
• 6-8 drops of geranium oil
• 2-4 drops Myrrh oil
• 400 IU Vitamin E oil (1-2 open capsules)

Geranium oil is good for supporting balance and rejuvenating dry skin conditions and for wrinkled and matured skin. Myrrh is a gentle oil that is effective in replenishing moisture.

Vitamin E oil is an excellent antioxidant and helps to protect the skin as well as a nice preservative.

Blend all ingredients in the blender either on whip or cream. You will have a nice creamy firm lotion. Add more water to make a lighter lotion. Store in the refrigerator in hot climates or store in a cool place. Shake well before use.

Enjoy your lotion. Hopefully this little recipe will inspire you to become creative!

OK lets break this down. Water-I read online that using distilled water is better because of the chemicals (chlorine) in tap water. We have well water so I just used that but remember the shelf life of homemade lotions is less then preservative store bought ones.

Vitamin E I bought liquid soft gels from dollar general for $6. This was cheaper then most stores. You can use the Vitamin E for lots of things and actually take it as a supplement. Cut the end off the capsule and squeeze out the liquid.

Liquid Lecithin is a pure vegetable substance. I found it at the Vitamin world for 4.99. Get the small bottle it will last forever.

Oils- I used Almond oil and jojoba oil. I made two batches and on the first batch used the almond only and on the second batch I mixed the two oils. You can use all types of oils. When they say olive oil they are talking about pure cold pressed olive oil not extra virgin.

(geranium, myrrh, orange, lemon, lavender and more are essential oils you can find in the tiny jars at health food stores and more. Here is the website for the place I get mine for a fraction of the price at health food places. You can also get the lots of other ingredients there and oils as well. Swanson health products )

I had geranium oil so I did use that in the first batch and substitute jojoba oil for the myrrh oil. I found the geranium oil a little over powering, it smells fine but just not me.

The second batch I used orange and lemon oils because I love citrus smells and it was perfect. Just make sure the scents you use won't bother your skin or others if giving it away.

The whole thing was as easy as could be. Put all the ingredients in a glass bowl and mix with a hand blender. I have a blender that you can put a whipping setting on so I did that. It took only a few minutes on low/high and I had a nice creamy lotion.

Don't forget to get containers to put your lotions inside...I was at Walmart today and they have containers in the travel section. These are perfect. I used a funnel to get my lotion in the container and I was done. Remember to keep your lotion in a cool place out of the sun and direct light. It should last you a couple of months. I am so happy with the outcome of this lotion.