Light and non-greasy hand and body cream made from 7 ingredients

What consistency is it?

You may have already noticed that most homemade creams are more greasy and buttery. Purchased hand and body creams are often lighter and easier to absorb than homemade ones. This is mainly because purchased creams contain both water and oil, which are mixed thanks to the emulsifier. Don't be alarmed, emulsification is a process that can also be achieved using natural ingredients. We have already devoted an entire article to the topic of emulsification and emulsifiers, take a look at it.

Creams or body lotions also differ in their density, viscosity and a kind of "richness". They can also contain various active substances, perfume oils or even glitter. Today, we decided to go the minimalist route.

We will make a moisturizing and fast-absorbing hand cream that can also be used as a body or face lotion. Our intention was to create a non-greasy product (no one wants to have greasy stains on everything they touch after applying oil), which is moisturizing and nourishing at the same time, smells nice and is made with a minimum of ingredients. Succeeded!

What do we make it out of?

Perhaps it will come as a surprise that you won't find any classic oil or butter in the cream. Precisely because the product should not be greasy, we use easily absorbable caprylis instead of oils and butters. The basis of the cream must be water, to which we add emollient and moisturizing vegetable glycerin. In order for cream to become cream, an emulsifier is needed. We will therefore use emulsifying wax NF. For rich butteriness and that pleasant viscosity that makes the cream silky, we use the unbeatable cetearyl alcohol.

We chose the scent to match the properties of the cream – clean, light, yet interesting and with a long-lasting effect. This is exactly what the cosmetic fragrance of Aloe is. Softly powdery, floral, yet with fresh tones. Well, smell it yourself! Since the product contains water, it is also necessary to reach for a preservative. Be sure not to forget about it, it is a must here and the cream with it will last at least 12 months if it is stored well.

And before we get down to mixing, one more important thing…

Don't panic!

The cream produced will be very, very liquid. It's alright! Give it two or three days, and it will thicken nicely and become really creamy. We promise. :)

Ok lets go.

What does it take?

- 263 grams of distilled water

- 36 grams of vegetable glycerin

- 32.4 grams of caprylis

- 18 grams of cetearyl alcohol

- 7.2 grams of emulsifying wax NF

- 2 grams of Cosgard preservative

- 1.4 grams of Aloe fragrance oil

How to do it?

Prepare a water bath by pouring about 3cm of water into the saucepan and letting it heat up on the stove. Meanwhile, weigh the water and glycerin into a heatproof container. Weigh caprylis, cetearyl alcohol and emulsifying wax NF into the second container - place this container in a water bath and let everything dissolve.

After about 15 minutes everything will be dissolved. Also put a container with distilled water and glycerin in the water bath for a few minutes so that all the ingredients are at approximately the same temperature.

Then remove both containers. Pour the water phase into the oil phase - a mixture of caprylis, cetearyl alcohol and emulsifying wax. Not the other way around. :) Mix everything well with a spatula.

Take a stick blender and blend the mixture in short intervals for about a minute. Then use the spatula again, mix the cream with it, making sure to wipe the product from the edges of the container. When the whole mixture becomes compact and creamy, add the weighed preservative and fragrance. Mix everything well once more.

Now it's time to transfer the product to the packaging. You will make approximately 120ml of cream from the indicated amount of ingredients, so it will be great to use either a glass container with a lid or an elegant bottle with a beautiful black pump, which we used.

As we have already said, the cream will change its density for a few days. Give it time, and then use it on your hands, body and even your face.