By April Hala
“You make your own deodorant? Why?”
When people find out I make my own deodorant, this is usually the first question they ask. I decided to try homemade deodorant after years of frustration when the normal store brands just didn’t work the way I wanted. After becoming concerned about the chemicals in traditional deodorants, I tried to find an effective natural brand from my local health store, but had little success. Then one day, I decided to try making my own, and I was very surprised when it worked better than any commercially-made deodorant I’d ever tried! This recipe makes enough to last several months. Enjoy making this and knowing exactly what you are putting on your body!
What You’ll Need
3 TBSP baking soda
1 TBSP shea butter
1 TBSP cocoa butter
1 TBSP coconut oil
6 large drops vegetable glycerin (optional)
6 drops tea tree oil
10 drops clary sage oil
How You’ll Do it
- Soften the shea butter, the cocoa butter, and (if necessary) the coconut oil (I made mine when it was still warm enough that my coconut oil was liquid).
- Combine the oils/butters and the baking soda.
- Add the glycerin if desired. (I added glycerin because I was concerned about the final product being too hard. Since this is a colder climate, I knew once the weather turned cool, the coconut oil in the recipe would harden, and I thought the finished product would be too hard. If I was making this for use over summer, I might omit the glycerin.)
- Add the essential oils. You could probably use any oils. I chose tea tree oil and Clary Sage Oil because of their antiseptic, antibacterial properties. The next time I make this recipe, I will probably use less, because it’s actually a little too scented for my taste. I was in a hurry and didn’t have a dropper.
- Pour the finished product into a small jar. This recipe made exactly enough to fill an empty 3 oz. moisturizer tub I had stashed in my bathroom cupboard.
- Place in refrigerator to harden.
Tell us how you like this!
Do you make your own body care products from scratch? We’d love to hear about it and maybe feature your recipe here on Adornabelle in a future DiY Body Product post!
Thanks for sharing this! I love hearing tried and proven to work recipes for healthy body products!
I make my own using coconut oil, corn starch and baking soda.
My sister added some essential oils, but I didn’t have any when I was making it so I did without.
It works great, although I do have to store it in the fridge when it gets hot. I made it in a paper cup so I can ‘rol’ it on, my sister made it in a tin can so she just uses her fingers to apply it. Whichever you prefer, it both works.
This recipe you shared probably works even better, but when you’re in a pinch and can’t get to cocoa butter or shea butter, it’s nice to know you can make do without 🙂