Beauty DIY: All-Natural Hair and Body Balm

Aside from lip balms, some of the few beauty products that I can’t live without are body butter and hair balm. I used to buy my body butters from The Body Shop but I find them quite expensive (considering a medium tub only lasted 1 month for me) and they contain parabens. On the other hand, most hair balms that I tried are made out of mineral oil which normally gave me dandruff and itchy scalp. That is why I decided to formulate my own multipurpose hair and body balm using my favorite natural beauty oils.

Ingredients
(Makes one balm on 80g tin can)

2.5 tbsp. extra virgin coconut oil
1 tbsp. sweet almond oil
1 tbsp. sunflower oil
1.5 tbsp. beeswax pellets
8 - 10 drops of your favorite essential oil
1 capsule of Vitamin E

Instructions

1. Combine the coconut oil, sweet almond oil, sunflower oil and beeswax pellets in a double boiler. Over low heat, stir until the beeswax is completely melted. If you don’t have a double boiler, then you can just improvise by placing a heat-resistant container over a small pot of boiling water.
2. Remove from heat then stir the mixture with a spoon continuously for 5 minutes until it has the consistency of a thick lotion.
3. Add the Vitamin E (puncture the capsule and squeeze out the oil) and the essential oil. Mix well to evenly distribute the oils.
4. Transfer the mixture to a clean container.

Where to buy the materials

• I bought both the beeswax pellets and the 80g aluminum tin cans from ISLAS Aromatics.
• The extra virgin coconut oil can be bought in any supermarket. I bought mine from Landmark Makati.
• I bought the sweet almond oil and the sunflower oil from Craftology Essentials.
• I bought the essential oil from GIGA Naturally.
• Vitamin E capsule can be bought from any drugstore. I bought mine from Watsons pharmacy.

Conclusion

The result of the above recipe is a thick moisturizing balm that can be used both on body and hair. I usually apply it on dry areas of my skin like elbows, knees and feet. Although you can apply it all over your body, I recommend doing so at night before you sleep since it’s super rich in texture (in other words, quite oily) but I promise you that it will make your skin softer and smoother the next day. As a hair balm, I only use pea-size amount, rub between my palms and finger-comb my hair to evenly distribute it. It adds a little bit of shine to my hair and controls my frizzies without any product buildup. Again, a little amount goes a long way. Don’t put too much or you’ll end up with greasy hair.

Since this hair and body balm doesn’t contain preservatives, I suggest that you only create small batch at a time and use it within 3 – 4 months. Also, in order to prolong the shelf life of the balm, you may use a cream spatula to scoop out the balm from container instead of double-dipping to avoid contaminating it with bacteria.

Feel free to experiment with the above recipe by using other carrier oils (e.g. olive oil, grapeseed oil, etc.) and by customizing the scent with your own essential oil blend. My favorite scent is just plain lavender. Sometimes I will also add a few drops of peppermint essential oil to add some cooling effect which is perfect for summer season.