Monday, May 30, 2011

Non-toxic Lotion Bar Recipe


I was in Target one day and came across a lotion bar. Now I had never seen such a thing and so I thought I would Google it and see if I could make one myself. Preferably with Shea butter since I had a few recipes I wanted to make with it. I came across a very simple one from MadeOn. She doesnt have the recipe there anymore, but she does show how to make it from the kit you can buy from her, or if you dont want to make it, she sells the bars.
I am going to show you how to make them yourself. Its super simple to do and only requires 3 ingredients. This is going to be just like when I made my lip balm. Same organic ingredients even. Just a different mold and ingredient weight.

Non-toxic Lotion Bar Recipe:
 5.5 oz Coconut Oil
4.25 oz Beeswax ( see my beeswax tips)
4.25 oz Shea Butter

Now this makes a lot of bars. I gave several away and still have plenty left and they last a long time, so you may want to cut this recipe in half .
I used a kitchen scale to measure out my ingredients.

Its as simple as melt all ingredients together. I start with the beeswax since it takes much longer to melt then add the shea butter and coconut oil. For my bars I used a glass measuring cup placed inside a pot of simmering water. (Just like my lip balm) A wooden skewer makes a great disposable stirrer.
Once they are all melted you can add essential oils. I added some Frankincense and Myrrh.
Then pour them into the mold of your choice. I got a soap mold from Michaels for a couple of bucks.
I still had lots of liquid left so I filled up a mini muffin tin, which made a nice size.

Let it cool completely. As it does it will harden up nicely. I think I let the ones in the soap mold harden overnight because they were so big. The mini ones were ready much sooner. To release from mold, pop into the freezer for a bit and they should come right out.
To use simply warm up the bar by rubbing it in your hands then rub on skin. I love to use it on my heels! Great for eczema, psoriasis, dry hands, feet and elbows or all over. Now I dont typically like the all over the body feeling but it sure makes your skin soft so its great in the winter when my eczema flares up. You could probably even use it on your face if you have super dry skin. It feels greasy at first, but will absorb nicely.
Use caution if you store this in a hot climate, car, purse... The Shea Butter and Coconut Oil have a very low melting point ( between 72 and 76 degrees)
Hope you enjoy this wonderful non-toxic lotion bar. I am still looking for the perfect non-toxic soft lotion recipe, but when I do find it I will share. Thanks for reading.
The "freckles"" on top of the bar is my Myrrh resin that didnt quite mix in so well. No harm, it works just as nicely.



12 comments:

elizabeth katherine said...

I wonder if you could use the liquid soap from a bar recipe to turn this into a squirt bottle lotion (basically melt down the bar (so a step saver there!) then a little glycerin and some water...

Abigail Charles said...

So cool! I bet you could put essential oils in there also to make it scented and add some more soothing elements.

Martha said...

You can also add seabuckthorn berry oil (very soothing and emollient), chamomile essential oil, and lavender essential oil. My question is how do you wrap it so it stays nice?

slave4suggies said...

http://www.gorgeouslygreen.com/2012/10/whipped-coconut-body-creme/

Anonymous said...

love the idea but how do you store it? i can't imagine just leaving it in a purse.
:)

Unknown said...

Good question. I haven't stored them in my purse, but you could use a small plastic or metal tin to contain it in your purse. I have wrapped them in wax or parchment paper at home.

Unknown said...

Great idea, I think I will make these this weekend, Thanks :)

Anonymous said...

is there anything I could substitute for the coconut oil in this receipe?

Unknown said...

Hmmm. I think you could use Tallow (rendered beef fat), or maybe cocoa butter. I haven't tried substituting anything else yet but I feel some experimenting coming on!

Unknown said...

I am allergic to coconuts so I try to avoid even the oil, is there a substitute I can use?

Unknown said...

Brandy,
I am not sure of a substitute for the coconut oil, but I am thinking about trying out tallow. I would decrease the beeswax though since it is a harder oil than coconut.

Anonymous said...

can you use goat milk? Deanna

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