This DIY body wash is free from questionable ingredients that can irritate the skin. Make your own homemade natural body wash for a change – with all-natural ingredients and minimal effort.
DIY Body Wash: All-Natural Ingredients, No Unnecessary Chemicals
Store-bought body washes, soaps, and shower gels often contain any number of skin irritants such as fragrances, colorants, and preservatives. Especially for those with allergies or sensitive skin, these chemicals can damage the skin over time: they attack its natural protective layer and leave it even more sensitive than before.
Are you looking for an alternative to your store-bought shower gel? Make your own natural DIY body wash – it couldn’t be easier.
- With an all-natural body wash, you know exactly what ingredients go into it – only what’s absolutely necessary. Natural ingredients reduce the risk of allergic reactions.
- Give your DIY body wash the aroma of your choice.
- Homemade body wash saves you money. Our recipe yields enough shower soap to leave conventional store-bought products looking quite expensive in comparison.
- And by the way: You’re also doing the environment some good. Empty plastic shower gel bottles are a thing of the past. All you need is one (used) bottle to keep refilling. Another good choice is a sturdy glass bottle stored in a safe place.
All-Natural Homemade Body Wash: The Simple Recipe
This DIY body wash recipe is simple and easy. All you’ll need are the following four ingredients:
- 1 – 1,5 oz. natural soap (ideally free of palm oil) or bar soap. If you use bar soap, keep in mind that these often contain palm oil. You can find palm-oil-free alternatives in a number of online shops. Here’s a start: Try this high-quality vegetable-based Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap found on Amazon **. Or, you could make your own homemade soap.
- 1 ¾ cups water
- A small amount of vegetable oil (e.g. olive oil, sesame oil or canola oil)
- thickening agent (e.g. all-purpose flour or cornstarch)
To create your own homemade body wash follow these steps:
- Shred the soap using a grater or sharp knife until as small possible.
- Fill a pot with water and add the soap shavings.
- Warm the mixture on the stove at medium heat.
- Once the soap begins to melt, stir thoroughly with a whisk. Add the oil when the pieces of soap are no longer visible.
- Then add small amounts of a thickening agent until your natural body wash reaches the desired consistency.
Natural DIY Body Wash: Adding your own Personal Touch
While your natural body wash is cooling off in the pot, start gathering some extra ingredients to lend your soap a personal touch if you want:
Essential Oils
Want to give your natural body wash a pleasant aroma? Add some all-natural essential oils and see (and have a smell) for yourself.
- For a relaxing shower gel, lavender is a great pick (as found on **Amazon).
- Mint and citrus oils provide a kick of freshness in the morning (such as **Organic Peppermint or **Fresh Citrus).
- The selection of essential oils is endless – mix and match to make your own signature soap scent. This bulk set** may spark some creativity.
Note: Remember to use only the most naturally produced essential oils in your DIY body wash. This way you reduce the risk that the ingredients will irritate your skin. If you have very sensitive skin, it may be best to avoid adding essential oils altogether.
To add your own personal touch to your homemade body wash simply add around 10 to 15 drops of your favorite essential oil to the pot and stir.
Honey
Honey has anti-bacterial and skin-protective properties and it hydrates the skin. One to two teaspoons of honey will give your shower soap a sweet-smelling scent and an added dose of skin-care. Make sure not to lose the valuable enzymes in the honey by adding it after the mixture has cooled off a bit.
Herbs
You can also add the scent of herbs to your natural DIY body wash. This works best with fresh herbs. The plant’s leaflets and branches contain the essential oils we need: Before you add the soap shavings, toss in a bunch of fresh herbs and bring the water to a boil. All is permitted that pleases: Try some rosemary, nettle, or chamomile. Or leave things simple and just add some tea to your boiling water. You can try some relaxing lavender tea, calming chamomile, or detoxifying nettle tea.
The Perfect Consistency for your Homemade Natural Body Wash
Find out for yourself which consistency you like best. Your shower gel is too watery? Add some more soap or thickener to the mix. If it’s too thick, some extra water will do the trick.
Depending on the ingredients you use in your homemade natural body wash, some will start to break apart from each other within the container after some time. This is completely normal. For one, your shower gel contains nothing but natural ingredients. Remember a simple shake-before-use and everything’s OK.
If you would like to avoid this, have a look at your local pharmacy for a plant-based liquid bottle of lecithin. This serves as an emulsifying agent that helps fuse the various ingredients.
Fill your finished DIY body wash in small glass bottles or your empty shower gel bottles.
This article was translated to English by Evan Binford. You can view the original here: Duschgel selber machen: Eine einfache Anleitung
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