Frugal Tip Tuesday: How To Make Your Own Deodorant

While I'm chill-laxing in Costa Rica, here is a great post from The Greenest Dollar. I'll be back soon!

Powdered deodorant can be stored in beautiful jars like this one.

Deodorant is something that pretty much all of us use on a daily basis. And, the price of all that deodorant really adds up.For instance, I used to use Dove deodorant, until I found out how unhealthy it was from the Cosmetics Safety Database. Not good. So, I started buy Tom’s of Maine Lavender deodorant, which is aluminum-free, and much safer.

But, Tom’s is pricey. I pay almost $5 per stick for Tom’s. And while I dearly love this deodorant, I realized that perhaps I could start making my own.

A quick search online yielded a fabulous payload (what did people do before the Internet?).

The Magic Ingredient of Homemade Deodorant…
What did I learn? Baking soda is the big winner in homemade, natural deodorants. And when you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Baking soda is an excellent cleanser, and it neutralizes odors. Eureka!

So, I’m assembling a few of the recipes that I found online for you to check out.

Recipe 1: Baking Soda and Cornstarch Powder

This first homemade deodorant recipe comes from Melinda at One Green Generation. This was an excellent post, and this is probably the recipe I’m going to try first.

Her recipe is as follows:
1. In a reusable, resealable container, mix one part baking soda with six parts cornstarch.
2. Close the lid, and shake the container with gusto for at least a minute to mix the two powders.
3. Apply the powder with a cotton ball, cotton pad, or cosmetic applicator (like a powder puff).
Melinda has had great results with this recipe, so I’m excited to make it for myself. I have high hopes! I don’t have a powder jar as pretty as the one pictured, but maybe I can find one at the Salvation Army…

Recipe 2: Stick Deodorants With Coconut Oil
I found this YouTube video online, and it’s actually pretty good (if you don’t like Techno music, though, turn down the volume).

This recipe makes 12 sticks of natural deodorant, and there are several great recipes on the video (including some foot deodorizing powders) that include lavender and rosemary essential oils that I think would smell heavenly. Keep in mind, you will need some empty deodorant tubes for this recipe!


Recipe 3: Spray Deodorant With Baking Soda
I found this recipe on wikiHow, and it looks pretty easy.

1. Fill your spray bottle about halfway with water.
2. Mix in a bit of baking soda
3. Keep adding small amounts of baking soda until the mixture is slimy and smooth. The amount you use depends on your water and the size of your bottle.
4. Add a drop of lavender oil if you want.(or any kind of fragrance you like)
5. Shake the bottle gently to mix all the ingredients together. Now you have your own deodorant.
6. Spray on your underarms. Do not rinse. Gently massage underarm so the skin will absorb the deodorant faster, and so that it spreads to your entire underarm.

I have to wonder a bit on this one; if it’s a thicker paste, how’s it going to come out of the spray nozzle? Seems like it would be better to keep the consistency thin. Hmmm…might have to try this one just to experiment.

Recipe 4: Baking Soda and Shea Butter Cream

This fantastic recipe comes from Amy at The Angry Chicken, a wonderful blog I found while doing research for homemade deodorant recipes. If the recipe from One Green Generation doesn’t do the trick, this is definitely the next one I’m trying.

Here is Amy’s recipe. The final deodorant is a creamy texture (which can be poured in a shallow jar) and applied with your fingertips.
3 Tablespoons shea butter
3 Tablespoons baking soda
2 Tablespoons corn starch
2 Tablespoons cocoa butter
2 vitamin E oil gel caps (puncture and squeeze out the oil)
Essential Oil (Amy used ylang yang and orange)
Melt all the ingredients (except the oils!) together in the microwave, and then stir well. Next, add the oils and give it another good stir. Pour in a small jar and put it in the fridge to set.

This recipe filled a 1/4 pint jar.

Amy has more tips for making this recipe (you can go directly to her post here), and I highly recommend you check out her article. She had to add more essential oil than you might think to cover up the shea butter smell, and she thinks next time she might add a bit of vegetable glycerine to make it softer.

Last Word…
So, now I’m super excited to make some homemade deodorant. I don’t have any essential oils on hand, so I’m going to try the basic recipe with just baking soda and cornstarch first. But, I really would like to try The Angry Chicken’s recipe, so I might give that one a go this weekend.

Have any of you made your own homemade deodorant? Do you have a recipe you’d like to share?
I’m interested to find out if homemade deodorants work as well as store-bought. There’s no doubt it’s cheaper, but does it keep the stink down?

We’ll find out. And if you’ve done this before, please write in and share!