I came across an old thread here while googling for home made skin lotions. Being a brand new convert to DE shaving, I can see that this forum is a goldmine and signed right up (feel free to see my introduction the the newb section).
Never having been much of a shaver and no real experience with the variety of aftershave products, I am clueless as to what I want or what scents my wife and I will like. Last thing I want to do is spend a bunch of money trying stuff out at $8-$15 a bottle only to have it be wasted.
I've never been a fan of the thin splash type after-shaves and with my infrequent shaving never really used an aftershave product. I decided that if I am going to baby myself with DE shaving though, I may as well go all the way and see if I could "save" more money by making my own after shave balm.
I had to go to the store today for styptic anyway so loosely basing my make it up on the fly receive on what,bi found in that old thread, I picked up some Witch Hazel, glycerine, aloe, tea tree oil, and a couple of small plastic squeeze bottles. My wife has a variety of essential oils so that part was already covered.
For my first attempt I made a base of:
1 part Witch Hazel
1 part aloe Vera gel
3 parts Coconut oil
Unmeasured amounts of water, glycerin, and tea tree oil.
I made about 5 fl oz worth and split it between the two bottles.
In one bottle I added Lavender, Frankincense, and lime oils. The other got eucalyptus and lime. I didn't really measure amounts, just kept adding the drops until I got a smell that I and my wife liked. Didn't want anything too heavy as we have a "scents and sensitivities" policy at work that frowns on strong perfumes, colognes, and the like for folks with allergies and such.
For a first attempt, I am pretty pleased. I might use less coconut oil on the next go around as my formula is solid at room temp. Not too concerned though, I just drop the bottle in warm water while I shave and turns back to liquid with a room temp maple syrup consistency.
After shaving this evening (date night!) I squeezed a quarter sized dollop in my palm and then rubbed it into my cheeks and neck. Nice light scent and felt good going on without seeming greasy. Rubbed right in and really seems to add to the smoothness of the shave.
This is going to be fun!
Never having been much of a shaver and no real experience with the variety of aftershave products, I am clueless as to what I want or what scents my wife and I will like. Last thing I want to do is spend a bunch of money trying stuff out at $8-$15 a bottle only to have it be wasted.
I've never been a fan of the thin splash type after-shaves and with my infrequent shaving never really used an aftershave product. I decided that if I am going to baby myself with DE shaving though, I may as well go all the way and see if I could "save" more money by making my own after shave balm.
I had to go to the store today for styptic anyway so loosely basing my make it up on the fly receive on what,bi found in that old thread, I picked up some Witch Hazel, glycerine, aloe, tea tree oil, and a couple of small plastic squeeze bottles. My wife has a variety of essential oils so that part was already covered.
For my first attempt I made a base of:
1 part Witch Hazel
1 part aloe Vera gel
3 parts Coconut oil
Unmeasured amounts of water, glycerin, and tea tree oil.
I made about 5 fl oz worth and split it between the two bottles.
In one bottle I added Lavender, Frankincense, and lime oils. The other got eucalyptus and lime. I didn't really measure amounts, just kept adding the drops until I got a smell that I and my wife liked. Didn't want anything too heavy as we have a "scents and sensitivities" policy at work that frowns on strong perfumes, colognes, and the like for folks with allergies and such.
For a first attempt, I am pretty pleased. I might use less coconut oil on the next go around as my formula is solid at room temp. Not too concerned though, I just drop the bottle in warm water while I shave and turns back to liquid with a room temp maple syrup consistency.
After shaving this evening (date night!) I squeezed a quarter sized dollop in my palm and then rubbed it into my cheeks and neck. Nice light scent and felt good going on without seeming greasy. Rubbed right in and really seems to add to the smoothness of the shave.
This is going to be fun!
