de-funk de pits

[Arimara]

Believe it or not, lavender EO is a good all purpose EO for skin ailments, as well as for sleeplessness and anxiety. It is antiseptic, antibacterial (MRSA, staph), and antifungal (candida) and promotes healing. Lavender is one of the safest EOs to use on the skin -- it seldom irritates or causes a reaction.

It pairs well with tea tree -- the two together work better than either alone at providing antiseptic and antimicrobial properties. That's good since tea tree is a skin irritant. Blending it with lavender allows one to use less tea tree and still get good results. All that said, I personally wouldn't use 3% total EO in a daily-use product.

I totally agree here. I love tea tree and lavender together and they have helped clear my face up really well in my younger days.. well, early twenties since I'm not that old.

 

[TeresaT]

Thanks for sharing that! Some thoughts --

Why not use the babassu in place of the shea? Also, keep in mind that the FCO might have an effect similar to babassu.

I see the recipe in the link calls for neem. I'd prefer not to have BO, but if the price of no body odor is putting up with the smell of neem ... I'm not sure I could do that. :sick:

My latest deodorant adventure was to add neem to the babassu. I wanted to see if it added anything to the party. It did. Major stink. I melted 52 grams babassu and added 2 grams neem. Not a lot of neem at all, so it shouldn't stink. Right? Wrong. I also added 8-ish drops of Clove EO, 8-ish drops of lemongrass EO and 8-ish drops of my grapefruit-rosemary EO blend. (Eight is my favorite number. It's the same upside down or right side up and sideways it is the symbol for infinity. Eight is constant, never changes and goes on forever. OK. Enough of that.) In spite of having 24 drops of EOs, all I can smell is neem.

I have a pound of neem oil. What the heck am I going to do with it all? I guess I'm going to have to make some really funky smelling soap with neem and tea trea. If you're going to make a stink, make a big stink.

 

[doriettefarm]

Ewwww, thanks for the heads up T. I have a 4oz bottle of neem and was contemplating using it for deodorant. Might have to reconsider if you can't cover the stank with that EO combo . . . isn't covering the stank the whole purpose? I wonder if the lye monster tames some of the stench?

 

[Arimara]

Ewwww, thanks for the heads up T. I have a 4oz bottle of neem and was contemplating using it for deodorant. Might have to reconsider if you can't cover the stank with that EO combo . . . isn't covering the stank the whole purpose? I wonder if the lye monster tames some of the stench?

I doubt it but let's find out, shall we? :twisted::mrgreen::twisted:

 

[TeresaT]

Ewwww, thanks for the heads up T. I have a 4oz bottle of neem and was contemplating using it for deodorant. Might have to reconsider if you can't cover the stank with that EO combo . . . isn't covering the stank the whole purpose? I wonder if the lye monster tames some of the stench?

I might melt down the oils again and add more EOs. The 24 total drops probably didn't even amount to 1 gram. But now that I've got my micro scale, I can weigh stuff that is less that a gram. The scale weighs in increments of .01 grams. This is the exact reason I bought a scale like this.

 

[debra062013]

They use Neem oil to clean leather such as saddles. I really had to search by leather for that to come in a google search.
So maybe it will work but I did not like it on saddle. The ACV I use with bentonite clay is smelly enough

 

[BeesKnees]

I might melt down the oils again and add more EOs.

Any more updates on your experiments?? Finding a deodorant that doesn't irritate my underarms is high on my list of things I would love to do. I've been using Primal Pit Paste (which has baking soda, which is what I think my body dislikes) for months and am not loving the underarm irritation. Then I go without deodorant for a few days (when I can get away with it) to let my skin recover, but the reprieve doesn't last long. It may have been wellness mama where I read to change the skin's pH by applying apple cider vinegar to your underarms about an hour before applying deodorant--btw, ACV on the underarms stinks almost as bad as low-level BO, IMO--but I'm not loving those results either. So I had high hopes someone else in the forum would be interested in the topic and--lo and behold, TheresaT had a whole thread on it!! So now my mind is brimming with ideas to try and I'm curious on how the experiment has gone in the past month??

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Also consider using a citric acid solution for things which call for acv for pH adjusting but acv might smell a bit too much

 

[IrishLass]

I wonder if just adding magnesium to the babassu with bring anything to the party. There's only one way to find out...

I was able to find this out for myself just these past few days with the magnesium hydroxide powder that I bought off of Amazon last week. Magnesium hydroxide is the same type of magnesium used in Milk of Magnesia (MOM). I added a smidge to my tiny little jar of babassu oil that I keep filled up in the bathroom to aid in deodorizing my pits, and it has been working wonders so far.

Just to remind you of my experiences with the babassu that I wrote about in my earlier posts in this thread: I've normally been applying the babassu to my underarms after showering and right before applying my store-bought natural deodorant, and it's been keeping me smelling pretty all day with just one application of the deodorant (instead of needing 2 or three applications of the deodorant throughout the day without the babassu).

Well, to continue, as an experiment for the past few days, I've been applying just the babassu oil/magnesium hydroxide mixture alone to my pits after showering (i.e., without applying any of my store-bought 'natural' deodorant afterwards), and it has been keeping my pits smelling fresh and lovely all day and throughout night with just that one, single application after showering earlier in the day.

In case anyone is wondering, the powered magnesium hydroxide I bought is very fine, and thus far has not been irritating to my pits at all. This is the brand I bought: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GUOWEL8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20 You can also make your own Milk of Magnesia with it for indigestion.


IrishLass

 

[nframe]

Well, after reading this thread, I made a deodorant cream. Here is my recipe:

20g babassu oil
2g zinc oxide
3g arrowroot powder
2 g bicarbonate of soda
0.17g tea tree EO
0.17g lemongrass EO

I added zinc oxide because too much bicarbonate of soda irritates me. The resulting cream is very white (because of the zinc oxide) and it cannot be poured into a deodorant container because it does stiffen enough. I just poured it into a pot. To use, I rub my finger on the cream and spread what I gather on my arm pits. It does not irritate me at all. I don't know whether it would stain clothing white because I do not wear tight-fitting tops. I find that one application in the morning after washing is enough for the day.

 

[dixiedragon]

To those with the arm pit irritation - have you considered waxing your underarms vs shaving? If you've never done it, you're probably cringing! I recommend some Veet wax strips - I get them at Walmart. They aren't as good as a hot wax but they're pretty good. Do each armpit ONCE. If you keep applying it trying to get those last hairs, you will regret it. Trust me. Rub an unscented oil on your armpit - mineral oil or a soaping oil. That will dissolve any remaining wax. Wait a day or two and do it again, if there are any hairs remaining. I used to be pretty bad ingrown hairs and armpit irritation when I shaved, for me waxing is much better.

 

[BattleGnome]

Switching from store bought deodorant to what I use now (MOM and magnesium oil) has seemed to fix the ingrown hairs for me.

(I also get less acne in my shoulders but I think that's more my skin appreciating the switch from commercial soaps)

 

[BeesKnees]

To those with the arm pit irritation - have you considered waxing your underarms vs shaving?

Dixiedragon, I've tried waxing but my skin reacted badly to it. For a while after switching to the natural deodorant I stopped shaving my underarms completely to see if that would improve the situation but it didn't. I'm going to look up babassu oil and magnesium hydroxide from IrishLass's experiment and see about trying that, with the zinc oxide and arrowroot powder to add if the 2 ingredients alone don't work for me.

 

[IrishLass]

For what its worth, I shave my pits every time I shower, and my babassu oil/magnesium hydroxide mixture does not sting me at all.


IrishLass

 

[TeresaT]

So far, I'm still deodorant free. I've been using the babassu and neem oil combo since I made it and I've gotten used to the neem smell. I'm also pretty convinced that the neem combo might be the key for me. The only problem I have is the application. I don't like using my fingers with the neem oil because it seems to stick even with a few washings (although, honestly, I'' probably smelling the residual odor from my pits and not my hands) and the neem makes the babassu feel greasier to me. I'm going to add a bit of DE or rice flour to it the next time to see if that works.

I've given up on shaving. I just don't care anymore. If someone is offended by my hairy legs ir armpits, that's their issue, not mine. I've cut myself once too often to deal with it anymore. I may change my mind again at some point, but for now, I'm going natural. My hair isn't dark, or plentiful, so that's probably a factor in my decision.

 

[Gaisy59]

Defunk the pits

I was able to find this out for myself just these past few days with the magnesium hydroxide powder that I bought off of Amazon last week. Magnesium hydroxide is the same type of magnesium used in Milk of Magnesia (MOM). I added a smidge to my tiny little jar of babassu oil that I keep filled up in the bathroom to aid in deodorizing my pits, and it has been working wonders so far.

Just to remind you of my experiences with the babassu that I wrote about in my earlier posts in this thread: I've normally been applying the babassu to my underarms after showering and right before applying my store-bought natural deodorant, and it's been keeping me smelling pretty all day with just one application of the deodorant (instead of needing 2 or three applications of the deodorant throughout the day without the babassu).

Well, to continue, as an experiment for the past few days, I've been applying just the babassu oil/magnesium hydroxide mixture alone to my pits after showering (i.e., without applying any of my store-bought 'natural' deodorant afterwards), and it has been keeping my pits smelling fresh and lovely all day and throughout night with just that one, single application after showering earlier in the day.

In case anyone is wondering, the powered magnesium hydroxide I bought is very fine, and thus far has not been irritating to my pits at all. This is the brand I bought: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GUOWEL8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20 You can also make your own Milk of Magnesia with it for indigestion.


IrishLass

For what its worth, I shave my pits every time I shower, and my babassu oil/magnesium hydroxide mixture does not sting me at all.


IrishLass

Hi IL was wondering what the proportions are that you use. I have been using coconut oil 1/4 cup, 1/4 cup arrowroot powder and 1 Tbsp baking soda for over a year and the baking soda still burns. I like the idea of switching to the magnesium for my poor pits and i have already purchased the babassu oil to replace the coconut oil.

 

[BattleGnome]

I just saw a recipe that subbed matcha powder (ground green tea) for baking soda. I glossed over the recipe, so I don't know how different it is.

 

[IrishLass]

Hi IL was wondering what the proportions are that you use. I have been using coconut oil 1/4 cup, 1/4 cup arrowroot powder and 1 Tbsp baking soda for over a year and the baking soda still burns. I like the idea of switching to the magnesium for my poor pits and i have already purchased the babassu oil to replace the coconut oil.

Don't laugh, but my measurements at the moment are very tiny, and they are in volume instead of weight. Basically, I'm using 1 teaspoon of babassu oil to 1/16 teaspoon of magnesium hydroxide. I keep the mixture in a mini cosmetics jar made for sample-size solid perfumes or lip balms. Believe it or not, this miniscule amount lasts me about five days before it runs out and needs re-filling.


IrishLass

 

[Gaisy59]

Don't laugh, but my measurements at the moment are very tiny, and they are in volume instead of weight. Basically, I'm using 1 teaspoon of babassu oil to 1/16 teaspoon of magnesium hydroxide. I keep the mixture in a mini cosmetics jar made for sample-size solid perfumes or lip balms. Believe it or not, this miniscule amount lasts me about five days before it runs out and needs re-filling.


IrishLass

Trust me this is serious stuff im not laughing (but i am smiling). Its good to start small so nothing gets wasted. Just an fyi i use the little canning jars from Gem i think it is and they have the standard canning lid which is leak proof and i use that for travelling because when hot the oil melts, and i found cute little white screw on tops from same canning company which i use at home.

Now my next question is where do you get the magnesium hydroxide? I have tried health food stores but all they have are the capsules or liquid but not pure powder. And on a different note do you know where i can get sodium citrate? I was able to buy some from the hospital pharmacy because they use it for dialysis patients but i cant find it from soap supply sites.

And thanks very much for helping out. I love connecting with people who have same interests

 

[BeesKnees]

where do you get the magnesium hydroxide?

::raising hand:: Ooo, ooo, I know an answer!!! I can contribute!! :mrgreen:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GUOWEL8/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

When she recommended it I went straight to my amazon cart to add it. Being a newbie to soapmaking I have zip to contribute to soapmaking discussions so it's nice to be able to answer your question, at least!