Super light Avocado Body Lotion

Today we are going to make our first emulsion lotion project — a super light avocado body lotion. Are you as excited as me? Yay! I love avocado oil because it is so versatile and nutritious, we can use it from cooking to skincare. If you are here in my blog for the first time, please check here for some cooking and DIY Skincare projects from me using Avocado Oil.

DIY avocado body lotion ingredients

Let’s talk a little bit more about avocado oil. Avocado oil is loaded with omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins A, D, and E. In addition to vitamin E, avocado oil contains potassium, lecithin, and many other nutrients that can nourish and moisturize the skin. The outermost layer of skin, known as the epidermis, easily absorbs these nutrients, which also help to form new skin. But because we also want a deep penetration to our innermost layer of skin to get the same nutrients as well, we have to make into lotion form, so it is lighter and faster in term of absorbance. Just by using the avocado oil itself, you will see, it is so thick and rich, and it will take you a long time to absorb into your skin.

Avocado body lotion formulation

So what is a lotion? Lotion is created by combining oils and water with an emulsifier. The texture of your lotion will depend on the proportions of each ingredient and the type of emulsifier and oils. Additional ingredients such as glycerine, thickeners, fragrance and colour can also be added. So let me review my avocado body lotion formulation.

Skin-loving shea butter is a solid oil, it helps to create a richer texture for the lotion. Polawax is an emulsifier to help to bine both oil and water (two totally different phases that don’t mix together by nature). In order to create that slippy silky lotion, I included glycerine as an emollient in my recipe. Last but not least we will also need preservatives to prevent our lotion gone bad. I included also essential oil as a fragrance for my lotion. You can choose your favorite essential oil, here I use Ylang-Ylang.

DIY Tools

• Electronic balance precision 0.01g
• Mini Inox whisk
• Double-boiler x2 / Pyrex beaker 500ml x2
• Thermometer
• pH paper

Related Post : Essential DIY Equipment and Tools for DIY Beauty Crafters

Packaging

• 100ml Pump Bottle / Airless Pump Bottle / Tube

Personally, I strongly recommend using an airless pump bottle for lotion. As our DIY project has an objective to reuse all the bottles in the end for the next project, we will have to make our cleaning job easier as well. Traditional pump bottle has that long tiny tube from the bottom to the pump head to facilitate the pumping process. This means by the end we will have to clean the long tube for our next project, which is not easy. By using an airless pump bottle you will not have such problem. And you can easily finish the last drop of lotion. Which using a tube won’t give you the same advantage as well, you will always have that unfinished product inside the tube, just like our store-bought toothpaste.

I don’t recommend putting it in a glass jar, as the texture is slippy and liquid as it contains water. Secondly because even we do use preservatives in our body lotion, it will still likely go bad if our preparation environment is not well sanitised. And dipping our hands inside the jar on daily basis will likely introduce bacteria, and that will make the lifespan of the product becomes shorter.

Super light Avocado Body Lotion

Recipe by CalleighCourse: Beauty RecipesDifficulty: advance

Yield

80

ml

Prep time

10

minutes

Emulsion Time

30

minutes

Resting Time

12

hours

This project is to prepare an 80ml body lotion.
Please note that phase A = oil-heating phase, phase B =water-heating phase, phase C= cool-down phase.

Ingredients

• Phase A/ 13.7g Avocado Oil

• Phase A/ 2.7g Shea Butter

• Phase A/ 5g Polawax

• Phase B/ 60g Water

• Phase B/ 2.5g Glycerine

• Phase C/ 1.5g Essential oil of choice, here I use Ylang-Ylang

• Phase C/ 0.6g Benzoate and Sorbate

Directions

• Prepare and weigh all your ingredients before hand.
• Transfer all the ingredients of phase A into a double boiler and heat it over a simmering water bath. Stir and mix until all the ingredients are melted and well mixed.
• In the same time, transfer all the ingredients of phase B into a second double boiler and heat it over a simmering water bath as well.
• Heat both phases until 75°C ~80°C. Once they reach the same temperature, slowly transfer phase B into phase A, on the other hand, continue stirring and mixing non-stop during the process. About 3 minutes of time, the mixture will start to emulsified and turn white, and finally reach an homogenous state.
• Transfer the mixture bowl into a cold water bath, continue mixing for another 3 minutes.
• Let it rest for 15 minutes.
• Add in phase C and continue mixing.
• Transfer your lotion into your packaging.

Notes & SubstitutionS

• The preservative is indispensable as our lotion contains water. Water product = microbes friendly. You can replace by liquid germall plus or geogard.
• I don’t recommend replace the shea butter & avocado oil. As the whole purpose of creating this lotion is to have that luxurious rich nutrients from them.
• I don’t recommend replacing the Polawax as well, as changing a different type of emulsifier will required a whole new formulation.
• Your lotion might still be very liquid by the end of your DIY project. You will need to leave it over night, let’s say 12 hours to achieve the correct viscosity.
• The pH of this lotion is around 5~6. If you follow my instruction carefully, you will get the same result without needing a pH meter.
• Under an optimized hygiene environment, this lotion can store up to 3 months. Even with preservative, this lotion is still not microbes-proof, as our working environment is not well sanitised. In the events of having doubts or the lotion smells funny or change of colour, please throw it away and make a new batch.

This lotion is for daily usage, it helps smoothen and hydrates your skin. I love how my skin is so smooth and silky after each application.

Happy making! And enjoy your moisturised pampered skin.

If you like my tutorial, please consider donating me a cup of coffee. =)

Calleigh

Hi, I am Calleigh, MEng Chemical Engineering and a process engineer, and I'm here to show you how to DIY your skincare and household products with the correct formulation and using only natural ingredients. I believe that eating good food (Yes I have cooking recipes too!) and living in a chemical-free environment are the keys to having a healthy lifestyle. And that doesn't need to be expensive.