Meet Amy: Her skin is dry and she’s on a budget, so she developed this awesome-sounding recipe that both hydrates and scents the skin with citrusy goodness. Sounds delish. She also breaks down the whole emulsifier thing, which I know I’ve wondered about. Thanks Amy!

—Name: Amy

—Current hometown: Boulder, CO

—Product name that I made up: Happy Hydration

—Ingredients list: shea butter, jojoba oil, coconut oil, emulsifying wax*, distilled water, bergamot essential oil, sweet orange essential oil, vitamin E oil

—How I made It:

• Combine 5g shea butter, 10g jojoa oil, 5g coconut oil, and 5g emulsifying wax in one heat proof container
• Add 70g of distilled water to a separate heat proof container
• Create a double boiler by placing both containers in a low amount of just boiling water on medium heat (I put all of my ingredients in two glass pyrex measuring cups, then placed in pot of boiling water)
• Once the ingredients heat up to around 150 degrees, continue to let them sit in the double boiler for about 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, take them out, pour the distilled water into the mixture of oils, and immediately blend with an immersion blender for about 30 seconds (I’ve also used a regular blender and food processor and all work pretty well)
• Let the liquid lotion cool until it reaches about 120 degrees (5-10 minutes), then add in any essential oils. Blend for another 30 seconds or so.
• Pour into a clean and dry container. Once the lotion reaches room temperature (30ish minutes) it’s okay to put the lid on. Adding a lid any sooner can cause condensation to form in the container, equaling breeding grounds for some nasty mold.

How it smelled, felt, worked…

Nice light, creamy texture and happy citrus scent! Absorbs well into the skin.

Why I will or won’t do this again…

I’ve been experimenting with making my own lotions for about 6 months now and this is my favorite recipe so far. I have incredibly sensitive skin and a tight budget, and I feel like this lotion is perfect for both. I’m also a fan of using only oil as a moisturizer, but sometimes I just crave a creamy body butter or lotion to rub into my skin instead. I live at a high altitude, super dry climate and this recipe is versatile enough that I can make it extra heavy (using more shea or cocoa butters) for the dry winter months, or lighter (liquid-at-room-temperature-oils instead of butters) during the summer. It’s also multi-functioning – my boyfriend likes to use my lighter versions as a facial moisturizer and it gives him awesome glowy skin.

*I’m still slightly indecisive about this ingredient. To make lotion, it seems there needs to be some kind emulsifier to bind the oil and water together. At first I was resistant to using the wax, but when I discussed it with someone at the local apothecary where I buy all of my other ingredients, they explained that 1. although it’s processed, it is vegetable based, safe, and junk-free, it’s just no longer in it’s purest form; 2. I’m using a very small amount of it in my recipe and compared to any lotion I would buy, 5g of emulsifying wax is harmless; and 3. everything else in this store is as clean as it comes, organic, fair trade, etc. and I totally trust these people.

So for the time being, to get my lotion fix when just oils aren’t satisfying, I’m going to continue to throw in some emulsifying wax. Any thoughts? Have you guys looked into emulsifying wax?

Also, off the subject of my DIY submission but still awesomely DIY related…I had a nasty cut on my finger last night and in a pinch mixed some raw honey and vitamin E oil together, gooped it on my finger and put a band aid over it for the night. This morning the cut was more or less healed! No more nasty neosporin for me.