Make this rich homemade lotion with a pump-able consistency & luxurious rose aroma with use of a few specific ingredients to ensure a perfect texture! In partnership with Mountain Rose Herbs, learn how to make a pumpable lotion at home!
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There comes a time in every “crunchy mama’s” (or papa’s) life where she or he attempts to make a pump-able homemade lotion from some recipe found on Pinterest. And I will suggest that about 90% of these homemade lotion attempts likely resulted in total failure. Knowing what I know now, after more than a handful of failures, I can say but a few things confidently. Perhaps the most pertinent is that emulsions are hard. Getting oil and water to blend seamlessly and stay that way, while also not becoming a microbial junk drawer of germs takes a few specialized ingredients and technique.
Making a pump-able homemade lotion takes a little bit of skill and planning, but the results can be every bit as lovely as a commercially produced lotion. AND you will have complete control over the ingredients. I set about making a batch of homemade lotion to give as gifts this holiday season with some of my favorite Moutain Rose Herbs ingredients.
Rose-Scented Homemade Lotion Ingredients
To make this rose-scented, rich, nourishing, yet lightweight and non-greasy homemade lotion with a pump-able consistency, you will need:
Distilled Water
It is vital to have a sterile water source with a neutral pH, free of contaminants.
Rose Hydrosol
This is a beautiful way to deliver subtle rose scent to your resulting lotion.
Sweet Almond Oil
This highly nourishing oil makes an excellent base for a handmade lotion. I personally like to infuse the sweet almond oil with some rose petals before making this lotion but that is a completely optional step.
Rosehip Seed Oil
Known for its wonderful absorption, this an exceptionally nourishing oil that offers an abundance of benefits for the skin.
Cocoa Butter
Super rich and chocolatey scented cocoa butter adds some richness and deep moisturizing qualities to the handmade lotion.
Glycerin
A natural humectants, glycerin draws moisture to the skin.
Aloe Vera
Cooling aloe contributes soothing qualities to the homemade lotion.
Emulsifying Wax
Use of this wax is imperative to achieving the right texture in your homemade lotion so that it remains pump-able and consistent. Although I love using beeswax in my salves and balms, beeswax is not a proper emulsifier and will result in a lotion that hardens and separates over time.
Vitamin E Oil
Vitamin is an antioxidant that helps to prevent the degradation of oil over time.
A preservative of your choice (optional; please make note of explanation)
Due to the presence of water in this recipe, it is highly recommended that you consider a preservative of some sort to prevent or reduce microbial growth. There are a variety of synthetic and some natural options (here is a great post on the subject from my friend Jan of the Nerdy Farm Wife) that have varying degrees of efficacy on certain microbes. I personally like to use bee propolis – while not a scientifically proven preservative, I have had good personal results – your results may vary. Please do some research on the subject and make an informed decision. If you chose not to use a preservative, you will probably want to refrigerate your unused portions and dose out that which you can use in 7-10 days.
Geranium Essential Oil (optional; you can always increase the hydrosol to distilled water to increase the aroma)
Geranium offers subtle rose scent without the staggering rose essential oil price tag, make this a much more reasonable project for making for yourself and gifts.
4-8 oz Pump Bottles
The consistency of this lotion is perfect for pumping, and bottle with a pump dispenser serves a very important role in the shelf life of your lotion. By using pump bottles you will not be dipping microbially laden fingers into your lotion reducing the chances of spoilage greatly.
A few notes to ensure your homemade lotion success… Always use clean and sterilized equipment and clean hands to reduce the introduction of microbes in your homemade lotion. Using a digital kitchen scale will measure out your ingredients will increase precision and success. A stick blender or standard blender will make quick work of the emulsification process. When combining your oil and water phases, they combine best when approximately the same temperatures. Lastly, make sure that your lotion is fully cooled and room temperature before bottling. With those few considerations in mind, you should have a beautifully crafted, rose-scented homemade lotion to share!
Want more herbal-ly inspired recipe to treat yourself and give as gifts? Check out this soap, this buttermilk bath, and this incredible facial mask!
Rose-Scented Homemade Lotion Recipe
Perfectly Foolproof Rose-Scented Homemade Lotion {Pump-able}
Ingredients
- 11.5 ounces distilled water
- 9.5 ounces rose hydrosol
- .75 ounces aloe vera gel
- .75 ounces vegetable glycerin
- 4.75 ounces sweet almond oil
- 2.25 ounces rosehip seed oil
- 1 ounce cocoa butter
- 1.1 ounces emulsifying wax
- .15 ounces vitamin E oil
- .15 ounces geranium essential oil optional
- .15 ounces preservative of your choice optional; see explanation in post
Instructions
- Combine sweet almond oil, rosehip seed oil, cocoa butter and emulsifying wax in a heat-proof medium-sized bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of simmering water, and melt the cocoa butter and emulsifying wax. Set aside and cool to slightly above room temperature.
- Combine distilled water, hydrosol, aloe, and glycerin into a separate container. While blending in a regular blender or using a stick blender, slowly pour the water mixture into the oil mixture until perfectly emulsified.
- Add vitamin E oil, optional essential oils, and preservative, blending again to combine.
- Before bottling, make sure that your lotion is completely cooled. Using a funnel and some patience, slowly pour into sterilized bottles and top with a pump. You may find that it is necessary to gently tap the funnel to encourage the lotion into the bottle.
2 Comments
I can’t wait to try this! Like you said, there are a lot of terrible pumpable lotion recipes out there but they go bad too fast! Thank you for taking the time to explain why. Now I know the problem with most recipes is the ingredients are too simple and don’t use a preservative.
Im going to order all these ingredients and give it a shot. I’ll check back to let you know how it goes.
Not sure what I’m going to use for the preservative yet. I checked out that post from the nerdy farm wife, which was awesome. After reading that, Im considering using Leucidal Liquid SF.
How did you use the bee propolis? She mentions using a bee propolis tincture but that it smelled too “boozy” for her liking. Do you think your finished product smells boozy at all? About how long does the lotion last using it?
Thanks again!
I just wanted to say a huge thank you to you for sharing this recipe. I’ve been making this lotion for myself for a year now. With some tweaks on fragrance I have found my signature scent and consistency. I love it! And whenever one of my friends compliments my skin and the scent I tell them “this lady Devon taught me how to make this… You must visit her blog nitthgrittylife.” I absolutely love this!! Thank you.