I’m back with another zero waste, DIY recipe! Today, I’m going to explain why and how I make my DIY zero waste, vegan lotion. Let’s get started!
Why:
In 2017, I began to transition all of my beauty products to natural alternatives. This included my shampoo, conditioner, makeup, chapstick, and lotion. I was shocked at the amount of toxic ingredients that are in big name products that consumers trust and use every day. These ingredients include diazolidinyl urea which has carcinogenic properties and causes dermatitis, parabens which possess estrogen-mimicking properties and have been associated with increased breast cancer, and fragrances which are not required to be clearly labeled and can include harmful toxins which cause respiratory problems and endocrine disruption. These ingredients are common ingredients in typical lotion products such as Bath and Body Works, Aveeno, and Cetaphil. For more information on these toxins and common products that include them, check out this article. Additionally, most of these products come in plastic packaging which ends up in landfills and oceans further degrading our planet.
Now that we’ve talked about the negative aspects of typical lotion products, it’s time to make your own zero waste, vegan lotion!
What You’ll Need:
- 1/2 Cup of Coconut Oil
- 1 Cup of Shea Butter
- 5 Drops of Vitamin E Oil (optional)
- 10-15 Drops of Essential Oil of Your Choice (I use vanilla because it smells nice and has great benefits for your skin!)
- Medium glass jar or repurposed container for your product
Instructions:
- Combine the coconut oil and shea butter into a blender.
- Add vitamin E oil and essential oil.
- Blend until you have a whipped consistency.
- Transfer to your container.
Notes:
- If the lotion begins to lose its whipped consistency, simply transfer to the fridge and it’s good to go! This may happen if the weather is warm or you store the lotion in a warm room.
- You only need to use a fraction of this lotion as compared with traditional lotion.
- If possible, try to buy the ingredients in bulk or a glass jar as glass supports a circular economy.
Love this! I have all this ingredients so I will have to try this!
This is great! I will be making this soon 🙂 Do you use this on your face as well? My twenties have proven to be worse for me acne-wise than my teenage years, so I'm always a little nervous about trying new things on my face. Nevertheless, this will be a marvelous body lotion!!