I have to say up-front….You’re really going to love this creamy homemade lotion.
I found my favorite recipe for this creamy homemade lotion in a book written by Rosemary Gladstar. She’s an awesome herbalist with more knowledge than I could ever hope to obtain. If you haven’t heard of her, check out her website here.
She has several YouTube videos too. Search her name and you’ll come across a ton of videos. Check that out here.
She’s also got several books out, but I love this one. It has a ton of recipes in it, but this is my favorite.
This creamy homemade lotion feels magnificent on your hands and your body.
I make a couple of different versions of this lotion, one for my body and one for my face. I hope you’ll love it as much as I do.
Basically it has 2 parts, oil and water. Then you combine them.
The Oil Part
Start with 1/3 cup of a more solid-type butter like coco butter, which, by the way, smells amazing, coconut butter or shea butter.
Then add 3/4 cups of a liquid oil. This can be liquid coconut oil, grape seed oil, or any other oil that you prefer, even olive oil, if you like. There are a ton to choose from. Check the ones I buy out here and here or many other sites. Do your own research for what you prefer.
Then add about a 1/4 teaspoon of lanolin and 1 oz of bees wax.
I suggest the little wax pellets. It’s so hard to cut up the bricks, I’ve found it’s worth buying the smaller pellets.
You’ll want to use a double boiler to melt all your oils and bees wax. I don’t have a double boiler so I use a make-shift one. It’s pretty cheesy, but it works. One day I’ll buy one.
Once all of your oils and wax have melted, let it sit and cool off to room temperature.
The Water Part
The water part starts with 2/3 cup of water. We don’t have city water, we use well water. This recipe actually calls for distilled water. I have to tell you, I’ve always just used our well water and had no problems.
I have made rose water and use that in the mix for my face lotion. There are so many options to try and figure out what you like best.
Add to that 1/3 cup of aloa vera gel. I’ve used vegetable glycerine too. Be sure to try it different ways to see what you like best.
To this you’ll add Vitamin A or E oil whichever you prefer.
I generally use about 1/8 teaspoon or just a touch more of Vitamin E oil. It’s great for your skin.
At this point the recipe actually calls that you add any essential oil that you want. But personally, I wait until after I’ve mixed the oil and water to add the essential oil.
Mixing Oil and Water
We all know that oil and water doesn’t mix, right? Well, there is a way.
I start the oil part in this large measuring cup for a reason.
Using a stick blender I’ll blend the oil portion for a few minutes (about 3-5 minutes) before I start adding the water.
I want to see the mixture lighten up a bit before I start adding the water.
The secret in mixing oil and water is to add the water very slowly while you continue to mix the oil.
If you use a blender, you can pour the melted oil into the blender before it cools. Then all you would do is turn on the blender for a short while before you begin to add the water.
Continue to mix as you continue to add the water mixture very slowly. As you add water, it will become creamier and creamier.
Be sure to go slow. My handheld stick blender begins to get hot as I’m finishing up.
I watched a video of Rosemary making this lotion in a blender and you could hear the difference in the blender when it got close to getting done.
Look how creamy that is!! At about at this point, I add 30-35 drops of whatever essential oil I’m using.
One thing I’ll caution you about is that the coco butter I use will almost cover the smell of any essential oil I use. But that doesn’t always stop me from trying.
This recipe made four 4 oz jars of creamy lotion. I use this everyday after I get out of the shower.
I don’t waste any of this creamy homemade lotion.
When you get done, you’ll have this cream on your stick blender and in whatever bowl you’ve mixed it in. And since water and oil doesn’t mix, this doesn’t wash well.
So, the perfect fix, is to go lotion up, scraping it all out of all your bowls and whatever mixer you used. You certainly don’t want to waste this beautiful creamy lotion.
Whatever is left after that, which usually isn’t much, can easily be wiped out with paper towels. Now, it’s much easier to wash.
I’ve came up with a different versions of this recipe, just from experimenting, using rose water and rose infused almond oil, for what I use on my face.
So be sure you experiment. This is a base recipe that can be changed to suite your own needs. I hope you’ll give it a try.
If you have any questions, please let me know. If you have any suggestions, let me know those too. I’d love to hear what you have to say.
Until later – Health, Wealth & Blessings ~ Tracey