If you’re still using store-bought lotion there are super easy natural alternatives that are fun to make! This DIY lotion recipe has three basic ingredients and only takes ten minutes to whip together.

The basic recipe is an ultra-moisturizing water-free version that lasts for years without preservatives. While lotion is technically a formulation of water and oil-based skincare ingredients, this one is oil-based. It feels more like a body butter and is great for dry skin.

Homemade Lotion

I discovered years ago that I could use natural ingredients to make my own skincare products and I haven’t looked back since! From homemade lip balm to whipped body butter I love making my own. Lotion bars were one of the first things I made and I’ve branched out to other kinds of lotion too. This version uses unrefined coconut oil, almond oil, and shea butter to nourish skin deeply.

Most lotions use emulsifying wax to blend distilled water and carrier oils together. It can be tricky to do at home. Plus it requires preservatives to keep it from going bad! This DIY lotion skips that problem by eliminating the water. You can further extend the shelf life by using vitamin E. This antioxidant helps oils not go rancid as quickly.

Choosing a Carrier Oil

I use sweet almond oil for the carrier oil since it’s a middle of the road oil. It’s not as heavy as coconut oil, but it’s more moisturizing than something like grapeseed oil. You could replace it with whatever liquid carrier oil you prefer. Jojoba, olive oil, or avocado oil are also good options.

This lotion is ultra-moisturizing and more oily than water-based lotions so you won’t need to use as much. It also has a longer shelf life than some homemade lotion recipes. All the ingredients are already shelf stable and no water is added.

Custom Lotion Making

Once you master the base recipe, have fun customizing your lotion to your skin type, skin conditions, and desired scent!

There are endless variations, but some of my favorites are:

Baby Lotion – Infuse the oil with dried calendula and chamomile before making the lotion.
Cooling Muscle Rub – Add peppermint, wintergreen, and ginger for sore muscles.
Anti-aging Face Lotion – Use argan oil and add lavender and patchouli essential oils.
Lavender and Vanilla Lotion – Add a few drops of lavender and a little natural vanilla extract.

Essential Oil Safety

So how many drops of essential oils should you add to your DIY lotion? It depends on the essential oil and your preference. If you add the optional shea butter, 45 drops of essential oil will be a 1% dilution. A 2% dilution is generally considered safe for skincare products like lotion.

If you like a really strong scent you could double the amount (to 2%). Or if you prefer a lighter scent or have more sensitive skin, you could cut the amount in half (or even less!). I avoid using essential oils on little ones, especially babies.

Certain oils like wintergreen, cinnamon, and lemongrass are harsher and need to be used in smaller amounts. Others, like grapefruit and lime, are phototoxic. Some of my favorite skin-friendly essential oils to use include:

Don’t Want to Make It?

If you want healthy lotion but don’t want to make it or don’t have the ingredients there are some good store-bought options. These lotions have clean ingredients and help hydrate thirsty skin:

Earth Mama Baby Lotion (they have unscented and scented versions)
Nourish Organic Body Lotion

4.08 from 765 votes

Homemade DIY Lotion Recipe

Make smooth, luxurious lotion at home with almond oil, coconut oil, beeswax, and optional essential oils.

Prep Time20

Yield: ounces

Author: Katie Wells

Equipment

Materials

½ cup sweet almond oil (or jojoba oil, or any other liquid oil)
¼ cup coconut oil
¼ cup beeswax pellets
2 TBSP shea butter (or mango butter or cocoa butter, optional)
45 drops essential oils (optional)
¼ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
1 tsp vitamin E oil (optional)

Instructions

Combine the almond oil, coconut oil, beeswax, and shea or cocoa butter, in a double boiler. Or use a glass bowl on top of a simmering pan of water.
Stir occasionally as the ingredients melt.
Once the ingredients are completely melted, add the vitamin E oil and any essential oils or vanilla.
Pour into a glass jar or tin for storage and cool to room temperature. Small mason jars work perfectly for this. This will not pump well in a lotion pump!

Notes

A little goes a long way! This lotion is incredibly nourishing and great for diaper rash, eczema, and for preventing stretch marks.
Store in a cool, dry place for up to 1-2 years.

Other Homemade Lotion Recipe Variations

There are lots of ways you can make your own lotion at home. Here are some more lotion tutorials to try:

Men’s lotion (works for women too and you can use a pump bottle)
Lotion bars
Frankincense face cream

Ever made DIY lotion before? How did it go? Let me know below!

Sources

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About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

1,341 responses to “Luxurious DIY Lotion Recipe”

Hayley Blight

January 25, 2014

i love this recipe and many others that you have posted. i use them all the time, thank you so much. I’m a little confused, though. I tried this recipe and used cocoa butter instead of coconut oil. I followed the recipe, but the finished product is not even near the same colour or texture as the picture of the one that you have posted. it just looks like olive oil, except, a bit cloudy. i am very confused. do you know what i have done wrong?

Reply
LuLu

January 24, 2014

Can you help. I made a mistake and measured the bees wax after it was melted. My lotion has too much bees wax. Can I re-melt my mixture and add more Olive and Coconut oil?

Reply
1. Lindsey
  
  February 8, 2014
  
  My lotion clearly has too much beeswax, too. I tried remelting and adding more of the other ingredients but it’s still hard as a rock! Did you find a “cure” for this problem? WellnessMama, what do I do?? I want something light and fluffy!
  
  Reply
  1. Katie – Wellness Mama
    
    February 10, 2014
    
    What kind of coconut oil did you use? It could be a temperature thing or it might need more of a liquid oil…
    
    Reply
LuLu

January 24, 2014

Wonderful recipe for homemade lotion and love that it doesn’t have any chemicals. I was so anxious to try it. I made a stupid mistake! I wound up using too much bees wax. I measured after it was melted. My lotion is too thick and looks like bees wax. I am using it anyway and it is still wonderful. But I was wondering if I could re-melt it and add more Olive Oil and Coconut Oil to get a creamier consistency like your picture shows? If so, how much do you think would be a good amount to add?

Reply
Rachael

January 23, 2014

I made this last night and it’s really just a very firm lip gloss and not a lotion. 🙁 I’ve been wanting to make lip gloss too but now I have like 5 ounces of it lol.

Reply
1. Rachael
  
  January 23, 2014
  
  Update: Well, once I got past the fact that it’s really solid, I decided to see if I could get a little out and rub into my hands. It actually does feel pretty good on my skin. You can’t get much out at once but you don’t really need a whole lot. I would probably prefer a lotion consistency but I may just stick with this since those seem to be so challenging to make. I also tried another person’s lotion recipe last night and my aloe would not combine with my other ingredients even though I followed the recipe. Seems to be a common problem with lotion…
  
  Reply
  1. Heather
    
    February 6, 2014
    
    Just in case it helps at all– seems many people had probs with it being too thick cause of the beeswax- rather than using two ounces, grate it and use the measured amount.
    
    Reply
Heather T

January 22, 2014

When you use coconut oil for skin care products, do you use the Extra Virgin Coconut oil or the refined version? Just wondering because of the price difference between the two. Thanks!

Reply
Jenessa

January 22, 2014

Would there be anything other than Coconut oil that I could use? I’m actually allergic to anything coconut. I would love to try this but I’d rather not break out in hives haha.

Reply
Robert

January 16, 2014

In what form do you use the calendula and chamomile? I would like to make that version of lotion for my baby. Would it also be OK to use on my face (so I don’t have to make another type of lotion)? I have very easy skin. Currently, I just use straight coconut oil.+

Reply
Ximena

January 15, 2014

Hello! Will you please let us know how you recommend to infuse oils for a recipe like this? Thank you!! I am looking forward to making this 🙂

Reply
1. Heather
  
  February 6, 2014
  
  She answers this question in the earlier posted comments.
  
  Reply
Jennifer

January 15, 2014

Would this be a good lotion recipe to mix with your homemade foundation recipe to make a tinted lotion or creme foundation? Or what would you recommend for a homemade creme foundation/concealer?

Reply
1. Lauren LeClair
  
  January 16, 2014
  
  This is a very greasy product (Or mine was and I followed the recipe to a T) I would not use it as a face product. I did and my face broke out over night from the grease.
  
  Reply
Ajita

January 14, 2014

Hi Katie,
Thank you so much for the wonderful lotion recipe. I made it and it is soothing. But I realised that my daughter is allergic to coconut oil, coz her eczema flared up after using this lotion. Is there an alternative to coconut oil for body products?

Reply
Jina

January 14, 2014

Not sure where guest is going with her thoughts but personally I would stick to the original recipe on this site. Been making every since Katie came out with it works great and you can take it to so many different levels. I’am a nurse of 30 years I’m not worried about the mold in this if you stick to the recipe. Always put your expiration date on everything and you will know when there is a danger of mold and bacteria the key word here being “natural” not Cancerous. Thanks Wellness Mama for a great website.

Reply
Alysa Grossell

January 14, 2014

I made this last night and it is solid now. 🙁 I did everything exactly as you said. Can I add water to make it a little more lotion-like?

Reply
1. Lauren LeClair
  
  January 16, 2014
  
  I had the same thing happen. Ken Little posted his recipe for me so I’ll share it with you, I can’t wait to try his. I still love how well it moisturizes, but I have to use a metal spatula to get it out. I think It is a mixture of too much beeswax (for a lotion type texture) and also the coconut oil is a hard texture. So that doesn’t let it soften unless it is heated up. (Can you imagine this as a nice after massage treatment though!!!)
  
  Ken Little:
  I changed the recipe slightly to get more of a lotion texture as opposed to a body butter or a lotion bar. This is what I used and it worked great. I ordered everything off of Amazon because they had the best prices by far. All measurements are in volume and not mass.
  
  Ingredient – Amount – Cost Per Amount Used – Comedogenecy Rating
  Beeswax – 2 tablespoons – 1.90 – 2/5
  Coconut Oil – ¼ cup – 1.20 – 4/5
  Almond Oil – 1/4 cup – 2.15 – 2/5
  Shea Butter – ¼ cup – .70 – 0/5
  Grapeseed Oil – 1/4 cup – 1.20 – 2/5
  Lemon Essential Oil – 45 drops (equals 1% of lotion) – 2.00
  Vitamin E – 1 teaspoon – .55
  Rice Powder – 2 tablespoons – .65 – 0/5
  
  I melted the beeswax and oils and stirred them in a double boiler on med/low (you can also use a pyrex measuring bowl and a cooking pot filled with about 2-3 inches of water). I added the shea butter last. Make sure it isn’t too hot or the shea butter can become grainy when it melts. As soon as the shea butter was melted I removed the oil mixture from the burner and mixed in the lemon essential oil (the calendula and lemon fragrance compliment each other as well as offset the odor of the shea butter), vitamin E, and rice powder (you could use corn starch or tapioca starch instead but those starches will shorten the shelf life to about 3-4 months if left non-refrigerated). I then placed the bowl with the oil mixture in another bowl that had ice water and used a kitchen hand held mixer on high for 20 minutes. I then put it into an 8 oz jar and let it cool to room temp. and it turned out great. (Just be sure to not let any water get into the mixture.) Thanks everyone for your comments as they helped me out tremendously, and thank you Wellness Mama for posting this recipe. The yield for this is about 8 ounces. For clean up if you save the boiling water you used to heat the mixture you can pour it into the bowl that you used to mix the oils and throw the utensils in there as well. The boiling water will melt all the lotion off everything you used and it makes clean up much easier. Just be sure to dump that water outside because if it goes down your drain it can cause clogs and buildup over time.
  
  Reply
  1. Alysa Grossell
    
    January 25, 2014
    
    Thank you! I am severely allergic to Shea Butter. Do you think Coco Butter will work just as well?
    
    Reply
Kathryn Constantini

January 14, 2014

Made this for my mom for Christmas this year and she loves it! She used to put BioOil on after she showered or bathed but now she uses this, especially on dry skin in the winter. Thanks!

Reply
Lauren LeClair

January 10, 2014

So I made this.. Followed the directions to the T… But its so hard, I have to use a metal spatula to get it out. Does anyone else have this problem?

Reply
1. Ken Little
  
  January 11, 2014
  
  Yes that is why i changed the recipe to make it way less hard…i posted how i changed in the comments below yours…
  
  Reply
  1. Lauren LeClair
    
    January 11, 2014
    
    I went back 8 months and I dindt see you comment. Do you mind sharing your recipe here?
    
    Reply
    1. Ken Little
      
      January 12, 2014
      
      I changed the recipe slightly to get more of a lotion texture as opposed to a body butter or a lotion bar. This is what I used and it worked great. I ordered everything off of Amazon because they had the best prices by far. All measurements are in volume and not mass.
      Ingredient – Amount – Cost Per Amount Used – Comedogenecy Rating
      Beeswax – 2 tablespoons – 1.90 – 2/5
      Coconut Oil – ¼ cup – 1.20 – 4/5
      Almond Oil – 1/4 cup – 2.15 – 2/5
      Shea Butter – ¼ cup – .70 – 0/5
      Grapeseed Oil – 1/4 cup – 1.20 – 2/5
      Lemon Essential Oil – 45 drops (equals 1% of lotion) – 2.00
      Vitamin E – 1 teaspoon – .55
      Rice Powder – 2 tablespoons – .65 – 0/5
      
      I melted the beeswax and oils and stirred them in a double boiler on med/low (you can also use a pyrex measuring bowl and a cooking pot filled with about 2-3 inches of water). I added the shea butter last. Make sure it isn’t too hot or the shea butter can become grainy when it melts. As soon as the shea butter was melted I removed the oil mixture from the burner and mixed in the lemon essential oil (the calendula and lemon fragrance compliment each other as well as offset the odor of the shea butter), vitamin E, and rice powder (you could use corn starch or tapioca starch instead but those starches will shorten the shelf life to about 3-4 months if left non-refrigerated). I then placed the bowl with the oil mixture in another bowl that had ice water and used a kitchen hand held mixer on high for 20 minutes. I then put it into an 8 oz jar and let it cool to room temp. and it turned out great. (Just be sure to not let any water get into the mixture.) Tomorrow I am going to try this again but switching out the lemon oil for lavender, the grapeseed oil with calendula, and the swap out 1/4 cup of almond oil for coconut oil. Thanks everyone for your comments as they helped me out tremendously, and thank you Wellness Mama for posting this recipe. The yield for this is about 8 ounces. For clean up if you save the boiling water you used to heat the mixture you can pour it into the bowl that you used to mix the oils and throw the utensils in there as well. The boiling water will melt all the lotion off everything you used and it makes clean up much easier. Just be sure to dump that water outside because if it goes down your drain it can cause clogs and buildup over time.
      
      Reply
Kenna

January 9, 2014

Hi Wellness Mama, I really enjoy reading your informative articles and yes, I am a subscriber to your newsletter. They are very educational and have helped me to take a more natural approach to my every day living! Thank you so much! I just finished doing this recipe and I used Lavender essential oil. I couldn’t wait until tomorrow, I had to use some after getting out the shower and I love it. One question though, please tell me when, how and what quantity of Vanilla Extract I should incorporate in this recipe. Thanks in advance!

Reply
Amanda

January 9, 2014

I know I am super duper late on this, but I am only just finding your site…. I love the sound of your natural toiletries, and am going to try several of the recipes. I have a question on this one…. what is the point of the bees wax. Is it just to thicken the lotion? I would like to try to make something more squirt-able because I want to keep it in a squeeze bottle by the sink. What would happen if I left the wax out?

Reply
Ken Little

January 7, 2014

I changed the recipe slightly to get more of a lotion texture as opposed to a body butter or a lotion bar. This is what I used and it worked great. All measurements are in volume and not mass.
Ingredient Amount Cost Per Amount Used
Beeswax 2 tablespoons 1.90
Grapeseed Oil ¼ cup 1.20
Almond Oil ½ cup 2.15
Shea Butter ¼ cup .70
Lemon Oil 40 drops 2.00
Vitamin E 1 teaspoon .55
Arrowroot 2 teaspoons .25
Total Cost 8.75

I melted the beeswax and oils and stirred them in a double boiler in med/low. I added the shea butter last. Make sure it isn’t too hot or the shea butter can become grainy when it melts. As soon as the shea butter was melted removed the oil mixture from head and I mixed in the lemon essential oil, vitamin E, and arrowroot (you could use corn starch or tapioca starch instead). I then placed the bowl with the oil mixture in another bowl that had ice water and I used a kitchen hand held mixture on high for 20 minutes. I then put it into an 8 oz jar and let it cool and it turned out great. Tomorrow I am going to try this again but switching out the lemon oil for lavender, the grapeseed oil with calendula, and the almond butter with coconut oil.

Reply
1. Lauren LeClair
  
  January 16, 2014
  
  Thank you, Ken. I’ll be trying this when I’m low on what I have now. : ) I really appreciate it
  
  Reply
2. Mary
  
  March 17, 2015
  
  Thanks for posting! Very helpful!!
  
  Reply
Rachel c

January 6, 2014

I have not had any luck finding a local cosmetic grade beeswax. Have to order it but I’m being impatient. Can I make this without the beeswax? Can I add my own harvested aloe? And would I put it in at the same time as the others? And lastly will almond extract be ok? Thank you so much.

Reply
Jessica Grubb

January 5, 2014

I’ve never made my own lotion before, I just made this one. I’m not sure what I did wrong, but mine is much less of a lotion and seems more like the consistency of maybe a lotion bar…but it’s in a small mason jar. It works, but I’d rather it be more like lotion. What might I have done wrong?

Reply
Michael Lundholm

January 5, 2014

I really like your formula for the moisturizer and am looking forward to making my own, but I also wear full beard and I’m wondering if this mixture would work well in my beard. If not, can you recommend changes to or an alternative to this formulation. After all there is facial skin under a beard. Beards to need moisturizers and conditioners to. Any advise you can give will be appreciated.

Reply