If it’s not already clear, I like my beauty essentials in bar form. Body scrub… lotion… if you can shape it into a perfect, portable square, I’m happy, especially if I can make it myself. Over the past few years, one product after the next, my beauty cabinet has been slowly transforming from store-bought to all-natural, (almost) all handmade. But there’s one product on my shelf that I’ve been resistant to switching up: antiperspirant/deodorant.
I’ve dabbled in all-natural deodorant here and there in the past, but I’ll admit that more recently I’ve relied mainly on store-bought antiperspirant. Yes, the kind that’s loaded with harmful chemicals and heavy metals. I know it’s bad for me — I’m of the belief that pretty much anything that prevents your body from performing a natural function is — but I could never find a natural, store-bought deodorant that didn’t leave me feeling, well… gross. But lately I’ve noticed something, even my trusty antiperspirant hasn’t been working that great, maybe it’s a sign? Determined to find a solution, I decided it was time to just make my own, but a lot of the recipes I found simply weren’t that portable and many used coconut oil, a product that I certainly love, but don’t want to risk staining my clothes with.
My solution? The recipe below. These bars are all-natural, easily customizable, highly portable, and most importantly leave my underarms feeling great. Plus they’re full of healthy ingredients, such as bacteria-fighting tea tree oil, moisturizing shea butter, toxin-zapping bentonite clay, and odor-fighting baking soda. Whip up a bar or two for yourself, and be sure to let me know what you think!
All-Natural Deodorant Bars
Materials:
4 tbsp shea butter
1.5 tbsp beeswax
1 tbsp cocoa butter
2 tbsp bentonite clay
1 tbsp baking soda
10-2o drops tea tree oil
10 drops lavender essential oil (or other favorite oil)
Soap mold
glass bowl or jar (microwave/heat safe)
Combine the shea butter, beeswax, and cocoa butter in the glass bowl or jar. To melt it down, you can either place it in the microwave for 1-3 minutes or, if using a jar, create a double boiler on the stove top by nesting the jar in a pot that has been partially filled with water. Heat until oils are melted and fully dissolved. Add the tea tree oil and your essential oil of choice and mix.
In a separate dish, mix together the baking soda and bentonite clay, then pour into the oil mixture and stir until combined.
Pour the liquid into the soap mold. You can use any shape you like – I chose a rectangle so I could easily store the bar in a travel soap box and toss it in my gym bag. Allow to cool completely before popping it out of the mold.
Store in a cool, dark place. This shouldn’t melt too easily, but it does get soft in higher temperatures. For now it’s fine in my medicine cabinet, but when the summer heat strikes, I’ll be sticking this in the fridge. I wrapped my bars in brown paper to create a little sleeve to hold them with.
Recipe notes:
+ Bentonite clay can irritate sensitive skin. If you’ve never used it before, do a patch test on the inside of your arm by mixing a dab of clay with a few drops of water and applying. If it doesn’t irritate your skin, you should be good to go!
+ If you’re sensitive to bentonite clay, try substituting arrowroot powder.
+ You can also pour this into a recycled deodorant container. Simply allow the oil and clay mixture to cool until it’s soft, but not completely liquefied, then pour into a clean, dry plastic deodorant container and allow to cool completely.
+ Have you made your own deodorant before? Share your tips & tricks in the comments!
Check out Brigette’s all-natural recipe
More natural beauty DIYs from the BLDG 25 blog
Love it! I will switch it to lemongrass oil, thanks for the tip!
http://www.safran-bolu.com
I’d love to try this. I’ve never found a store bought deodorant that I was completely satisfied with. They all just smell sickly sweet and sweaty by the end of the day. A few years ago my mom bought me an aluminum-free stick, but it felt so slimy against my skin and didn’t work at all. This sounds like it would smell lovely, though.
this recipe is genius! can’t wait to try it! Is there an alternative to beeswax?
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Maybe you could try candelilla wax. It’s the vegan option. It’s harder than beeswax, but I’m think of trying a recipe batch with each.
Love the thought of this and would adore to try it – but time is such a hard thing to come across these days!
Warm Regards,
Alexandra
http://www.littlewildheart.com
I’m intrigued. I have been on a long search for the perfect all natural deodorant. I will buy the ingredients and give it a go!
Wow, an amazing recipe and they look so great! Just what I was looking for and will definitely be gifting these to my female friends who are searching for natural deodorant ;)
Regards, Kiki
Natural beauty & health blog
I’m down to try this. I noticed antiperspirant actually made me sweat more so I switched to Lush Aromatico… I’m so much drier! But Lush is expensive and it’s not like you can go in and only buy one item! I can’t wait to try making my own!
Awesome! I’ve been on a DIY beauty product kick myself, in fact I just blogged about homemade blush and bronzer! I never thought to try making my own deodarant but looks like I will add it to my to do list.
Thanks for a lovely post as always!
xo katie a. // http://bluepoppyblog.com
Nice tutorial. This is way cheaper than going to lush and buying those soap bars. They also make good gifts.
I’d love to try this!
Great photos, thank you for sharing
Claudia, http://stylechezmoi.com XX
I sweat sooo much and have to wonder how well this would work at stopping sweating? I’m sure it would smell amazing and feel great but I hate being sweaty.
wow definitely going to try this, ive been looking for a good diy natural deodorant recipe for a while, Thanks!
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How interesting! I had no idea you could do this. It’s a great gift idea.
That looks so cute :)
How do you apply it ? It is soft enough to leave a trace on your skin ? For me Alun stone works miracles, I’ve been using it for two years now and except if I have a tight top, no smell at the end of the day ! :) (I don’t care about sweating, but I don’t want to smell sweat)
Kyra – Because this is a deodorant and not an antiperspirant, it won’t make you stop sweating, but it will deodorize (the tea tree oil kills the bacteria that causes the smell). Unfortunately there’s not way to make antiperspirant without the use of heavy metals and chemicals.
Youna – you apply it as you would a store-bought stick. I’ve been using it daily and no stink!
Kristen – The beeswax is what binds the bars together. You could omit, but you’ll end up with more of a liquid/paste.
I’ve been making my own deodorant a few years now and it’s so much better than any of the store bought ones. I make mine with bicarbonate of soda, corn starch, coconut oil, grapeseed oil and patchouli oil. It smells lovely and I only need to make a pot once every 3 months and it really works. The only thing is it doesn’t stop you perspiring, it just stops it from smelling.
Did you add a dye to the mixtures? If so, which ones and when did you add it to the mixture? Thanks! :)
I just made this and I’m really happy with it! It was a hot and humid day yesterday and still the deodorant was effective. So easy. I used a small popsicle mould that gave just the right shape. Thank you so much for this fab recipe :)
Seaaflower – no dyes were used, the greenish color is from the bentonite clay powder.
Jo – I’m so glad you liked the recipe!
Nice recipe; I;ve always been a little skeptical about making my own but it looks like a lot of people have had success with this recipe!
xoxo~~Haley
http://www.wolvesinsnowsuits.tumblr.com
We absolutely love this idea, especially since we can relate to having sensitive skin! We love the all natural recipe.
Thanks for sharing! I’ve been making the coconut / cornstarch / baking soda deodorant for some time but definitely going to give this a try. Do you think using 5 tbsp of cocoa butter in place of shea would come out the same consistency?
I’m so glad I came across this! I’ve been trying to switch to all natural and organic products and deodorant has been a tricky one for sure. I’ve been using the crystal deodorant but I don’t feel like it’s doing anything. I look forward to trying this, thanks for sharing!