You can never be too picky about what you put on your baby’s skin and for me, you can bet that commercial, chemical and preservative filled lotions don’t make the cut. I honestly didn’t know what I was going to do until I found this homemade baby lotion recipe.
You wouldn’t feed those chemicals to your baby, so why would you put it on their skin? Skin – any skin, but especially baby skin – is very absorbent. If you rub it in, it’s going to make it’s way into the body.
And so, I make my own lotion. Incidentally, this is the same lotion I often use on myself. It’s an excellent facial moisturizer because it absorbs quickly, and you can adjust the ratios for your specific skin type. Oily skin? Use more aloe vera gel. Dry skin? Add more coconut oil. Acne problems? Add some tea tree oil.
As you can see, this homemade baby lotion recipe is very simple, and very easily customizable. It’s a great blend because coconut oil, as oils go, absorbs into the skin quickly, and the aloe vera gel helps it absorb much more quickly so that it doesn’t feel greasy at all.
There is some controversy about whether homemade lotions should be kept at room temperature for more than just a few weeks, so I’ll just say that I’ve kept mine out on the counter top for a couple months at a time with no issues at all. I do however usually add some sort of antibacterial essential oil to it, even if it’s just a few drops. If you do store it in the refrigerator, the texture will be closer to a lotion bar than a creamy lotion. (See picture below).
Lavender essential oil is an excellent addition to baby lotion – especially if your baby has a difficult time sleeping. Lavender is so relaxing – and it just happens to be one of those aforementioned anti-bacterial oils!
Homemade Baby Lotion Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup aloe vera gel
- Essential oil – several drops (optional)
Instructions:
- Gently heat coconut oil until just melted – but not hot. Pout into a blender or food processer (or use a cup and stick blender for easy clean up!) with cold aloe vera gel and essential oil, and blend until creamy and well emulsified.
- Scrape into a container with a tight fitting lid, and store either at room temperature, or in the refrigerator – whichever you prefer.
- That’s all there is to it!
Have you ever made your own lotion?
Notes: Since writing this, I’ve learned that keeping it at room temperature only works if your room in 75º or below – the melting point of coconut oil. So if you keep your house really warm, you will definitely want to store this in the refrigerator!
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.
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Sheri says
Does this work if stored in a pump bottle? Or would it be to thick?
Elise says
If it’s warm enough it would probably work very well in a pump bottle. 🙂
Meg says
Would this recipe work in a pump bottle, or is it too thick for the pump & should be kept in a “scoopable” container? Thanks!
Elise says
It really depends on the temperature of the room if you use coconut oil. If you use MCT oil, then yes, it will be very runny.
Lily says
Hi Elise,
I’m new to making DYI homemade skincare and very excited to try this recipe & your other recipes. I have aloe vera plants in my back yard & wondering if I can the gel from the fresh plant vs store bought which most likely has preservatives. Also, what is the shelf-life of these lotions?
Thank you,
Lily
Elise says
Hi Lily, you can try pressing the gel out of your aloe vera leaves. It may be thinner, but that’s the best stuff! 🙂
The lotion should last several weeks in your refrigerator, or a week on your countertop IF there are antibacterial essential oils, or grapefruit seed extract in it.
Maggie Bourdeau says
Thank you for this recipe!! Question- does anyone notice a bad smell after having the lotion on for a couple hours? It’s strange like it’s going bad on my skin…it’s the coconut oil, not the essential oil that I’ve figured out. Does anybody know why?
Theodora says
Hello! Great recipe! Is there anyway to add panthenol b5 on the creme for extra moisture?will be safe for the baby
Amanda says
So I know this post is kind of old, but I found it recently and really wanted to try it. Unfortunately I’m having a hard time getting it to emulsify. My first attempt, I thought maybe I got the coconut oil too warm, so I put the mixture in the refrigerator for a few minutes… Of course life distracted me, so by time I got back it was a mess… Liquid on bottom, hardish whipped coconut oil on top. After reading through the other comments I decided to warm it up a little to melt the coconut oil and try again. As it was cooling/firming up again I would come back and mix it every 5-10 minutes. When I thought it was finally all mixed and good to go (a little on the thin side, but completely Incorporated and creamy) I went back to the other project I was working on. Next time I walked by, it was separated just like the first attempt…😔 what am I doing wrong?
Rebekah says
Didn’t work for me. I added the cold gel to the warm coconut oil, looked for 10 seconds like it would emulsify then it suddenly separated and thickened. I cooled it all off, tried again. Warmed it all up, tried it again. Just beat it for 2 minutes in stand mixer and it’s coated all the way up the bowl with nothing left in the bottom to mix. I would not make this again without an emulsifier.
Carmela Zenner says
I made this recipe with mostly fresh aloe vera scraped from my plant’s leaves. And it turned out foamy & slimy and stayed that way. It is stored in my basement bathroom so I know the temps don’t get above 70 degrees. I want to use it as a face lotion, what do you suggest I add to thicken it and maybe make it less oily but also still be healthy? Also I didn’t really think about whether I should have added grapefruit seed extract to it for longevity?
Simone says
Hello! I was wondering if you use already made aloe Vera gel or fresh inner flesh of the plant?
Elise says
I typically buy it.