Raw organic virgin coconut oil is an amazing food, medicinal and beauty product. I recently used it successfully and quickly to heal shingles (I ate two tablespoonfuls a day), however, one of the further ways I started using it last year, was as a deodorant. As with toothpaste, I had been using an organic store-bought one but was determined to make my own.
I started searching and found a fair few recipes I liked the look of and in particular, one from Colorful Canary, who has an excellent blog and youtube site on all things organic. I decided to make a version of this latter using just one ingredient, coconut oil. For an extra luxurious touch, I also added a few drops of my favourite essential oils.
I started searching and found a fair few recipes I liked the look of and in particular, one from Colorful Canary, who has an excellent blog and youtube site on all things organic. I decided to make a version of this latter using just one ingredient, coconut oil. For an extra luxurious touch, I also added a few drops of my favourite essential oils.
This is not an antiperspirant
Sweating is a necessary and vital function, it not only keeps the body cool but also is a way your system rids itself of toxins, so stopping yourself from doing this is a real no-no. Recent research has looked at the way in which heavy metals and toxins such as BisphenolA (BPA) and phthalates are expelled through sweat.
Coconut oil is natures richest source of lauric acid, which is a powerful anti-bacterial. It also contains, in smaller amounts, capric and caprylic acid again both having anti-bacterial properties. The smell involved in sweating, is not the sweat itself but the breakdown of the latter by the action of bacteria on the skin, so using coconut oil allows you to sweat normally but without the odour.
Materials
An old roll-on glass deodorant bottle.
A heatproof jug containing hot water.
Coconut oil melts at 24°C (76°F) so the water doesn't need to be boiling.
Coconut oil
My favourite essential oil for using as a perfume is Ylang ylang (Cananga odorata) but I like to use it with a note of citrus, so either essential oil of Sweet Orange (Citrus sinensis) or Mandarin (Citrus reticulata). The mandarin is a fabulous deep greenish gold, so even a few drops give the finished deodorant a rich creamy colour.
Ingredients
essential oil(s) of choice
My favourite essential oil for using as a perfume is Ylang ylang (Cananga odorata) but I like to use it with a note of citrus, so either essential oil of Sweet Orange (Citrus sinensis) or Mandarin (Citrus reticulata). The mandarin is a fabulous deep greenish gold, so even a few drops give the finished deodorant a rich creamy colour.Method
Wash and dry the glass bottle and rollerball and add the coconut oil, it is up to you how much you want to make at each batch but there is no need to fill the bottle.
Replace the screw cap. Place in jug of hot water, the coconut oil will melt pretty quickly.
When melted remove from jug and leave to cool for a few minutes.
Add essential oils. I usually add 6 drops of my principal oil and 2-3 of the secondary. This would be for half my deodorant bottle of coconut oil but if I was to fill it to the top (the bottle holds 50ml or 1.6 fl oz), I would only add a couple of drops more of EO. I find always with essential oil that to get a good aroma without it being overpowering, a little will suffice. If at a later date you feel the scent is not powerful enough for your particular preferences you can always add an extra couple of drops.
Replace rollerball and top and give the bottle a shake to mix/incorporate the ingredients. Your deodorant is now ready for use.
Use
Colorful Canary's recipe (live link at bottom of page) involves several additional ingredients
because she makes a solid stick form of deodorant but I wanted to make a
roll on, hence one ingredient.
I live in an old stone house, which
stays cool in the Summer and I do not heat the bathroom so my deodorant
stays solid. All I do is heat
it briefly in warm water. I believe this is a
small concession for a non-toxic, totally organic home-made product. There is also a wonderful sense of freedom in making your own health and beauty products and it is fun too to fill your house with fragrance in making them. I guess there is a little of the alchemist in all of us, as we turn basic but quality household items into pure gold.
As I work at home, I do not feel any necessity to wear deodorant every day, even though with this recipe, I could and would. Coconut oil is to me a very valuable food item, so I would rather be using my stock of it as food. We do run a homestead/smallholding here, so do a lot of heavy manual work, which obviously engenders perspiration but I'm more likely to wear it when 'going out'. I would always apply the deodorant a few minutes before putting on any figure-hugging clothes, just to give the oil a chance to be absorbed by the skin. I must say I have never had any issues with coconut oil leaving marks on clothes and the test for identifying quality essential oils is that they don't leave residues. However, if you were going to wear your best close fitting silk party frock then you might think of incorporating some dress shields to protect the fabric. These are removable fabric pads, really easy to make, which are loosely sewn into a garment to protect the underarm. If you've ever bought antique or even vintage clothing you may have come across them.
Hope to see you here again for another recipe from an old farmhouse in Normandie,
Sue
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© 2015 Sue Cross
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