Snow flurries, hot cocoa, and dry skin. It’s all part of our winter wonderland this season. Home heating and chilly temperatures make for very dry environments, depleting our skin of moisture and leaving us itchy, chapped, and uncomfortable. While a bottle of lotion or tube of lip balm is only a short shopping trip away, making simple homemade moisturizers is a great way to learn a new skill and create a healthy skin care product with ingredients you use in your kitchen daily.
Coconut Oil Homemade Moisturizer
Coconut oil is one of my favorite homemade moisturizers, requiring no prep work. I simply scoop a small amount (about 1/4 teaspoon) and rub it between my hands to soften it. Apply a very thin layer to dry skin or lips, and get almost instant relief. Our family has used coconut oil as an after-bathing moisturizer, and to help combat dry, cracked skin that has been too long neglected.
Coconut oil provides a non-greasy finish and gives relief without an itching sensation commonly experienced when using store-bought moisturizers. Be careful not to over apply coconut oil or you may risk staining your clothing. A fine, thin application is all that is required. Coconut oil is also comedogenic, meaning it can cause breakouts, so use very sparingly on facial skin and other trouble spots.
Shea Butter & Jojoba Oil Moisturizer
Another fast favorite of mine is a recipe based on shea butter and jojoba oil. This recipe requires very little prep, is simple, clean, and nourishing to dry skin.
Heat one cup of shea butter and three tablespoons of jojoba oil over very low heat until just melted, whisking until combined. Cool this mixture until solid, and then whip it with either your whisk attachment on your mixer or a hand whisk until it looks smooth and buttery. This base moisturizer takes essential oils well, making it great to customize with your favorite scent. When working with essential oils, less is more, especially if you intend to use this moisturizer on your face.
Homemade Lip Moisturizer
Shall we talk lip moisturizer? Absolutely! Lip moisturizer is one of my winter essentials, and making it at home is simple.
Using a double boiler, or heat-proof glass bowl and pot, I melt one cup of beeswax and one-half cup of coconut oil together. Once melted, remove the base from the heat and add a few drops of essential oil if desired. I have made this recipe both with and without the essential oil, and found that I enjoyed it equally either way. While still in liquid form, pour the mixture into lip balm tubes or tins, and allow to cool until solid. I reuse chamomile tea tins. All natural, healthy, and eco-friendly!
While these recipes are favorites for both ease of production and for moisturizing ability, they are also highly customizable to your family’s needs. Making the perfect homemade moisturizers might require a little experimentation with the ratio of oils, but the results are well worth the effort. Smooth, supple skin kept healthy with all natural ingredients, crafted in your own kitchen.
Mimi Mason is a homemaker, homeschooler, and micro homesteader. She chronicles her family’s experiences with sustainable living on her blog, The Simple Survivalist. When she’s not elbow-deep in garden soil and bread dough, she can be found hidden behind the pages of a good book.
Between outside chores and indoor chores my hands suffer horribly. I have tried everything over the counter and nothing works! I am going to be making my own using the shea butter and jojoba oil, I have high hopes it will solve my problem!