Non-Greasy Shea Butter Lotion Recipe + How To Make Homemade Lotion

Learn how to make homemade lotion, with this easy non-greasy shea butter lotion recipe. It’s made with nourishing ingredients and has a store-bought feel.

So, you’re interested in making your own homemade lotion. That’s got me doing the happy dance over here! Because I know you’re going to LOVE it (and be surprised at just how easy it is, too.)

I’m a bit obsessed with handmade lotion, truly. I use it daily, and it keeps my skin so smooth, moisturized, and glowy.

And the lotion you make at home is so much better than the stuff you buy at the store. It’s no wonder, considering handmade lotion is filled with good-for-your skin oils and butters. Unlike store-bought that is mainly filler with just a teensy tiny amount of the natural emollient oils.

How Do You Make a Non-Greasy Lotion?

Want to know one of my biggest DIY skin care pet peeves? It’s when crafters call a product a body lotion when it’s actually a body butter.

At this point you’re probably saying one of two things:

1. Hang on a minute! Body lotion and body butter are NOT the same thing???

2. Geez louise, Angela’s being kinda picky about this.

And, for either point, you would be correct. But…

Body lotion and body butter are NOT the same thing.

And the reason I am so picky about defining these terms correctly is because of this:

You search online for an easy homemade lotion recipe. Up pops a lovely looking recipe that contains oils, and butters, maybe a bit of beeswax and cornstarch or arrowroot powder.

You spend money purchasing all of the ingredients. You spend time crafting the recipe. It looks amazing!

It doesn’t feel amazing, though. It’s too heavy and too greasy for your liking. Yet it’s not quite moisturizing enough either.

At this point, you think handmade lotion just isn’t as nice as store-bought and decide to not make it again.

But what the recipe called a “body lotion” was actually a “body butter.” Body butters are oil-based, water-free products. Lotions are a blend of both oils and water.

Body butters are oil-based, so they will feel heavier and greasy on the skin compared to a lotion.

Handmade body lotions, though, are incredibly moisturizing, absorb like a dream, and they don’t leave a heavy, greasy feel on the skin. LOVE!

(If you’re interested in getting the full rundown of the differences between all handmade moisturizing products, you’ll also want to check out this article: The Difference Between Body Lotion, Body Butter, Balms (and More!)

Making Handmade Lotion is Easy

Handmade lotion is probably my most favorite product to make–even more so than soap or body scrubs. It is so simple, you can whip up a batch in a flash, and once it’s cooled, handmade body lotion is ready to use immediately.

Lotion is an emulsification, or a blend, oil and water. These two ingredients don’t typically mix, right?

So, for making lotion, you will need a couple of specialty ingredients that you don’t need for making body butters. But don’t worry; these specialty ingredients are easy to find at any cosmetic supplier and are inexpensive.

To make a very simple body lotion, you need 4 core ingredients:

1. Water

2. Oils and/or butters

3. An emulsifier

4. A preservative

Water

This makes up the bulk of your lotion recipe.

Wait… why would I want water in my moisturizer? Isn’t that just “watering down” my product?

No, my little lotion crafter, water is a beautiful thing for your moisturizing lotions and creams. Your skin craves water; it drinks it down.

Without water your skin cells are rough, dry, and dehydrated, like little raisins. Your skin needs water for plump, smooth, grape-like cells.

So, water is not put into your lotion as a filler ingredient. It is included in your lotion to provide exactly what your skin needs: moisture!

Using water as a large portion of the formulation is also what creates a non-greasy lotion that absorbs quickly.

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Oils and Butters

Oils and butters make up the next largest portion of your lotion. These ingredients are emollient and occlusive. They seal in moisture that the water delivers, and leave the skin feeling soft and smooth.

So, what types of oils or butters can you use in your handmade lotion? Whichever ones you choose! There are so many options.

Some of my favorites are:

• Sweet almond oil: Gives the lotion a silky slip, with a medium absorption rate
• Hemp seed oil: A wonderful balanced oil, perfect for all skin types
• Mango butter: Makes a lotion that is thick and creamy yet absorbs without an oily after feel
• Shea butter: Rich, occlusive, and skin protective, perfect for ultra dry and dehydrated skin
• Coconut oil: Light and moisturizing with a beautiful slip

These are just a few to consider. Use whatever oil speaks to you, or that you have on hand. (And keep reading, because down below I’m sharing a non-greasy shea butter lotion recipe that is amazing!)

An Emulsifier

This is the magic ingredient in handmade lotion!

An emulsifier is the ingredient that allows the oil to stay evenly suspended in the water, without separating out. It’s this ingredient that helps you craft professional-quality lotions, that look and feel just like store-bought.

All lotion requires the addition of an emulsifier.

The most common emulsifier for at-home lotion makers, and the easiest for beginners to work with, is emulsifying wax NF.

While emulsifying wax isn’t 100%, you can find emulsifying wax that is made from naturally-derived, plant-based, ingredients (like the emulsifying wax from Mountain Rose Herbs–and it just happens to be my personal favorite.)

There really is no substitute for emulsifying wax. Beeswax, carnuba wax, candellia wax, and the like just don’t work as emulsifiers.

A Preservative

Because water is a breeding ground for mold and bacterial growth, a preservative is required to keep your handmade lotion uncontaminated and safe.

Ugh, I know… you were interested in making your own DIY skin care to get away from preservatives.

But here’s the deal: unpreserved lotion WILL grow mold, yeast, and bacteria. And, in most cases, you won’t even know it’s contaminated until things really start getting skunky.

That’s not safe to be rubbing on your skin, my friend.

Please do not leave out preservative!

Are there natural preservative options? Yes. But… they are very finicky to work with.

Natural preservatives aren’t as robust and are easy to inactivate (which means, they aren’t working to preserve your lotion.) In most cases you will need two or more natural preservatives to fully protect your lotion. You’ll also need to test and adjust pH of your lotion to ensure it stays within the correct range for your natural preservative to work correctly.

Because of this, I don’t recommend natural preservatives for those who are just learning how to make handmade lotion.

For beginners, my recommended preservative is liquid Germall Plus (AKA Water Soluble Preservative PF). It provides excellent broad spectrum protection, is super easy to work with, and isn’t easily inactivated.

Liquid Germall Plus is a synthetic preservative, but it is paraben-free. It’s used at a very low percentage of your total lotion. It’s a small price to pay to be assured a safe product.

As a side note, grapefruit seed extract, rosemary extract, vitamin E, and essential oils are NOT preservatives (despite what you may have heard elsewhere.) These will NOT protect your lotion again microbial growth, and will leave your lotion at risk of growing mold, yeast, and bacteria.

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Let’s Make Homemade Lotion!

Are you ready to make your own homemade lotion? You’re going to love this non-greasy shea butter lotion recipe. I’ve formulated this lotion to be creamy-yet-fast-absorbing, while deeply moisturizing the skin.

Shea butter is rich and occlusive, so it’s perfect for protecting the skin and sealing in moisture. Coconut oil helps balance out the richness of the shea, giving a lighter feel.

This non-greasy shea butter lotion recipe is so nourishing and easy to make, you’ll never got back to store-bought lotion again.

Non-Greasy Shea Butter Lotion Recipe

This recipe makes 16 ounces of lotion, enough for 4 (4 ounce) jars. All ingredients are measured by weight, not volume.

Ingredients:

• 2.4 oz coconut oil
• 0.8 oz shea butter
• 0.8 oz emulsifying wax
• 11.2 oz distilled water
• 0.08 oz liquid Germall Plus preservative

You’ll also need:

• Digital scale
• Bowl or container for weighing ingredients
• Small saucepan or water bath
• Silicone spatula or spoon
• Immersion blender (AKA stick blender)
• Jars or containers for packaging your lotion

Prep step: Sanitize all of your tools by washing in very hot, soapy water. You may also run through a hot setting in your dishwasher.

Step 1: Measure out coconut oil, shea butter, emulsifying wax, and water. Place into a small pan or water bath.

Step 2: Heat gently over low until emulsifying wax is completely melted. Remove from heat.

Step 3: With a stick blender, blend until the mixture is well emulsified and has cooled and thickened slightly.

Tip: It’s not necessary to whip constantly, and you may burn out your stick blender if you do. Whip for 30 seconds or so, turn the blender off and stir, whip again, etc.

Step 4: Set aside and allow the mixture to cool completely. This can take a few hours.

During the first hour, I’ll use the stick blender to whip the mixture every 10 minutes or so, for a minute or two at a time. This helps ensure a stable emulsion, and also helps speed cooling.

Step 5: Wait until the lotion has cooled completely, then add in the liquid Germall Plus preservative.

Blend thoroughly with the stick blender. To ensure the preservative is completely incorporated throughout the entire mixture, occasionally scrape down the sides with a spatula.

If your lotion has become too thick to use the stick blender, you may stir by hand. Stir vigorously and thoroughly.

Transfer the lotion into a jar or containers and affix the lid. Your lotion is now ready to use!

Shelf life: Properly preserved handcrafted lotions have a shelf life of approximately 8-12 months. Label and use before this date.

Want To Learn More About Making Lotion at Home?

If you’d like to dig deeper into handcrafted lotion making, I’d like to invite you to check out my online course Handmade Lotion for Beginners. In it you’ll learn everything you need to know to make your own handmade body lotion, completely from scratch.

Quick and simple lesson tutorials will have you whipping up ultra-moisturizing, non-greasy, good-for-your-skin, body lotion that is better than anything bought at the store.

You’ll be a handmade body lotion pro in just a few easy lessons, EVEN IF you’ve never made skin care at home before. Perfect for beginners!

So, come on over into my online schoolhouse and take a look.