You are here:Home Health Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

54 Comments

homemade shaving soap recipes natural organic Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

At my house, we make almost all of our own toiletries, including deodorant and toothpaste. I’d read plenty to convince me that conventional shaving soaps were relatively toxic, but for a long time, I just used natural bar soap instead. (I recommend these!)

Bar soaps, especially handcrafted ones, do work great, but I’ve discovered a few improvements along the way and wanted to pass them on to anyone who wants to go beyond plain soap.

homemade foaming shave soap recipe Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

Foaming Shave Soap Recipe

This is the shave soap I use most often in the shower because it is easy, inexpensive and works great. Some men may find it harsh on the face due to the high liquid castille content.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup Natural Aloe Vera Gel (not juice!)
  • 1/4 cup Liquid Castille Soap
  • 1 TBSP Olive or Almond Oil
  • 1/4 cup warm Distilled Water (or lavender infused)
  • Vitamin E or Grapefruit Seed Extract (to preserve)
  • Essential Oils for Fragrance (optional) – I use lavender
  • 8 ounce or larger Foaming Soap Bottle

How To Make It:

  1. Mix ingredients in foamer bottle and shake gently until mixed.
  2. Shake well before each use.

This recipe will last a couple of months (I use up within about 2 months, so I don’t know beyond that). I don’t recommend citrus oils if you are going to be in the sun, since they increase sun sensitivity.

homemade shave cream organic natural recipe Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

Shave Cream Recipe

I don’t use this recipe as often, and more in the winter for extra moisturizing, but it makes a rich, creamy lather and works really well. This one is also better for men’s faces, as it is more gentle than the above recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup olive, almond or coconut oil
  • 2-3 TBSP Shea or Cocoa Butter
  • 1/4 cup Aloe Gel or Honey
  • 1 TBSP Kaolin clay or white cosmetic clay (optional)
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 cup Liquid Castille Soap
  • Vitamin E or GSE (to preserve)

To Make:

  1. Melt the oil and shea/cocoa butter in a double boiler until just melted.
  2. Remove from heat and add other ingredients
  3. Whisk or blend well for several minutes
  4. Transfer to jar or container to store
  5. Check while it is cooling to make sure it doesn’t start to separate. If it does, shake or mix well to re-incorporate.
  6. Lasts up to two months (not sure about longer)

how to make your own shaving soap naturlaly Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

Natural Bar Shave Soap Recipe

If you don’t happen to have all these extra ingredients on hand, this is any easy way to modify a regular bar soap to make it more shave-friendly. It is a little time consuming, but these bar soaps last a long time and are great for making shave mugs if the men in your life happen to use shave mugs and brushes.

Ingredients:

How to Make It:

  1. Grate soap and on low heat, melt soap down with oil or aloe vera. It will take a while, so be patient and stir often
  2. Once melted, stir in the cosmetic clay (this makes a richer lather and is great for the skin)
  3. Pour into molds (I use cardboard) or old mugs and let set for several days until it re-hardens. Will last months and will cure more over time, making it longer lasting. homemade shaving soap Homemade Shaving Soap Recipes

Ever made your own shave soap? Still use the toxic aerosol stuff? If you like this recipe, check out these other homemade beauty recipes:

 

 

Natural Homemade Substitutes for Conventional Beauty Products
Seven Natural Remedies you Already Have at Home
Seven Natural Beauty Tricks From Your Kitchen
Make Your Own Natural Deodorant With This Simple Recipe
UPDATE: Remineralizing Toothpaste Recipe!
Natural Homemade Sunscreen Recipe
Natural Bug Spray Recipes that Work

pf print icon Homemade Shaving Soap RecipesPrint pf pdf icon Homemade Shaving Soap RecipesPDF
Filed Under: Health

Related Posts

Like What You Read?

Sign up for exclusive Wellness Mama updates to get my newsletter, coupon codes, & bonuses emailed FREE! (No spam ever, I promise!)

About Wellness Mama

Wellness Mama is a full-time housewife with a background in nutrition, journalism and communications. Her passion is helping others achieve optimal health through a “Wellness Lifestyle.” She has helped hundreds of clients lose weight, increase athletic performance, improve fertility, and overcome numerous health problems and diseases. Connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, & Pinterest.

Disclaimer: Many of the links on my site, especially those from Amazon, Mountain Rose Herbs, Tropical Traditions and OraWellness are affiliate links. Should you click on these links and decide to purchase anything, I will receive a small commission and you will have my sincere thanks for supporting Wellness Mama!

DISCLAIMER: The statements made here have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. These statements are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure or prevent any disease. This notice is required by the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

  • Karyn

    I’ve been switching to homemade as we use up our conventional toiletries and have been relying on your recipes :)   so this was timely. I had actually started to wonder if coconut oil by itself would work or do you think it would get too gummed up? Thanks again for another helpful post!

  • HRichards

    Hi, I’ve tried your foaming shave soap and loved it! I now use nothing else! However, I made the shave cream for my husband, who has sensitive skin, but he has still experienced burning…any suggestions on how to tweak this recipe for sensitive skin?? Thanks for all your help!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Try omitting the baking soda and using natural bar soap melted in water in place of the liquid castille soap in the recipe. you could also sub in arrowroot instead of the baking soda, though leaving it out should be ok too.

  • Lyndsey

    I’m wanting to make the Natural Bar Shave Soap for my grandpa for Christmas.  Where can I buy any of the clay that I would need for the recipe?

  • Bill

    How much GSE do you use for the above recipe?

  • Jillian Westfall

    I’ve just whipped up the shave cream batter and am so excited to try it.  I tried another recipe from pinterest without success, way to runny.  I used almost half the bottle to shave my legs and it still all ran off.  This is now in the process of cooling and I can tell it’s going to be a much thicker lather!  The only nice thing for the other recipe was that my legs were SMOOTH!! 

  • Pingback: Herbal Gifts for Dad! « The Mountain Rose Blog

  • Chicana621

    I am making shaving soap as a gift for Father’s day. I am in the process of gathering my ingredients. Initially I had some trouble finding the right place to purchase clay but finally stumbled across Texas Natural Supply; they are my new favorite website.  I am not sure home much soap to use; how many ounces of bar soap did you use to make the Natural Bar Shave Soap? Handcrafted soaps range in size from 3.5-5oz. 
    thanks for this recipe and for your response, 
    Danette (Austin, TX)

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    About four ounces. Great idea for Father’s Day!

  • Pingback: Shaving Options for Men- Homemade and Natural | Wellness Mama

  • Loretta e

    I made the shave cream recipe last night for my hubby and he said he got the closest shave ever! You also inspired him to switch to a safety razor which he found at an antique store for $6! I used coconut oil, cocoa butter, honey, baking soda, Dr Bronners, and grape seed extract. I will be using this from now on!

  • Mmdemeritt

    How much vitamin E or GSE do you use per batch?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    about 1/2 tsp.

  • Katief29

    How does the bar soap work? Do you lather it in your hands and then put it on your body, or do you just rub it straight onto where you’re going to shave? I’ve never used anything like that before!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Just lather right where you are going to shave…

  • Jen

    I tried making the shave cream & left out the clay because I don’t have any, this ended up becoming more of a gel than a cream. It still worked well but I’d rather have the cream, is there another substitute for the clay?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Arrowroot might work if you have it…

  • Beth

    Where do you buy your ingredients? I’ve been looking online, but I’m having a hard time discerning the quality of the products.

  • Christy

    If melting a homemade bar, how long is ‘a while’? I’m up to an hour with no sign of melting yet. =(

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    It should melt quickly, what are the ingredients in your particular bar.

  • http://twitter.com/NeedsMusts NeedsMusts

    My shaving cream came out too runny. Can I still salvage it? I used the clay and the baking soda. Not sure what went wrong. Do I need to use an electric blender? Any tips would be incredibly helpful. Thank you.

  • http://twitter.com/NeedsMusts NeedsMusts

    I’m sorry if there is a repeat. I have no idea how to add to the discussion. Made several attempts and my message keeps disappearing. My shave cream came out too runny. Not sure why. Any tips? Do I have to use an electric blender? Not enough Shea Butter? I eyeballed measure. I just want to salvage what I made – correction: what I attempted to make! :)

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    An electric blender might help, or you could try adding more clay to thicken

  • http://twitter.com/NeedsMusts NeedsMusts

    That means it’s not too late. It’s currently in a mason jar and cooled. Should I decant it and try again. I don’t have an electric mixer but I would be willing to go get one tomorrow. Will that be too late? Thanks so much for the quit reply! And I see now that there was indeed a repeat! I’ll try to delete one. Apologies in advance if I am unsuccessful. Cheers, Wellness Mama!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    You could even try whisking in more clay before you get the electric blender so that you don’t have to get one unnecessarily. Another thing to remember with the clay is that it will continue to thicken after you add it, so even if it isn’t perfectly smooth at the beginning, it will get smoother as it rehydrates.

  • http://twitter.com/NeedsMusts NeedsMusts

    Thank you, Wellness Mama. I did as you suggested and it worked. It isn’t as thick as the one in your pic but much improved. I even gave it a test run. And so far, I’m very pleased. Looking forward to the next batch! Thank you for sharing the recipe with us all.

  • Brandi

    I would add in Castor Oil….it is a natural anti-inflammatory and cleanser. The chemical makeup of Castor Oil allows it to penetrate deep into the layers of the skin. I use Castor oil and olive oil mix as a face wash. It is awesome. The Castor oil can actually dry out the skin. My mix is about 85% olive oil (unrefined organic first cold pressed of course) and 15% Castor oil. (to try it I mixed it up in a kids medicine cup .5tsp castor to 3.5tsp olive oil which makes up the 4tsp cup) Even then I have to use additional Olive oil on the spots I have some eczema or it would still be too drying. My boyfriend already uses this to shave and loves it. He uses a 5050 mix because his face is naturally oily. I know this probably sounds crazy to wash your face with oil but it is incredible. I’m not sure if this site includes the Oil Cleansing Method or OCM in it’s recipes because I haven’t gone through the whole site yet but if not WOW it’s a must try. For this to have maximum effectiveness you must steam the face. Steaming should be done anyway to open up the pores before washing or shaving. It only requires a wet rag rung out from hot water and placed on the face….probably do it a couple times. If just washing then use the mixture and rub all over face for about a minute to really get it saturated, then steam a couple times and gently wipe face of excess oil and steam again a couple times. One more gentle wipe over and that’s it. Rub and remaining oil into face….I could tell right away that the 80% EVOO to 20% Castor I tried originally was too drying right away. My mouth area and chin felt really dry and like my face would crack if I smiled. So I rubbed in some EVOO to remoisturize. To close pores of free radicals in the air after cleansing a few splashes of the coldest water you can stand would work. If you can’t OCM everyday then the ratio is not right for your skin. I also use microfiber rags instead of terry. It’s not so bad if you were washing your face in cold water but when steaming it hurts. I just bought a 2 pack in the automotive area because they are used to wash cars and cut each one into 4 lol.

    Back to shaving, med should steam first always anyway. I’d also heat the shave cream in warm water bath or the like to aide in effectiveness. Apply cream, shave….it usually helps to have a cup with soapy water to vigorously “swish” the razor in because the oils can clog the blade up pretty quickly so a few swishes are needed regularly. This could also be used for women, I use oil myself, and the swishing still needed lol. After the shave is complete use a little more of the CastorEVOO mix and rub in the face and proceed to steam away. My BF is of Syrian descent and as you can imagine he has thick hair and also shaves his head. Good shaving creams and habits are a MUST. He approves of the OCM for shaving and facial cleansing.

    If you are curious about WHY cleansing with oils would actually be beneficially and not magnify acne issues please read about it here…. http://www.theoilcleansingmethod.com/ Mainstream would have you believe a lot of lies. This includes the food industry as well which is a completely different rant lol so it’s up to us to expose the real truth in healthy living as a whole.

  • Muffy

    What brand of vitamin E oil do you use?

  • Mindy

    Thanks for the recipe! I have recently started using an all natural bar soap instead of shaving cream, and was trying to decide what I would use when the bar ran out. I plan to make your shaving bar. But I have a question. Would bentonite clay work instead of the costmetic clay, or is that something very different? Thanks in advance for any help you can give me. :-)

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Bentonite should work well too…

  • Leigh

    This may be an odd question. I want to make a sensory box for my baby/toddler and they recommend using shaving cream in a lot of them (messy!) but I don’t want him getting into those chemicals. Would this be something I’d use for that. Any ideas?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    You could use homemade whipped cream maybe? Then if he ate it, it would be fine too… Warmly
    Katie

  • Leigh

    That is such a better idea! I knew you’d know. :) Thanks!

  • Pingback: Homemade Gifts for Men «

  • Pingback: Last-Minute, Homemade Christmas Gifts «

  • Beth

    I just tried to make a batch of the shave cream and it came out very thin. I quadrupled the recipe that you gave and followed the instructions exactly. Any thoughts on what could have gone wrong and how I can fix it? I have three tubs of thin shaving liquid!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Adding more clay or cocoa butter will both help thicken it….

  • Beth

    At this point I’ve added almost three times as much coco and shea butter as the recipe calls for and it’s still not as thick as the photo is. I think I’m just going to bottle it and use it as a lotion, but I wish I could figure out where I went wrong! Thanks and Merry Christmas.

  • Pingback: A Crunchy Christmas « Crunchy Hot Mama

  • http://www.facebook.com/riley.osborne.1 Riley Osborne

    On the shave bar do you use glycerin or lye soap? Or does it really matter?

  • http://www.facebook.com/julia.sanchezharris Julia Sanchez-Harris

    I just made the shave cream for my husband. It came out perfect!! I can’t wait for him to try it :)

  • http://twitter.com/whsmith Will Smith

    I have been shaving with a brush and double-edge razor for 2+ years and find it helpful, with a bar type soap to lather into your hand. I’ve also known people to lather right on their face since that’s where you want all the soap to end up anyway.

  • Pingback: Prep Updates 02/07/13 | Prepper-Resources.com - The Ultimate Prepper & Survivalist Blog.

  • Pingback: Homemade Natural Beauty Products - 7 Ingredients and 20+ recipes | Wellness Mama

  • Pingback: Wellness Challenge Check In [Giveaway] | Wellness Mama

  • Pingback: Homemade Natural Lip Chap Recipe | Wellness Mama

  • Pingback: Optimizing Wellness- 10 Health Changes that Make A Big Difference | Wellness Mama

  • Guest

    I made the shave cream recipe for my boyfriend and he loves it. Says it is far better than the shave creams you get from Gilette etc.

  • http://www.facebook.com/eryn.milliken Eryn Milliken

    I made the shave cream for my dad for Christmas. I mixed it in the stand mixer and it filled FOUR pint jars! The next day it condensed down to one. My dad loves it (though it took him a little to get used to it not foaming up like the store stuff cans), and my mom raved about how soft his face is!

    I actually used bentonite clay and I loved it!

    Question, though…
    Within about a week it turned into a solid. It works great with a save brush, but did I do something wrong? I’d like to make some shave bars and am thinking about using the same recipe since it did this, but I’m hoping I didn’t mess up!

  • Kat B

    I made the shave cream and it is kind of thin, but it think it will still work. Should something like this be refrigerated to keep it from spoiling quickly? It says it lasts 2 months, but I am just curious since the Shea/Cocoa butter is heated and then cooled.

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    I’ve never had it go bad, but keeping in the fridge would keep it thicker and keep it good longer…

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=516588320 Cynthia Loiselle

    Any idea how much GSE or vitamin E is needed to preserve the shave cream?

  • http://www.facebook.com/tara.newtonowen Tara Newton Owen

    I made this shave cream recipe and…. you said it makes a “rich, creamy lather”. Ummm… My husband shaves with a straight razor and he could NOT for the life of him get it to lather. Is it SUPPOSED to lather?? at all?? What makes it lather? I need to add more. lol It just got all gummed up on his brush. I was actually trying to make like a soap BAR, so I did the regular shave cream recipe, but then also added some shavings from a natural homemade castille soap bar and did 2 TBSP of kaolin clay. He says it LOOKS like poop, but if it worked, he didn’t care. I want to fix it, but not sure what I need to add, or what I messed up. I did do 1/2 the recipe instead of the whole amount- in case it didn’t turn out. The consistancy is good, but it doesn’t lather at all. HELP!?!?

  • amber

    have you tried using virgin coconut oil? (its solid at room temp)