As promised:
Winter Skin Lotion
4 tbsp beeswax pastilles (makes a thick lotion; grated beeswax would make it a little bit thinner.
You can control the thickness by adjusting the amount)
8 oz olive oil (or other oil, depending on your skin type - grapeseed oil is a lighter option)
4 tsp coconut oil
8 tbsp water
essential oils, if desired
Melt beeswax in a double boiler. Add coconut oil when the beeswax is almost entirely melted. I use a glass measuring cup in one of my stainless steel pots. Warm olive oil oil briefly in microwave, just so it's slightly warm and not cold (cold oil will cause the beeswax to re-harden). Add the olive oil to beeswax and coconut oil, and whisk until everything's liquified, no longer.
Remove from heat. Use a stick blender and blend while slowly drizzling in the water. Continue mixing for another minute or so. The lotion will be quite hot and runny at this point, but will thicken as it cools. Blend it a bit every now and then as it's cooling, After it's cooled, you can add essential oils, if you like; I love this as an unscented lotion for the boys and myself, especially since I work in scent-free schools. Put into jars or bottles. I prefer a wide mouth jar, especially since it's a firm-ish lotion.
*The link to the place where I originally found this recipe no longer exists; if you let me know where it's moved, I'd be happy to link to it!*
Thanks for posting the recipe, I look forward to making a batch. Do you use a local supplier for the beeswax pastilles or an online source? Might you make a recommendation? Always enjoy the blog - and the happiness post was far from airy-fairy, it was spot on! :)
ReplyDeleteI love making lotions - what an interesting recipe with no emulsifiers. I can't wait to try it.
ReplyDeletePS - Beautiful, amazing photographs too.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! It's a lovely lotion, and I especially love it on the winter.
ReplyDeleteCarmen, I order my beeswax pastilles from Anne-Marie's fabulous company (who left the comments that followed yours) - Bramble Berry. You can also buy solid beeswax at Hands On Crafts on Main Street and grate it, although you'll need to adjust the amounts to get whichever thickness you want. I find it usually turns out just about the texture of a butter. And thanks for your sweet words about my happiness post - part 2 is percolating.
Anne-Marie, thank you - it's simple and lovely. It handles eos and fos well; I just ordered some Optiphen from you a few days ago to try in it.
Thanks for the info!
ReplyDeleteThis looks yummy! I am definitely going to try a batch. Have you noticed any mold problems with using water in the recipe?
ReplyDeleteMelissa
I haven't had any visible trouble, M... I make it in small batches and use it up quickly. I've ordered some Optiphen to try out in my next batch, but I think it's fine if you're going to use it up soon. Have fun!
ReplyDeleteIs Optiphen a preservative? is it okay for the skin?
DeleteHi, I have a question and a comment.. is the olive oil measurement by weight or volume? and if anyone wants a 'vegan ' option you should be able to substitute candelillia wax ( called the vegan beeswax/a palm wax ). The substution is straight across/use the smae amount as the beeswax and the candelillia wax can be found at well stocked health food stores .
ReplyDeleteHi Debra,
ReplyDeleteThe olive oil is measured by weight, although the recipe is a bit flexible, so I think it would probably work by volume as well. The thickness comes from the amount of wax used, so you could always try a 1/4 batch and see how it goes before making a larger batch. And that's a great point about the beeswax substitute - thanks!
HI! Would you be willing to share this recipe on our one small change blog? i can either copy and paste the recipe from here or you can write something up for our blog...thanks!
ReplyDeletesuzy
suzy@hipmountainmama.com
I followed the recipe, with one exception, I added almond oil with the olive oil because I didn't have enough out of olive oil on hand. The consistency was very loose, not thick at all like your photo. It's still great to use, but I was hoping for a thicker lotion. Maybe I need more beeswax?
ReplyDeleteMelissa
Melissa, I don't think that the almond oil would have made that much of a difference - were you using beeswax pastilles or grated beeswax? The pastilles are very dense, so you end up getting much more beeswax (=thickness) if you use the pastilles rather than the grated beeswax. I've made it before with the grated beeswax, and it is a much thinner lotion; more lotion-y than creamy. Adding more should definitely do the trick!
ReplyDeleteSherrie,
ReplyDeleteI did use the pastilles....hmmm. Maybe I measured incorrectly. I'll have to experiment again. Thanks!
Strange, Melissa - I would just try five and see how it goes! Good luck!
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ReplyDeleteThanks for the wonderful lotion recipe. Can't wait to try it out myself. Is it OK to leave out the coconut oil? or substitute it with something else?
ReplyDeleteAnd how about the water temp, does it have to be hot, warm or cool?
Thank you and God bless you!
Three angels - You're very welcome! The coconut oil helps to thicken it up and hold its shape a bit, but it would probably still be fine if you left it out. If you had palm oil, that would sort of do the trick, too. Nothing tragic will happen if you leave it out, so give it a try! :) I don't think the water temperature should matter a whole lot; I usually use it at room temperature. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you Sherrie,
ReplyDeleteI do have solvent fixed coconut oil. I wonder if that would be OK.
I have tried making lotion before but most of the lotions that I made had problems with the water and oil separating. But yours look so real.
I wish mine would turn out like your next time! :)
Thanks again!
I think that coconut oil should work fine. A few tricks to help keep it from separating are to make sure that your water is tepid, use a stick (immersion) blender every little while as it's cooling, and drizzle the water in very slowly as you're adding it. I hope it turns out well!
ReplyDeleteHi Sherrie! I'm so happy that you gave me the link for your blog and so bummed that I have to wait until after finals to try all of these wonderful little things out! This one makes me super excited, because of all the hand washing that I have been practicing for clinical in May! :)
ReplyDeleteDo you have any idea of the weight of your beeswax? I used grated beeswax and it is very very runny and I was really hoping for thick like yours! I'm going to try to add some more melted beeswax to see if I can get it to thicken up some. I doubled the recipe and used a little over an ounce of grated beeswax. A weight would be really helpful! Thanks for the recipe!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah! I've had the same thing happen, using grated beeswax. I just measured and weighed the 4 tbsp and it was 1.1 ounces, so it sounds like you had just the right weight... I'm wondering if there might be variations within beeswax or the oils that might make it thicker / runnier? I'd just try more next time and see how it works with yours. Good luck, and thanks for getting me to weigh it! :)
DeleteThank you so much for weighing it! I did a double batch so no wonder mine was runny...I only used half of what I needed. Ooops! I made a new batch and it's pretty greasy, but I used 1/8 cup Avocado oil and 1/8 cup shea butter and 3/4 cup olive so maybe the different oils make it greasy. Thanks so much for your recipe! I will still use my greasy version...my feet and knees will be thankful this winter. THanks again!
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ReplyDeleteThanks for the recipe!
I made a face cream similar, with the grapeseed oil. my friends and I all LOVE it. I will never buy face cream again! Hard to get the thickness right.
apparently vitamin E drops help with the shelf life. but only a few drops.
Hi everyone! Love my lotion! Just wondering if anyone has tips for how to remove the beeswax residue from my blender. Neither handwashing nor my trusty dishwasher were successful in removing the streaky white residue. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAhhh, the perils of beeswax! Yes, that's definitely a pain. I would warm it up (with boiling water, or maybe in the microwave) and scrape it off with a thin spatula. If you can warm up any bits that might be left, then wiping them out with a cloth or paper towel works, too. Warming it up is the key! Good luck!
DeleteI would like to try making this for my daughters and friends, but I DO NOT want to use water. I had a problem with a foot massage lotion I made up for Thanksgiving gifts last year. This was before I learn the unforeseen damage that water can do to the skin after it starts molding.The problem is, the water starts causing it to mold long before you visibly see it, and that is where people get into trouble. So, again is there something else I can use to substitute for the water. I would like to make some up and send it to my grandson who is the Marines. Thank you, Star https://www.facebook.com/prettyblueeyes24
DeleteHi Star - You can always add some optiphen or another preservative to prevent bacteria growth - that's what I would recommend. You'll still need to use water, though, as you would find in 'regular' lotions from the grocery store. You could also make a solid lotion bar instead; that has no water, and travels well if there's enough beeswax to keep it solid.
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