DIY homemade healing lotion for dry skin, cracked hands due to winter, windburn, gardening or any other circumstance that calls for homemade heavy duty lotion. Super easy to make in 15 minutes with just 4 all-natural ingredients! Also try my homemade tinted moisturizer.
I tend toward dry skin – especially on my hands. So finding a moisturizer that really works is essential.
But commercial moisturizers have lots of unhealthy ingredients that I don’t want to put on my skin, plus they can make the dryness worse.
I often make my own body care products like shampoo and conditioner so it’s only natural that I’d make my own homemade healing lotion too! Trust me, it’s amazing!
No more dry, cracked, painful skin! (That sounds like an infomercial but it’s totally true!)
The secret ingredient is the comfrey and calendula infused olive oil. Comfrey has been used in traditional medicine to support wound healing and can even help heal broken bones.
Calendula has also been used for centuries to treat inflammation, burns, bruises, and cuts, and minor infections. The combination of the comfrey and calendula oil infused oil and the butter make a great all-purpose skin healing lotion. It’s so much better than just any regular lotion – try it and you’ll see for yourself!
Note: There is some controversy over whether comfrey is safe. I believe it is safe when used as intended (find out why here). However, if you want to be extra cautious, you can leave the comfrey out when you make the infused oil recipe.)
Calendula is generally considered safe but, if you want to skip the herbs all together and stick with regular olive oil, this recipe is still amazing for your skin! Talk with your healthcare provider about what is best for you.
DIY Homemade Healing Lotion
Supplies
- 1/4 cup cocoa butter or shea butter
- 1/4 cup Comfrey and calendula infused olive oil (or just olive oil)
- 1 Tbsp beeswax
- 1/4 tsp vitamin e oil
Healing Lotion Instructions Step-By-Step
Step 1. Mix the cocoa butter, olive oil and beeswax in a double boiler over low heat, until melted.
Step 2. Pour the melted lotion into a glass jar (a mason jar works well) and allow to cool.
Then add the vitamin E and stir in with a spoon, popsicle stick, whatever you have. You can take it one step further and beat the lotion with a hand mixer to make this lotion more like a body butter, but I hate added work so I don’t bother.
Healing Lotion Tips
- The natural ingredients in this healing lotion help moisturize and protect the skin from dry and cold air. When I get dry hands, I just slather on a glob and keep working it in until it’s absorbed.
- This lotion is my secret weapon for those really cold days when I have to do something outside that I can’t do while wearing gloves.
- I slather on some of this lotion for a little protection every time I go out. It’s not greasy so my hands don’t slip but my skin gets a bit of a barrier from the beeswax.
What else can I use homemade lotion for?
- Windburned noses and cheeks
- Raw, cracked hands
- Garden hands
- Dry feet
- Bumps, bruises and boo-boos, especially when they come with dry skin!
I love using this lotion and I’d like to try making it with cocoa butter. When I click on the link for the cocoa butter, the product shown is a block. In another comment, the poster is discouraged from using a block of cocoa butter because it is hard to cut and measure this ingredient. I’d like to use the wafers shown in the pictures here; what brand would you recommend?
Hello!
I’m really interested in trying this recipe, but I was wondering, do you notice if this lotion gets caked into clothing? I used unrefined raw shea butter on my legs as a moisturizer and the shea butter is caked into my pants. I’m worried the same thing will happen with this lotion. I know cocoa butter is an option here, but I have used other products with cocoa butter and it is not moisturizing enough for me. Any advice you could provide is appreciated!
Hi Haley,
Tiffany has never noticed this happening with this homemade lotion. I hope you try it! We’re sure it will work out for you without caking on your pants. Keep us posted. 🙂
Tiffany, in general, when I follow the links to products you recommend, is the FIRST product that appears? I noticed with the vitamin E oil that there were many brands and quite varying prices. What do you suggest?
Hi Lisa! In general, I try to link to specific products that I either use myself, OR that appear to be the best bang for your buck (quantity vs. price vs. reviews). For Vitamin E, this is the one I use: https://amzn.to/2lwAYNw
is the picture exactly how it looks after cooling? in my experience it doesn’t get like that (light and creamy) unless whipped. I’ve never added wax though, that could be the difference.
Wax will make it thicker and not too gooey.
Yep – all my pictures are as-is 🙂
Could you make this with another kind of oil, besides Olive Oil. Could you use almond, jojoba, grapeseed or avocado oil??
I think either of the oils you mentioned would be okay Kayla, but you’ll have to watch how much you use to maintain the consistency. Also, some of the ones you mentioned are a bit pricier, so unless you’re allergic to olive, that’s the most bang for your buck.
May I suggest MY recipe for hand cream, I’ve made this for years!!
36 grams oils….
These can be a mix of many oils, but they must be pure oils, NO blends… for instance: Rice Bran Oil, Almond Oil, Jojoba oil (which is really a wax, and is like the sebum of our skin), Hemp Oil, Apricot Oil etc., yes even Coco Butter or Shea Butter I never use Olive oil, it’s too thick and doesn’t absorb very well into the skin. Please note, some oils have a short shelf life, do some research!! find out what oils is best suited for what you want.
8 grams Emulsifying wax ( water and oil doesn’t mix unless you have an emulsifier)
150 grams water (this must be pure filtered water, not tap water)
8 grams Glycerine this draws moisture from the air and moisturises the skin
2 or 3 drops Tea Tree Oil
the cream is made in 2 phases…the water Phase, and the Oil Phase. First, put the kettle on and boil the water, pour out the right amount (150 grams) to this add the glycerine. set aside.
in a saucepan sat in the water of a double boiler, add the Emulsifying Wax and gently melt it. NOW add the oils, it will take a few minutes for them all to melt into one another.
remove the saucepan from the stove, now its time to add the prepared water/glycerine to the melted oils.
and stir, stir, stir. you might want to use a stick blender, just until the mixture is blended, if the oils start to come to the top, just quickly mix again, do not over beat, it’s not necessary. when the cream is cooled add the Tea Tree Oil and with a fork stir it in. If you are going to put a perfume in it, now is the time. I prefer my creams un-scented. PLEASE Note: all jars and equipment MUST be sterilised, this is very important, don’t want any mould ‘nasties’ to get into the cream later!! this makes 200 grams of cream. Unless you put a preservative in it, you may want to keep it in the refrigerator if the weather is very hot. There is a lot you can do with this basic recipe. Enjoy.
weigh everything (whether in ounces or grams but not a mix of both) that you want to use.
Are the beeswax and cocoa butter measurements liquid form or solid (Pellets and chunks)?
Solid form Fanny, and the measurements are slightly forgiving too.
What is the purpose of the beeswax?
Beeswax is two-fold Sonia. It gives the lotion a better consistency and it acts as a barrier for the skin to retain moisture.
So can I use ewax if beeswax isn’t available?
I’m not sure AJ; I’ve never heard of ewax?
How much lotion does this make. I’d like to make enough to fill a 16 oz mason jar. Should I double this?
Yes, double this recipe for a 16 oz mason jar.
This looks great, but in the blog recipe it says 1/4 cup olive oil, while in the printable it says 1/8 cup. Which is correct, please?
Sorry about that! The correct measurement is 1/4 cup.
Awesome recipe luks simply delicious will try soon I m big fan of urs I hv tried many of your recipes and came out really well. thanks.
Thanks!
Hey, thanks for the recipe! I’m wondering if this is light/thin enough to work in a pump dispenser. …my preschooler needs lotion at school from washing his hands so often.
Hi Nakkita,
Great idea! If you choose to use the shea butter rather than cocoa butter, and possibly eliminate the beeswax, I think it would be thin enough for a pump or a squeeze bottle. Hope this helps!