I’m one of those people that is “lucky” enough (sarcasm alert!) to have really dry skin. I always have to have a mini lotion in my purse or car or I will eventually freak out because I can literally feel the moisture being sucked out of my body into the air at all times. Well, that may be a tad dramatic, but you get the idea. I’ve been really into making my own nontoxic versions of as many beauty and home products as I can lately, so I thought I would give a homemade body butter a try and see how it dealt with my dry skin. As it turns out, it’s probably one of the best things I’ve ever used! Wanna make your own and give it a try too?
Supplies:
-1/4 cup coconut oil
-1/2 cup sweet almond oil
-1/4 cup beeswax
-2 teaspoons vitamin E oil
-30 drops of lavender essential oil
-6 drops of vanilla essential oil
–glass jar
Add all the ingredients to a mason jar or other glass jar with lid. Fill a pot 4″ deep with water and place over medium heat. Add the jar (lid on loosely) into the water.
The heat from the water will melt all the ingredients together, so just give the jar a gentle shake or swirl every few minutes to mix the ingredients together. Once the ingredients are melted, pour the liquid into your glass jar container and allow the body butter to cool. As it cools, the mixture will go from a liquid oil to a thick and luxurious butter consistency.
There’s nothing like the relaxing smell of lavender and vanilla, am I right?? The reason that body butter is supposed to keep skin hydrated longer than lotion is that it creates a barrier on top of the skin and traps all the moisture beneath it. I will definitely say that I noticed a difference the first day I used it! I put some on my arms at lunch time, and my arms still felt soft and hydrated by midnight. Actually, another great use is to slather a thick layer on your feet, put on some old socks, and let the butter soak in for a few hours (or overnight). Whether you have dry skin issues too or just love a good beauty DIY, I think you’ll have fun making your own lotion too! xo. Laura
Credits//Author and Photography: Laura Gummerman.
Sure glad I found your site,, it’s wonderful, and I am so glad you posted the “Lavender/Vanilla Body Butter”……(two of my favorite fragrances)….Can’t wait to make this…..thanks so much for sharing your fabulous recipes….
How do you measure the wax do you weigh it, put it in a solid measuring cup, or melt it and use a liquid measuring cup?
Great! Thank for sharing to me
i love the container you used ! where did you find it?
This product looks great. Great review! Thanks for sharing!
My two favorite scents together in one happy place! Yay!! 🙂
Marie
marietheresebatt.com
Hi P, As someone who has eczema, I empathize with your situation. When it was really bad, my experience was that “natural” products often only made my skin more irritated and itchy. I am a big supporter of such products overall, really enjoy these posts by Laura, and may try to make this myself (although I thought beeswax in lotion was not a good idea – can you just leave that out? – the beeswax may be irritating for eczema). But I have grown out of the worst of eczema such that I don’t think about it much anymore. I stayed at a very nice inn in Sante Fe, NM once and their room was stocked with a lotion by the local brand Sister Sky. I liked this lotion SO MUCH that I went online to see if I could buy a bigger bottle. Turns out they started making lotion because the owner’s son had eczema. They have a website and you can buy online. http://www.sistersky.com/category_s/1834.htm That links to their history page. The other thing I’ve found is stress makes eczema worse. If there is a way to minimize stress (or maximize joy? what’s the opposite of stress?) for your daughters, that may help. I think it gets better when you get older. Hope this helps! Eczema sucks!
Lovely tutorial and your pot is so pretty! x
Nice tip!
Laura
The essential oils are really only adding scent so it should still be hydrating without them!
Laura
Anthropologie 🙂
Laura
This looks amazing! I am going to give a try for my feet. I hike a lot so my feet tend to get dry and rough a lot. I am constantly having to put lotion on them.
=) Bridget | http://nuttyhiker.com
if you use an immersion blender when it’s about half-solidified, the texture gets really nice and fluffy!
What a fab DIY! Can’t wait to give this one a shot!
Gemma
www.fadedwindmills.com
I have to try this, since I’m blessed with dry skin as well this would be perfect for me. I bet it smells amazing!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
Cool! I’ve never made any myself actually 🙂
Seems like a fun thing to do.
x
Celien | The Losing Struggle
This sounds gorgeous! I’ll have to try it some time
Love this!
www.petiteandhungry.com
Wow… I really want to do this. Perfect Christmas gift idea!
xoxo Kennedy
Northern Indigo
Instagram: KennedyDawn
This sounds so heavenly!! ^_^
Katie // wordsbykatie.com