Thursday April 30, 2015 - My Homemade Skincare Lotion

I am into homemade remedies.

I got this hobby from my father's mother. She was born in Texas in 1902 and made the best food from scratch. I remember she use to make soap, toothpaste and medicines.

We, the grand children use to laugh at her because she reminded us of Granny from the Beverly Hillbillies.

When I went to college, in 1974, I tried making some of her soap and medicines. I was not that good at it. The soap made me breakout. I never told her or anyone else about it because that was woman's work.

I use to wish I could sit by her in the kitchen and learn. But I was told to go outside and play.

Over the past six months, I came up with my own skin care lotion. I have talked about using it in the past, but today, I had to make another batch, so I decided to give directions on how I make it.

I make an 8 oz batch of lotion that I use on my face and hands. The picture on the left is what it will look like when I am finished. Because it has a coconut oil based, it is liquid when warm and solid when cold.

I use a small 8 oz plastic bottle with a squeeze top. The bottle will squeeze slightly, but when the lotion is in solid form, it can be very hard to get out. Especially when the bottle is almost empty.

My lotion is made of Coconut Oil, Caster Oil, Olive Oil, Lavender and Tea Tree Oil.

The Coconut Oil and Caster Oil are the main ingredients of the lotion.

The Olive Oil, Lavender and Tea Tree Oil are used in smaller amounts.

I use the following items to make my lotion. I have a measuring cup, a small glass cup for warming the Coconut Oil in the microwave, in case its in a solid state.

I have a funnel to pour the ingredients in the bottle. Finally, I have three measuring utensils: 1 teaspoon (not shown), 1 tablespoon, 1/4 cup and 1/2 cup

The two major ingredients are measured first.

I use 5 tablespoons of Coconut oil. Coconut oil gives your skin a nice smooth feel and assists in hair growth. I use it on my eyebrows and eyelashes to strengthen them and help them grow. If its in a solid state, I put it in the glass cup and microwave it for 40 seconds or until its liquid but warm and hot.

The major problem with Coconut Oil, is the smell. I do not want to spell like Coconut Oil all day.

I pour the warm Coconut Oil in the bottle. Then I add 3 tablespoons of Castor Oil into the bottle. The Castor Oil is good for hair and skin care.

Now, I move to the small ingredients. I add 2 teaspoons of Olive Oil. Olive Oil is good for the skin and appears to have many healing properties. So I decided to add  a little in my lotion.

Lavender is used in a small about, 1/2 teaspoon to improve the smell of the lotion and it has been known to have estrogenic properties. I doubt I am taking enough to have much affect, but I decided to add it for both smell and possible transgender properties.

I add 10 drops of Tea Tree Oil for the same reason I added Lavender. Both its smell and estrogenic properties.

Once mixture is complete, I shake it for about 1 minute and then let it sit. It will usually solidify during day. However, in the Hotlanta summers, it will stay in liquid form.

I use this lotion with both my morning and evening body care routine. In my daily routine, I include Vitamin E separately, which is why I did not add it in this lotion.