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Hey guys! My name is Kay, and I am the creator of this blog. Today we’ll be making a Lavender Honey Hand Cream. Keeping skin hydrated with cold autumn months upon us can be challenging. Chilly weather and low humidity in the air can cause the skin to become dry, scaly and even cracked. Fortunately, this is an effective moisturiser that keeps your skin soft and supple, and you can whip it up at home without breaking the bank.
Table of Contents
- Why are Hand Creams Better for Dry Skin Than Balms and Butters?
- Ingredients You’ll Need for Lavender Honey Hand Cream
- DIY Lavender Honey Hand Cream Recipe
- FAQs
Why are Hand Creams Better for Dry Skin Than Balms and Butters?
While anhydrous products like balms and butter help nourish and soften the skin, they lack water, which hydrates the skin and prevents it from drying. Suppose your skin tends to get dry in winter. In that case, your skin needs an extra moisturising product during winter to protect it from extreme conditions.
A good quality hand cream combines nourishing ingredients that draw and lock moisture in, keeping the skin soft and supple. It will include:
– water to hydrate the skin
– humectants, like glycerin, honey or hyaluronic acid to draw moisture into the skin
– emollients (butter and oils) to soften the skin
– occlusives (cocoa butter, waxes) to prevent moisture loss.
The emulsifier and gum help keep the ingredients together and create a stable mix.
Ingredients You’ll Need for Lavender Honey Hand Cream
Beeswax: It has been used in skincare for centuries and for a good reason too! It is a natural occlusive that works by forming a protective barrier on the skin and stopping the moisture from escaping.
Shea butter is another great winter moisturiser that keeps your hands soft and supple. Abundant in antioxidants (vitamins A and E), shea butter can help protect skin cells from free radicals and premature ageing. Moreover, shea butter can minimise irritations caused by chilli and dry weather due to its anti-inflammatory action.
Macerated Lavender Oil: Lavender is one of the oldest and most well-known flowering plants that has been used for centuries. Its calming and soothing effect benefits dry skin by controlling sebum production, making it a good choice for dry skin. You can soak up lavender’s properties by preparing your own macerated lavender oil.
Olivem1000: Natural thickener and emulsifier used to create hand creams, body lotions, etc. It works by attracting both water and oil molecules, allowing the creation of a stable mixture.
Manuka Honey Floral Water: Calming and rejuvenating; manuka honey water is a wonderful hydrating ingredient that naturally revives your skin.
Glycerin: A natural humectant that helps to keep the skin moisturised by drawing water molecules from the surroundings into the skin, thus preventing dryness.
Xanthan Gum: Stabilising and thickening agent that stops emulsion from separating.
Vitamin E: A potent antioxidant that helps to protect the skin from environmental damage. It particularly suits dry skin as it helps moisturise and revitalise the skin.
Frankincense Essential Oil: Its reviving, soothing and preserving qualities make it an excellent choice for dry skin, especially during the cold months.
Preservative ECO: This is non-optional as this hand cream recipe combines water and oil. The preservative is essential to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria, yeast and mould. Essentially, keeping the product safe for use.
DIY Lavender Honey Hand Cream Recipe
To make 100g of hand cream, you’ll need:
Ingredients
Phase A
Beeswax 3.00g
Shea Butter 5.00g
Macerated Lavender Oil 20.00g
Olivem1000 6.00g
Phase B
Manuka Honey Floral Water 59.05g
Glycerin 5.00g
Xanthan Gum 0.30g
Phase C
Vitamin E 0.50g
Lavender Essential Oil 0.10g
Frankincense 0.05g
Phase D
Preservative Eco 1.00g
Method
Step 1: Prepare a hot water bath by bringing about 2-3 cm of water to a simmer over medium-low heat in a small saucepan.
Step 2: Weigh all phase A ingredients in a glass beaker, and place them into the hot water bath.
Step 3: Weigh all manuka honey water (stage B ingredients) in the second glass beaker, and place it into the hot water bath.
Step 4: Mix xanthan gum and glycerine in a third beaker and set aside.
Step 5: Once the oil phase in the first beaker and the water phase in the second beaker reach 70°C, slowly pour the oil phase into the water phase, stirring continually for about 5 minutes. Now, you can add glycerin and xanthan gum mix.
Step 6: When your emulsion cools down to under 40°C, add phase C ingredients (vitamin E and essential oils).
Step 7: Check the pH is compatible with the supplier’s recommendations by diluting 10% of the emulsion in distilled water.
Step 8: Add the Preservative Eco and recheck the ph. Adjust if needed, just like described in step 7.
Step 9: You can transfer hand cream into a jar and let it set. The emulsion will thicken overnight.
Shelf life and storage
Even with the preservative, homemade emollients might spoil as our kitchens are not sterile labs. If your hand cream changes colour, smell or texture, dispose of it and whip up a new batch.
Substitutes
Please remember that swapping the ingredients in the formula will alter the final product. Consider how the ingredient you switch will affect the final product’s scent, consistency, or absorbency when making changes.
Beeswax: You can omit beeswax altogether and replace it with butter or oil. Or, you can try a vegan alternative such as carnauba, candelilla or myrica fruit wax.
Shea butter: Shea butter has a distinctive smell and might put some people off. If you find shea butter too much, mango butter has almost no scent but holds a similar fatty acid composition.
Sweet almond oil: To prepare macerated lavender oil, I have used sweet almond oil, a stable, inexpensive oil. You can replace it with sunflower or jojoba oil, for example.
Olivem1000, Glycerin, Xanthan gum: I don’t recommend omitting or swapping any of these ingredients in this formula.
Essential oils: Although they can enhance our well-being, essential oils are potent substances that can cause adverse reactions if not used safely and within recommended dermal limits. If you’d like to swap them for another essential oil safely, check out Essential Oil Safety: A Guide for Health Care Professionals by R Tisserand and R Young.
Vitamin E: You can replace vitamin E with rosemary extract.
Tools
- High Precision Digital Scale
- Glass beakers
- Whisk or milk frother
- Spatula
- Jar with a lid
- pH test strips
- Thermometer
FAQs
How to test an emulsion pH?
Naissance Olivem1000 recommended ph range is 3-12 (I aim for about 5-6, which is the skin’s natural pH). You can check the emulsion’s pH by diluting 10% of the emulsion in distilled water (10% emulsion/90% distilled water). If it is too high, you can decrease it by using a drop or two of citric acid solution( 10% citric acid to 90% distilled water). If the ph is too low, you can increase it by adding a drop or two of sodium bicarbonate solution (10% sodium bicarbonate to 90% distilled water)
Why is it vital to use hand cream?
Nourishing, high-quality hand cream provides long-lasting hydration, helping restore the skin’s moisture barrier while softening and soothing dry skin. Hand cream, which rehydrates and softens the skin, is essential in combating dry skin.
How often can you apply hand cream throughout the day?
Apply hand cream as frequently as needed to keep your hands soft and supple. I find rich, nourishing moisturisers more effective in winter as my hands tend to get super dry. This recipe is simple enough but effective.
