How do you make deodorant yourself? A natural deodorant without perfume, without an aerosol container and without essential oils can be made easily by anyone. Empty glass containers and all ingredients can be obtained from zero‑waste stores or various online shops.
If you look at the ingredient lists of eco‑friendly sensitive deodorants, you quickly realize that you can easily make the deodorant yourself. The advantages of the do‑it‑yourself method are obvious: you can adapt the DIY deodorant to your personal needs with just a few steps. It can be produced in an environmentally friendly and cost‑effective way. In addition, it does not create a disposal problem. The ingredients are easy to obtain and also have high utility in other household uses.
You should note that when producing a cosmetic product you must pay attention to hygiene. The produced quantity is also relevant. Homemade deodorants must be used up more quickly. Therefore you should not produce your favourite deodorant in large quantities for storage.
Ingredients required for a deodorant
There are various recipes on the internet for homemade deodorant. One of the most important ingredients of almost all deodorants is baking soda. Baking soda serves to neutralize odors. The baking soda powder is often mixed with shea butter, coconut oil, cocoa butter, apple cider vinegar or healing clay. You can also add aloe vera if you wish. It moisturizes the skin, heals small skin cracks and prevents soreness under the armpits.
Many DIY deodorant recipes contain essential oils. Scenting a DIY deodorant with lime, orange, lavender, sandalwood, sage or mint oil is, of course, a matter of personal preference. However, it can lead to skin irritation and sensitization. Therefore you should use only a few drops of an essential oil. To test compatibility, you can mix a little olive oil in the palm of your hand with a drop of the selected fragrance oil and apply it under the armpit. If you experience no reaction such as burning or stinging, irritation or redness within 24 hours, the mixture is compatible for you.
Fragrance‑free deodorant versions
In principle, five ingredients are sufficient for an unscented, solid deodorant: baking soda, coconut oil, shea butter, beeswax or sunflower wax, and moringa oil. If you want to use shea butter as an ingredient in your DIY deodorant, you should stir it in a water bath for an extended period until it becomes creamy. If you add coconut oil or aloe vera gel, shea butter is particularly skin‑friendly.
In principle, you can repurpose any fragrance‑free skin cream into a deodorant cream. For that you only need a small glass jar. Simply add a little baking soda to your skin cream. If you want your deodorant cream to have a pleasant scent without essential oils, choose coconut oil. It is also worth trying a baking ingredient: a few drops of liquid vanilla flavor will give the deodorant cream a pleasant vanilla scent.
Conventional deodorants are generally heavily fragranced. Perfumed deodorants can potentially cause skin irritation, intolerances and fragrance allergies. Therefore a fragrance-free DIY deodorant is preferable.
A well-tolerated coconut oil deodorant
For this homemade deodorant cream you only need coconut oil, baking soda and cornstarch. The advantage of coconut oil is that it is both pleasantly scented and has antibacterial properties. In addition, coconut oil is nourishing for the skin. Use three teaspoons of coconut oil to two tablespoons of baking soda and two teaspoons of cornstarch. You can use either corn starch or potato starch.
Put the dry ingredients into a glass or porcelain bowl. Then pour the oil in gradually. Mix the ingredients thoroughly. The result should be a lump-free, creamy paste. If desired, ten drops of any essential oil can be added. Then transfer the mixture into a tightly sealable glass jar with a screw lid.
Using the DIY deodorant
To use your deodorant, you only need a pea-sized amount per armpit. Spread the deodorant cream evenly over the armpits. Allow the deodorant to absorb slightly. If your DIY deodorant stings slightly on freshly shaved skin, that is normal. You may want to reduce the baking soda next time and use more starch. If necessary, omit the baking soda entirely and use more starch instead. Alternatively, you can make a baking-soda-free deodorant spray.
DIY Deodorant Spray – with or without baking soda
If you noticed from the deodorant cream that you don’t like baking soda on your underarm skin, this homemade deodorant spray may be a good alternative. You can make it with or without baking soda.
DIY deodorant spray with baking soda:
Take 90 milliliters of distilled or boiled water. Add one teaspoon of baking soda and a few drops of essential oil, preferably organic. Citrus oils are refreshing; vanilla oil is sensual and intoxicating. Baking soda dissolves more easily if you add it to lukewarm water. Then add the chosen oil and fill everything into an empty pump spray bottle. Tip: Shake your deodorant once before each use so the ingredients mix.
DIY deodorant spray without baking soda
If you want to make a deodorant spray without baking soda, add one teaspoon of high-proof alcohol or apple cider vinegar to the water instead of baking soda. After spraying, rub the deodorant lightly into the skin and let it take effect.
Making a deodorant roll-on yourself?
You need an empty deodorant roll-on into which you can pour the homemade deodorant cream. For this you take 100 milliliters of tap water and bring it to a boil. Then mix one tablespoon of cornstarch and one tablespoon of baking soda together and stir these with one tablespoon of the water into a thick, lump-free paste.
Once the powder has dissolved, you can add the remaining water. Depending on need, you can add six to ten drops of your preferred essential oil. This also serves as a preservative. Now fill the mixture into an empty deodorant roll-on bottle. You can use an already emptied and thoroughly rinsed roll-on bottle. Alternatively, you can buy an empty roll-on bottle in retail or at the pharmacy.
Critical ingredients or side effects
Possible intolerances to baking soda or essential oils were noted. Baking soda can potentially cause mild skin irritation. Fragrance oils can also trigger allergies. Therefore a patch test for both ingredients is recommended. Add aloe vera gel as an additional ingredient if you have sensitive or irritation-prone skin.
Pure alcohol used as an ingredient in DIY deodorant spray can also cause skin irritation. Some people also react to apple cider vinegar with skin irritation.
To prevent contamination of deodorant ingredients, maintain good hygiene when making deodorant. All powdered ingredients should be removed from their paper bags and stored in screw-top glass jars. Homemade cosmetics should be stored cool and dark. They should be used up within one month. Why? The oils used tend to go rancid faster under exposure to oxygen or sunlight without preservatives.
If you don’t have the time to make a deodorant cream, roll-on, or spray yourself, you can turn to vegan deodorants. You can also find such alternative deodorants in our naturhaus online shop.
Image credit: iStock 1162162340 macniak