Follow the following recipes to learn how to make your own deodorant:
Basic Recipe
Ingredients:
2 tsp. zinc-oxide powder
2/3 cup witch-hazel extract
2 tbsp. aloe-vera juice
30-40 drops essential oil(s)
Directions:
In a small bowl, stir the zinc-oxide powder into the witch-hazel extract, and add the aloe-vera juice and essential oil(s). Fill an 8-oz. dark-glass spray bottle with the fluid.
For Daily Use
Ingredients:
Basic Recipe
30 drops rose-geranium essential oil
Directions:
The rose geranium oil is high in terpene alcohol, which inhibits the proliferation of odor-causing bacteria.
For Sensitive Skin
Ingredients:
Basic Recipe
30 drops calendula extract
10 drops lavender essential oil
Directions:
Calendula and lavender oils are mild yet potent fighters of bacteria and odor.
For Excessive Sweating
Ingredients:
Basic Recipe
30 drops sage essential oil
Directions:
Sage oil inhibits sweat-gland activity by as much as 50 percent. It also is antiseptic and astringent and gently constricts pore size.
These recipes are by Natural Beauty. Please visit their website for the full article on these recipes along with other ideas.
Herbal Stick Deodorant
Ingredients:
1 1/2 tbspn beeswax (yellow is best)
1/2 tbspn cocoa butter
1 tablespoon coconut oil
15 drops white thyme essential oil
15 drops rosemary essential oil
25 drops lavender essential oil
3 drops castor oil
Directions:
Melt beeswax in a glass jar standing in hot water, add the cocoa butter,
and when it has melted, add the oils. Stir to mix thoroughly, then pour
into a clean, discarded deodorant stick case and leave to cool and set
This herbal stick deodorant recipe is by Snow Drift Farms.
For those interested in purchasing their own eco-friendly deodorant try taking a look at Crystal Roll On Body Deodorant, Pure & Basic Green Tea Green Clay Deodorant Stick, Kiss My Face Summer Active Enzyme Natural Stick Deodorant, and Kiss My Face Lavender Active Enzyme Natural Stick Deodorant.
I love these recipes. They are easy to follow and with easy to find ingredients. Thanks for sharing!
Where do you get Zinc Oxide powder would be my only question. They probably do it in chemists I imagine, another good natural deodorant is bicarbonate of soda apparently if you dust a little on your feet and under your arm pits it’s supposed to help you stay fresh.
Try http://www.amazon.com/Zinc-Oxide-Powder-1lb/dp/B001EME6DK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=miscellaneous&qid=1222496128&sr=8-1 for zinc oxide powder.
I like the recipes…but think I will have to first ’sweat’ a little to look for all the ingredients…;)
I had no idea that you could make homemade deodorant. I wonder if this would work with my husband though who tends to sweat a lot?
i find the idea of using baking powder on my armpits a bit odd, and could work out quite expensive too… some of these oils come in tiny bottles and the recipe calls for ’drops’ of them.. you won’t make a lot of deodorant out of it… you’d need gallons to last you a month or so…. cost a fortune!
Responses to Stav
Essential oils usually come in 10 mls. bottles and each ml. is 20 drops (200 drops per bottle). It depends which essential oil you choose as to how expensive a product is. Oils such as Lavender, Tea Tree, Rosemary, petitgrain etc. are inexpensive whilst Neroli, Rose and Jasmine are VERY expensive. I lectured in aromatherapy but have never made deodorants. My specialities are treatment creams/lotions/oils/inhalers for conditions such as eczema, acne, arthritis, migraine, stress. Small bottles of essential oils can go a long way if used correctly.
The exact opposite is true. If you are into natural healing/green living, then these items should be staples in your home for cooking, cleaning, hygiene, relaxation, medicinal purposes, etc. Tea Tree and Lavender oils can be used for many things. Gallons of what? You must not be too serious about ”going green” if these ideas strike you as odd. They are natural, healthy, and cheap. (Especially if you consider the long term affect on your overall health.) Get the supplies and keep them on hand. As you learn more about natural hygiene methods, you’ll be glad you made the investment. When the pests come out in the summer and you read that tea tree oil is good for soothing tick bites you will be glad you bought some. Did you know that lavender oil is good for burns? Put some drops of lavender oil in your bath water to relax your nerves after a tough day? You betcha! Tea tree oil for fever blisters and cold sores…. get the picture?
It is true that tea tree can help cold sores but the best one by far is geranium. If you buy a 10 mls. bottle of the neat pure essential oil you can make, from that bottle, many bottles of treatment oil for future use. Only ever make one at a time though because the neat oil keeps for years whilst the mixed oil only months. To make a treatment bottle you need an empty 5 or 10 mls. bottle with a dropper insert (buy from a chemist initially but never throw them away – keep for re-use). You add 3 drops of pure geranium oil to 5mls. (one teaspoonful) of vegetable oil. This can be the kind you cook with (sunflower, rapeseed, safflower but NOT olive) or you can buy the more expensive cold-pressed vegetable oils from health stores. Mix your small bottle and keep it in a cool place out of the sun and LABEL it. Give the oil a good shake and apply one or two drops to a cold sore. It usually works very quickly if used at the first signs of a cold sore developing. If left until developed a cold sore is harder to treat but this is still worth trying
before resorting to any chemical answer. Geranium oil is a middle priced oil but a treatment mix as mentioned above works out very cheap indeed and you’ll find many other wonderful uses for geranium oil. Do a little research and get the best you can out of these little bottles of wonderful stuff.
Most of the commercial eco-friendly deodorants I’e seen are either sticky or they leave marks on clothes. They also act as deodorants but offer no anti-perspirant action. It’s good to know that sage oil can be added to gently constrict pores and offer some anti-perspirant action.
Responses to Lyndsey
Be very careful using sage oil (if you are referring to neat essential oil) Do your homework and check out any contra-indication. There is a lot of information on the internet and many very good, inexpensive books listing the uses and safety issues of essential oils. Sage is a useful oil but must be used with caution. All essential oils are wonderful, God-given products and we SHOULD us them but we must also treat them with respect and use them correctly or we could harm ourselves.
I like the recipes, but I am afraid I don’t know where to find most of the ingredients. I have heard of using baking soda, not baking powder.
Most of these ingredients can be find at places such as luckyvitamin.com, amazon.com, mountainroseherbs.com, and herbalremedies.com.
I use bicarbonate of soda and it’s effective and inexpensive. I cycle 16 km each day and stay unsmelly. In Australia a box is about $4 and it lasts me about 6 months.
Responses to Bronte
Just to clarify to those who don’t know what bicarbonate of soda is… it’s simply baking soda
It unfortunately has a different name everywhere!
Also, if you google it, you’ll find tons of homemade deodorant recipes based on baking soda
In the USA we can buy it in 10 LB boxes very reasonably. I use it in the laundry, cleaning etc…
It sounds like you came across quite a find, Bronte. Great work!
I make a simailar stick deodorant but I add baking soda and teatree oil. These homemade recipes work. I actually make them and sell them as a supplement to my homemade soap business.
Just a tip, you can also make your own paper push up tubes for the stick deoderant.. just make sure that the recipe is fairly cool before pouring in!
Responses to ZammaJannan
Where do you sell your products?
Would you like to share your recipe and how you make them?
Great ideas. I love stuff like this so please keep them coming. Easy to make and easy to find natural ingredients. Whats not to like?
What are the difference between the ingredients here and what is listed on most commercial deodorants?
I know that some ingredients are found in both types of deodorant but are listed by their chemical names in commercially produced products and the common names when blended at home.
Is there some place to compare the names?
I must learn how to do this, recently I bought a deodorant and it wore out half way through the day, that was embarrassing.
These are really helpful recipes! Thanks so much for providing them! How about an article in the future on how to make our own essential oils, as those are expensive?
Responses to tcnjpirate
You would not wish to make you own essential oils unless you wish to make a huge investment in equipment. Essential oils are the neat therapeutic oils of plants and are expensive for a reason. Some give a very small yield of oil (such as Rose, Neroli, Jasmine) which make them VERY expensive whilst others give a better yield (such as Lavender, Eucalyptus, Tea Tree) which makes them less expensive but still not, what some would call, cheap. It is an expensive process, not for the amateur. Essential oils are used in very small quantities though. If you wished to make a massage mix sufficient for an adult person’s whole body you would use 6 – 8 drops of essential oil. The remainder of the mix would be the carrier oil (the greasy vegetable oil into which you mix the essential oils) which is not expensive. Considering there are 200 drops in one small 10 mls. bottle that is not expensive. Don’t ever use ’perfume’ oils for massage. Most people have a severe reaction to these and they have no therapeutic properties whatsoever, even though they might smell like the real thing. Perfume oils are meant for using in pot pourri or a burner.
Your curiosity is so funny, reminds me of that across-the-fence movie Perfume. But I do love the scents that essential oils in a diffuser create (Ylang Ylang + Geranium = very soothing)
And I did read somewhere that the sense of smell ignites the memory more than any other, so it’s important. Good thinking!
I am not giving up my anti-perspirant. The recipes are only for deodorant. This doesn’t work for perspirant most of the time.
wow..zamma….you really gave me a good idea…I think I too can make something like that now….
I like these natural deodorant recipes. I must say, though, that they are not strong enough for outside activities (social or exercise). I use the natural deodorant when I am staying at home, but, sadly, when I go out I still need to use the store-bought chemical kind.
Responses to heretoday
I completely understand, Heretoday. If I ever come across a deodorant recipe for such things, or can seem to think of one, I will be sure to post it here.
How do they make the natural crystal deodorants, solid and spray? Is it the rock crystal science project of some kind we all did for the science fair? (I find those work through all EXCEPT the hottest summer days in my no a/c car in South Texas)
Responses to Pam
Pam, You can make the spray deoderant by simply adding 3/4 tsp of ammonium alum to 1/2 cup of very warm distilled water and shake well. put in spray bottle after it cools and spray three shots under each arm. You should let it dry a little before putting on your shirt. You can make it more effective by adding 1 drop of grapefruit seed extract. I havnt yet made the crystal yet, but as soon as I do I will post it here. Hope this helps.
Thankyou Keith,
In order for the crystal type spray to work, I found that the underarm has to be washed with pretty warm water and a good amount of soap. Then dry and spray and dry. I do other things like the funky chicken until it is dry, or get out the hair dryer. It does not work on my boys or husband on any but the coldest days however. Is this related to aluminum like the toxic aluminum on the awful chemical deodorants?
Responses to Pam
Pam, It is not the same as the aluminum in the deoderants that you buy from the store.
I did have the info on my pc, but I seem to have accidentally deleted it. I will obtain the info and post a link for you.
About it not working on your husband and boys, you can add a drop of grapefruit seed extract to add a boost to the ability do keep odors from developing. also, after the spray dries some what, you can add another shot under the arm for them.
I hope this helps.
yes it is
What kind of sage oil has these antiperspirant properties? clary sage? regular run of the mill sage oil? Do you know the exact type?
Responses to Sunnie26
Sage oil is not for the amateur to use. Clary Sage is safer but also has contra-indications. Do not use if pregnant or if you have high blood pressure. If new to using essential oils at all please always research the subject. There is a lot of information on the internet now which was not available when I became an aromatherapist about 25 years ago.. We had to wade our way through huge text books on the subject. Now you could just type in ‘sage essential oil – contra-indications’ and you’ll find a list of dos and donts. Play safe, they are wonderful, God-given, products but must be treated with respect just as we treat drugs.
I’m impressed with the different varieties of homemade deodorants.
Thanks for posting all of your comments.
I’m a newbie in the eco-friendly living, but I’m toally jumping in head first.
Thanks!
I use a solid stick of natural mineral salts. I wet the stick and then put a drop of [theraputic grade] essential oil on top before applying. It keeps me dry and odor free. I change the oil depending on my mood and what I think my body needs that day.
Responses to Laurie
And tthe solid will go through the airport carry on screening.
Although I am an aromatherapist and use the natural mineral deodorant sticks I had never thought of putting a drop of essential oil on the top. Thanks for the tip, it sounds wonderful. Tomorrow that is what I’ll be doing. The mineral sticks are much nicer and better for our health than spray on or roll-on anti-perspirants and they last for a very long time.
I use Liken deodorant because the only natural ingredient that seems to work for me is lichen plant and that’s the only brand that has it. Is it possible to buy lichen to make my own? Also, I never wear tight armholes, so sweat has a chance to evaporate without staining my clothing. Diet and stress also make a difference in how you smell. Finally, get used to how a healthy, clean body smells! Most people (Americans, anyway) are far too obsessed with body odor thanks to the huge advertising budget of the cosmetics industry. My husband says he’d rather smell me than any perfume out there. Good Luck!
1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda on washed damp armpit. Immediately neutralizes even the strongest body smell. The end. If you shave your pits it will sting. So let your fur grow a bit (need not be bradeable). Give the baking soda a place to cling. Super cheap, no metal, envrionmetally freindly.
The hard rock crystal works equally well, it is potassium aluminium sulfate. Unlike the aluminum compunds in anti prespirants, the aluminum in the crystal deodorant does not enter your body or cause your pores to shut, so you still get lovely cooling sweat, but no odor which might arouse attention.
In either case you can put a nice smell on your armpit 1st if you want (your favorite essential oil, cologne, perfume, whatever!).
Before you try something different, make sure your underarms are completely clean. Many of the products leave a residue which takes days to wear completely off. I can’t use any anti-persperants or mineral crystals or I break out. Aluminum IS a mineral, and can be toxic. I use Lavilin cream every four days. The main ingredient is zinc oxide, also found in Desitin diaper cream. Zinc is a vital mineral. Try: soap and water scrubbing twice, dry completely, and apply a generous amount of rubbing alcohol with 2 or 3 cotton balls. (Don’t do this after shaving, or it will burn.) After the alcohol dries, apply your new product. Or you could try going without any product. I’d bet you’d be surprised how long it takes before odor actually occurs. If you’ve been using anti-persperants, there are probably accumulated body toxins. Sweating is good for you, and helps to clean the pores. Better to deal with moisture than poison your body. I have no doubt that there scientists paid (by the uber-wealthy cosmetic industry) to debunk research linking anti-persperants with breast cancer. Another option is to spray one’s clothes with cologne in the underarm area. I do that also.