In a homemade deodorant recipe, the ‘working’ ingredient is sodium bicarbonate. That’s right, the good ol’ baking soda. I’ve noticed how some natural deodorants rely on essential oils alone, but I haven’t been brave enough to try that yet. The baking soda, in combination with one or more essential oils for a lovely scent, has been working so well. During cold winters and in the tropics, when sitting at a desk, and when running around sweating!
One day I’ll give a blend of some fresh, antibacterial essential oils a try… but not when the days consist of working long hours and double shifts. Not when body odor (or a lack thereof) depends on the power of this most reliable component for a homemade deodorant recipe.
This homemade deodorant recipe includes beeswax. If you’re vegan, you could use soy wax instead, as mentioned in the vegan homemade deodorant recipe. It’s important to use organic beeswax, not just for this recipe, but for all your natural skin care creations.
Beeswax binds all sorts of substances to itself, it kind of works like a magnet. Toxins such as heavy metals and pesticides are attracted to the wax. Some people actually take organic beeswax internally, to evacuate these harmful substances out of their body. If the beeswax is not organic, it contains traces of pesticides and bring these toxins to your skin, which is exactly what you want to keep out of your natural organic skin care products, right?
Homemade Deodorant Recipe
The result of this recipe is incredibly smooth and velvety soft. It melts just a little upon skin contact and feels as if you’re spreading a luxurious cream under your armpits.
Ingredients
- Beeswax: 1 Tablespoon
- Shea butter: 1 Tablespoon
- Fractionated coconut oil: 3 Tablespoons
- Cornstarch: 4 Tablespoons
- Baking soda: 2 Tablespoons
- Blend of essential oils (Scroll down for some examples of combinations! Or just go with your nose. About 15-20 drops work well for the proportions mentioned in this recipe.)
Directions
- Measure all ingredients.
- In a double boiler, melt the beeswax, together with the oil and shea butter. A glass bowl or pyrex measuring cup in a large pan of hot water works great. (Do not add the essential oils at this point, because the heat will evaporate them.)
- While waiting for the solid components to melt, combine the dry ingredients and mix well.
- The beeswax has the highest melting point and will be the last to liquefy. Once this happens, take the mixture out of the double boiler.
- Add the powder mixture slowly while stirring. Right after the dry ingredients, add the essential oils of your choice. Use a spoon to work out little lumps and make sure to evenly blend in the essential oils.
- When the potion is nice and smooth, don’t wait too long before pouring or spooning it into it’s final jar. As the recipe cools, it will start to become more solid – and more difficult to manipulate.
Homemade Deodorant Recipe in Pictures
Examples of Essential Oil Blends
Just some examples of combinations with 2 to 4 essential oils.
Of course, instead of a blend, just one single essential oil can be used to scent a homemade deodorant recipe.
Some fragrances just as delicious on their own are spearmint, peppermint, lavender, lime and lemongrass.
Flower Garden Blend
- Patchouli essential oil 6 drops
- Lavender essential oil 6 drops
- Lemongrass essential oil 8 drops
Lavender, but not just that. The combination smells like a summer garden, with both a hint of something familiar and the scent of other, less familiar flowers. As a whole, it has something warm, a bit of a tingle reminding me of that late afternoon heat, when grass has been warmed by the sun and releases a hay-like aroma.
Fresh Lavender Blend
- Spearmint essential oil 10 drops
- Lavender essential oil 6 drops
Simple and straight-forward, two classics combined to give your homemade deodorant recipe a fragrance holding the midst between well-known and surprising.
Lemon Verbena Blend
- Lemon essential oil 5 drops
- Lime essential oil 5 drops
- Lemongrass essential oil 6 drops
- Verbena essential oil 3 drops
Verbena has quite a strong and typical scent. It’s what holds the citrus fragrances together in this blend, giving them a foundation in addition to all that sparkling freshness. The combination is uplifting with a soothing undertone.
You might also like:
- Homemade Deodorant Recipe with Soy Wax (Vegan)
- Aluminium in Deodorants
- Which Essential Oils to Use for Acne
- Natural Organic Skin Care Recipes – INDEX