This shop showing how to make DIY soothing lotion was originally a sponsored post. Some links are affiliate links that earn me a commission if you purchase through them.
I have so many sensitivities to scent and chemicals, so I started making my own homemade lotion.
It’s surprisingly easy to do, and I love giving it to others, too. I’d been wracking my brains trying to come up with the perfect gift, and this? This is it.
I love adding a personal element to any gift I can. Download the printable for this lotion at the end of the article.
Need more gift ideas? Check the bottom of this article for my favorites.
This DIY soothing lotion has some amazing smelling essential oils. Most importantly, it really works.
The DIY soothing lotion didn’t take long to make, and having snuck some for myself, I can vouch for how amazingly soft it makes my legs – especially after I use my home laser treatment.
The cocoa butter in it softens my skin beautifully and helps ensure that I don’t have any adverse reaction. And it just flat out smells great and makes my skin feel even softer and smoother.
How to make DIY Soothing Lotion
Making the DIY soothing lotion is a piece of cake. Truly, all you need is a bit of patience.
When you first melt together your ingredients – the cocoa butter, coconut oil, olive oil, and beeswax – you need to keep the heat down low. They all melt at fairly low temperatures, and you don’t want to burn or overheat any of the ingredients.
Once everything is most of the way melted, pull it off the stove and stir until the last bits are smoothly incorporated.
Then comes the tough part. You have to wait for it to start to solidify.
I put mine in the fridge for 20 minutes then brought it out to stir it. To fully cool it, I repeated that twice more.
At that point, it was starting to solidify more. It’s amazing how fast it goes from a liquid you’re stirring to that exact temperature where it’s suddenly a solid!
The best lotion is soft and easy to spread. To get this texture, I whipped it to incorporate more air.
You have to wait for it to solidify a little before you whipping!
One of the coolest things I loved watching while making this DIY soothing lotion was how it changed colors. It went through a variety of pale yellows and whites to dark yellow to almost white again as I whipped in more air.
Once it had fully cooled and whipped up nicely, I added the essential oils.
I didn’t want to burn them off while heating the ingredients and also wanted to ensure they wouldn’t disperse before I finished making the DIY soothing lotion.
For this, I chose a lovely tangerine oil, which reminds me of the warm gorgeous days I miss. I almost went eucalyptus, which has great soothing properties, as well.
Just choose your favorite scent.
Once I added the oils, I placed it in a small mason jar for easy application and covered it tightly. This DIY soothing lotion will stay perfect for the next few months, though it never lasts that long.
The scent of the tangerine coupled with the light fragrance of the cocoa butter pairs so well. It’s the perfect reminder that we need to pamper ourselves, just the idea I want to share.
Everyone I give this to loves it. They tell me how this is a great gift. And I mean a great gift idea whether for yourself or for someone else.
This DIY soothing lotion is similar to a homemade whipped shea butter and has many similar benefits. Depending on your preference, either works as a fantastic homemade gift for yourself or anyone else.
I sometimes wrap my own gifts and put them under the tree. You can imagine my family’s surprise when I open something they didn’t purchase for me. Did you ever do that?
DIY Soothing Lotion
Equipment
- Stove/hot plate
Materials
- 4 ounces cocoa butter
- 2 ounces coconut oil
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 ounce beeswax
- 10-20 drops essential oil
Instructions
- In a heavy pan over low heat, gently melt cocoa butter, coconut oil, olive oil, and beeswax. Stir regularly until almost melted then remove from heat and stir until melted and incorporated.4 ounces cocoa butter, 2 ounces coconut oil, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/2 ounce beeswax
- Place in fridge for 20 minutes, then remove and stir. Repeat and use mixer to whip and incorporate air. Start on low speed and move up in speed as it gets whipped up.
- Add essential oils and whip again to ensure they are incorporated throughout.10-20 drops essential oil
- Place in a tightly sealed mason jar or other nonporous container. Use immediately or store for up to three months.
Notes
- Personalize your lotion with a few drops of your favorite essential oil!
- For more tips and tricks, be sure to read the full article above.
I’m finally getting into the spirit of Christmas thanks to this gift idea. Honestly, it wasn’t until making this that I could stand to listen to Christmas music, and that’s just not like me!
Of course I had to find a way to make the mason jar with the DIY soothing lotion even more special, so I created a fun gift tag printable you can use that also shares how to use the lotion.
I had so much fun putting this together. In fact, I may end making the DIY soothing lotion for more gifts. Think this might be something you might put under the tree for yourself or someone else?
Who would you gift with the DIY soothing lotion?
More great gift ideas:
- Brown sugar cookie sugar scrub
- Peppermint sugar scrub
- Chocolate drizzled popcorn
- Snickerdoodle cookie dough truffles
- Thank you gift tags
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Great recipes… I’m looking forward to make them and use it.
I have a little question… could I possibly change the cocoa butter for Shea butter? In the homemade deodorant? Would it work in a similar way?
Thank you
Lara
@Michelle, I tried Shea Butter for the deodorant and lotion, and though the products work, it is IMPOSSIBLE to wash off my mixer bowl or the wands for the hand mixer. I have tried everything to get them clean and the shea butter won’t come off. 🙁 Any problems washing the mixer bowl when whipping the cocoa butter lotion? Any tips would be amazing. Thank you so much!
I did not have an issue, but I washed both with very warm water – and the shea butter came off (comes off, I should say!) without any issues for me. Try using warmer water and see if that does it for you. The melting point for shea butter isn’t that high, so it should come off relatively well once it warms and then wipe it out with a clean paper towel. Let me know if that helps!
You should be able to use shea butter in place of the cocoa butter. They are fairly similar and have similar melting points, which is the big concern. It’s definitely worth a try, although I haven’t tried this myself.
I never would have thought to make my own lotion! I love this idea, and it definitely makes a great gift. Especially when paired with the Flash&Go (I want one!!) #client
I want one of those!!! I need a little pampering and tlc too. I haven’t even heard of those before. Your soothing lotion sounds like a great diy project. Making lotion seems hard but you make it look so easy!
I never knew lotion was so easy to make! I’m going to try to make some!