Good lotion recipe?

[Beccah]

Maybe I'm a little too picky, but I am having a hard time finding a good hand lotion recipe. Does anyone have one they would be willing to share?

I would like to find one that doesn't call for palm oil or stearic acid (for my own tree hugging reasons), and I will be gifting them to people with sensitive skin, so no crazy or overly chemical ingredients. Also, I don't want one that feels greasy or leaves a greasy skim on the hands.

I also don't want a recipe with a hundred and one ingredients, as I don't have enough money to front for a lot of things. I have beeswax, shea butter, coco butter, coconut oil, sweet almond oil, and olive oil on hand. I will have to buy e-wax, vitamin E, and a good preservative (does anyone have a favorite preservative?).

I wish I had enough experience to create my own recipes, but as I've never even made lotion before, I wouldn't know where to start.

Thanks!

 

[ToniD]

Google swiftcraftymonkey, blog point of intrest. You will find amazing riches of lotion recipes, along with good instructions on how. To make lotions.


I made one of hers a few weeks ago with Shea and almond oil and I really liked it.

 

[kharmon320]

I second ToniD's recommendation. I purchased her (swiftcraftymonkey) e-book on lotionmaking and love it. Tons of recipes to play with (especially for limited ingredients).

I would say that if you will be purchasing the e-wax, consider also getting BTMS and cetyl alcohol. I could kick myself for not buying them all together. The first lotion I made I used the stearic acid as a thickener, but then wanted to compare vs. cetyl alcohol. Definitely read her blog as it describes the various properties of ingredients. The recipe I used is from the e-book so it's not mine to share.

 

[ToniD]

I have the ebook too, and really like it. I think everything in it is in the blog, but so nice to be in an easy to find format. Also I highlight and take notes in the margins.

BTW, Becccah, you also asked about preservatives and swiftcraftymonkey has lots of info on preservatives as well.

 

[sandman_max]

Also check out MMS's blog (http://blog.thesage.com/). They've got tons of quick lotion recipes. Just heat everything up in a double-boiler or microwave. Tina claims that all the heat and hold is totally unnecessary and over-complicates things. All my recipes came from there and they've all worked wonderfully. They'll also formulate a recipe for you if you give them a list of the ingredients you have and would like to use.

As for a preservative, I really like Optiphen since it's paraben free.

 

[Beccah]

Thank you, everyone! I will definitely check out those resources.

 

[IrishLass]

Also check out MMS's blog (http://blog.thesage.com/). They've got tons of quick lotion recipes. Just heat everything up in a double-boiler or microwave. Tina claims that all the heat and hold is totally unnecessary and over-complicates things.

I love MMS, but I disagree with them on this point. Here is why:

http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2 ... tions.html


IrishLass

 

[AndreaBianchi]

Hello...
Also what kind of scale did you use? and which weight measurement? How did you mix the lotion? high shear or low speed mixing? If the only issue is the consistency, you could try dereasing the water amount and/or try adding a thickener like stearic acid or cetyl alcohol.

Cheers!!
Andrea