Bath and Body Recipes

Wonderfully luxurious bath and body skin care products are incredibly easy to make right at home in your own kitchen....and if you're already making homemade soaps, you probably have most of the ingredients you need!

If you're hooked on bath and body products like my daughter and I are, then you know how expensive it can get buying lotions, body butters, scrubs, lip balms, perfumes and body sprays.

Below are a few simple recipes that you can tailor to meet your specific skin care needs without busting the beauty budget.

Creamy Body Mousse

This has got to be my favorite bath and body moisturising product. Smooth, silky and ooohhh, so creamy. So far it is the least greasy feeling handmade lotion/cream I have ever used.

Since this is a water based cream, you must use a preservative. I recommend using Optiphen Plus because it is paraben and urea free and has been approved world wide.

34 grams Shea Butter

20 grams Camellia Tea Seed Oil (other alternatives would be apricot kernel, hempseed or more grapeseed oil)

20 grams Herb infused Grapeseed Oil (the infusion is optional..I use calendula petals)

12 grams Vegetable Glycerin

24 grams Conditioning Emulsifier (Incroquat Behenyl TMS-50 - it's derived from rapeseed oil)

18 grams Stearic Acid

350 grams Distilled Water (I replace 35 grams of water with pure aloe gel)

2 grams Vitamin E

5 grams Optiphen Plus

Essential or Fragrance Oil

• Measure out water, shea butter, camellia and grapeseed oils, stearic, glycerin, aloe (if using) and the emulsifier. 
  
  
• Place in 4 cup plastic measuring cup and microwave in 20 second bursts until the emulsifier pellets have melted. 
  
  
• Using your stick blender, carefully pulse blend mixture until it is thick and creamy....this may take awhile. As the cream cools, it will thicken. 
  
  
• Once the cream is below 140 degrees F / 60 degrees C, you can add the Vitamin E, Optiphen Plus and the essential/fragrance oils. It is important to wait for the cream to cool before adding these ingredients...the scent will evaporate and the preservatives won't work if you ignore this rule.
  
  
• Spoon into jars and seal when cool.

Whipped Shea Butter

Whipped Shea butter is a dream come true for your skin. This bath and body product resembles thick whipped cream, is light and fluffy, and will absorb into your skin quite quickly.

I find the best way to use it is to apply a small amount after a hot shower. Your skin is hydrated and the oils help to lock in the moisture.

1/2 Cup Shea Butter

1/3 Cup Carrier Oil (sweet almond, apricot kernel, avocado, hemp seed, hazelnut, camellia, evening primrose, borage, or olive oil infused with calendula or chamomile are all good choices)

1/8 tsp Rosemary Extract or Vitamin E oil (optional but will help to prolong the life of the oils)

1 tsp Corn Starch (optional - makes the butter feel less greasy)

Essential or Fragrance oil (optional)

• Place the Shea butter in a mixing bowl and begin to beat with a stand mixer or electric hand mixer until the butter is creamy. 
  
  
• Have patience...it may take awhile for the friction of the beaters to soften the butter. 
  
  
• If the butter is too hard, soften slightly in the microwave for about 15 seconds but do not melt. 
  
  
• Gradually add the carrier oil a small amount at a time and blend completely between additions. This is important or you will get lumpy butter.
  
  
• If you are adding Rosemary Extract or Vitamin E oil add it now. 
  
  
• Blend in the cornstarch and then the fragrance or essential oil.
  
  
• Mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated and spoon into a wide mouth jar.

Whipped Shea Butter Body Scrub

Whipped Shea butter body scrub is exactly the same as the Whipped Shea Butter above but with the added benefit of a scrub to provide exfoliating action in the shower.

This bath and body product is meant for use IN the shower rather than after. Rub onto the skin and gently massage in with circular motions. Rinse off and pat dry with a towel.

1/2 Cup Shea Butter

1/3 Cup Carrier Oil (sweet almond, apricot kernel, avocado, hemp seed, hazelnut, camellia, evening primrose, borage, or olive oil infused with calendula or chamomile are all good choices)

1/8 tsp Rosemary Extract or Vitamin E oil (optional but will help to prolong the life of the oils)

1 tsp Corn Starch (optional...makes the butter feel less greasy)

Essential or Fragrance oil (optional)

1/2 - 1 Cup sugar (other choices include salt, finely ground nuts, coffee grounds...anything that provides a gentle scrub)

• Place the Shea butter in a mixing bowl and begin to beat with a stand mixer or electric hand mixer until the butter is creamy. 
  
  
• Have patience...it may take awhile for the friction of the beaters to soften the butter. 
  
  
• If the butter is too hard, soften slightly in the microwave for about 15 seconds but do not melt. 
  
  
• Gradually add the carrier oil a small amount at a time and blend completely between additions. This is important or you will get lumpy butter.
  
  
• If you are adding Rosemary Extract or Vitamin E oil add it now. 
  
  
• Blend in the cornstarch and then the fragrance or essential oil.
  
  
• Slowly start to mix in the sugar a little at a time until you achieve the desired consistancy. 
  
  
• Spoon into a couple of wide mouth jars.

Body Balm/Salve

Chapped hands and feet are an unpleasant fact of life for many people. Body balms and salves are great bath and body products that help heal and comfort those poor cracked appendages.

Adding healing herbs to this bath and body recipe may help to soothe your skin.

Some excellent herbs to try are Calendula, Comfrey, Plantain, Chamomile, Lavender and St. John's Wort.

1 Tablespoon Beeswax beads (for a vegan version try carnauba or candelilla wax)

4 Tablespoons Shea Butter (or try Mango Butter, Avocado Butter or even Pumpkin Butter...all have great skin care properties)

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, infused with herbs (or substitute in oils like Camellia, Borage, Rosehip, etc.)

1/8 - 1/4 tsp essential oil

• Gently melt all ingredients together on low heat. 
  
  
• Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. 
  
  
• Add your essential oils and mix well. 
  
  
• To get the maximum healing effects, try to pick essential oils that will benefit your skins needs. Some good choices are: Bergamot, Chamomile, Lavender, Rose, Patchouli, Rose Geranium and Rosewood. 
  
  
• Pour the mixture into a sterilized jar and allow to cool completely. This recipe will make about 1/2 Cup of balm.

Lip Balm

Here is a great bath and body recipe for keeping your lips soft and smooth. This recipe is also versatile because you can mix and match your oils to create your own specialty lip balm.

One thing to note...these recipes do not contain sweeteners as some lip balms do. Sweeteners tend to make you to lick your lips, which can cause your lips to chap. Kind of defeats the purpose of using lip balm. :)

1 tsp. Beeswax beads (for a vegan version try carnauba or candelilla wax)

2 tsp. Shea Butter (or try Mango Butter, Avocado Butter, Cocoa Butter, Pumpkin Butter, etc.)

1 tsp. Carrier Oil (try Olive, Sweet Almond, Avocado, Apricot, Camellia, Borage, Rosehip, etc.)

up to 1/8 tsp. lip safe flavor oil

• Gently melt all ingredients together on low heat. 
  
  
• Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. 
  
  
• Add flavour oil and mix well. 
  
  
• Pour into lip balm tubes or pots. 
  
  
• This recipe will make about 3 - 4 tubes or 2 pots of lip balm.

Body Spray

Body Sprays provide a wonderful boost of freshness without being overpowering. This bath and body recipe also contains soothing aloe vera.

1 Tablespoon Aloe Vera Gel

1 Tablespoon Witch Hazel/Vodka/Ethanol

4 Tablespoons Floral Water/Hydrosol or distilled water

1 tsp. Vegetable Glycerin

1/4 - 1/2 tsp. essential or fragrance oil

Combine all ingredients in a fine mist sprayer and shake before each use. Store in a cool dark location for optimum shelf life. Makes enough for a 100 ml. bottle.

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