Being 10 weeks pregnant is a hot and cold experience. Literally. One minute I want to bundle up in my sweats and the next I’m stripping down and drinking ice cold water in front of the fan. In the midst of these temperature fluctuations, the sweating situation needs to be addressed. I decided to try making my own natural, non toxic deodorant recipe.
I have been using arm and hammer or Dr Teals, both of which have no aluminum in them. Fun fact, aluminum in deodorant absorbs directly into the lymph nodes in your armpits and gets absorbed into your blood stream. Ultimately, putting heavy metals into your system that can travel and be stored in the brain or increase risk of certain diseases. That’s just my knowledge on it and I’m no doctor or aluminum specialist, so please do your own research if you’d like. However, for me, I’ll opt out of anything that even potentially Could put more heavy metals into my body.
Making your own natural deodorant
I have never made my own deodorant before so there was a few things I wanted to be sure the recipe included: baking soda- because that is the actual odor neutralizer and coconut oil- because my skin has been so dry lately that I need extra moisture.
There were A LOT of different natural, non-toxic deodorant recipes online. I mean good night! There are just so many. I didn’t want one that was too fussy, or I had to buy ingredients for. I wanted to use what I had and waste nothing in the process. Thus, my personalized natural, non-toxic deodorant was born!
Using essential oils in the recipe
You could use any essential oils you’d like of course. I opted for one’s I had and used two of my favorite scents, lavender and frankincense. If I had rosemary, I absolutely would’ve used that. With a hint of lavender I’m sure. Some good combinations may be lemon and rosemary, lavender and jasmine, patchouli and rosemary. Anything you’d like! The recipe can also be adjusted to extra fragrant if you’d prefer. I don’t really care for the smell of shea butter so I added extra essential oils.
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Recipe for natural deodorant
2 tbsp shea butter
1 tsp coconut oil
3 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp baking soda
30 drops of lavender essential oil
15 drops of frankincense essential oil
Melt shea butter and coconut oil together over a double boiler or in a small stainless steel pot on low
Add cornstarch and baking soda
Stir until they dissolve (I used a fork as a tiny whisk to really get out any clumps and mix it thoroughly)
Bring off heat and keep mixing until smooth
Add in essential oils and mix thoroughly
Put into a metal tin or a 4 oz mason jar with air tight lid.
Yields just under 4 oz
**Tip- If you sweat a little extra sometimes, or just need a bit more deodorizing, bump up the baking soda to 3 tbsp, and drop down the corn starch to 1 tsp!**
Benefits of using natural deodorant
The first is obvious.
Now, I don’t have to buy deodorant! I use all these ingredients for loads of other products, so I always have leftovers.
There’s no plastic involved!
It’s non toxic and leaches no harsh metals or fragrances into my system.
It works surprisingly well. And I was surprised. I was skeptical at first but I’ve been using it for the last week and haven’t had any complaints from the husband!
I do need to reapply after a heavy sweat, like going for a bike ride or doing morning work in the garden. Otherwise, it lasts all day!
It smells great, and the consistency was another surprise. The texture comes out so silky and nourishing. It is so heavenly when I put it on. I would even venture to say luxurious. 🙂
This will also last me a LONG time. I’ll update this when I finally finish it, but I can estimate it’s last me the entire month. Potentially longer! Reason being because I don’t have to constantly reapply it!
I enjoy using this daily and it’s something I have been thinking about doing for too long. There are a lot of other small sustainable changes I’d like to make but one step at a time. One change at a time. I think the next will be sponges because I have a whole rant on that!
In gratitude,
Tayler
