Spending a lot of time in the garden is excellent for the soul, but it can be rough on the hands, even if you wear gloves. My Homemade Hand Cream With Essential Oils keeps your skin moisturized; no toxins needed! Whether your skin is dry from gardening, or household chores in general, you’re going to love this remedy.
Gardening is such a rewarding experience. There’s something special about carefully tending seeds and seeing the fruit of your labor! Our garden plays a vital role in our diet, herbal remedies, and even the overall aesthetic of our home. This hand cream is an excellent treat for yourself or a luxurious gift for a friend!
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Why Do You Need an All-Natural Hand Cream?
Over the last year, the need for handwashing and sanitizing has increased. While this can help keep germs at bay, it strips moisture from the skin. Dry skin can crack, which creates opportunities for infection. When infection hits, the skin becomes itchy, feels uncomfortable, and looks unattractive.
The solution to this problem isn’t to stop washing your hands. You can, however, use a hand cream that’s thick enough to moisturize even the driest skin. Essential oils will heal your tired hands from the inside out.
This recipe came from our Essential Oils Revolution co-host Jill Winger of The Prairie Homestead. The best part about this DIY is that it uses natural and non-toxic ingredients. This means that while your skin is healing, it isn’t absorbing toxins. Many hand creams on the market contain harmful chemicals. Here are just a few of the top offenders.
1. Parabens
Parabens are added to cosmetic products to increase their shelf life, but the side effects are not worth it! They’re related to breast cancer, but they are also significant endocrine system disruptors. (1) This toxin mimics estrogen, and it can cause infertility in both men and women.
2. Synthetic Fragrance
Most hand creams use synthetic fragrances to appeal to buyers. Synthetic fragrances on the epidermis can make dry skin worse. Many people find that they react badly to synthetic fragrances, whether that reaction manifests as a headache or a rash. Many of the ingredients that fall under the umbrella of fragrance are known carcinogens (2), so these reactions are understandable. You don’t have to give up lovely smelling products, though. Essential oils make this hand cream smell heavenly.
3. Petrolatum
Petroleum-based ingredients are commonly found in moisturizers. They give the illusion of deeply healing the skin, but they suffocate the pores and block any healing properties from working their magic. This ingredient is also highly toxic if eaten.
Gardener’s Hand Cream Ingredient 101
You may be asking what ingredients are safe to use in beauty products. You’ll be pleased to know that you have many great options when it comes to moisturizers. Here are the ingredients we are using today.
Unrefined Shea Butter: This is my favorite moisturizer. Shea butter comes from African shea tree nuts, and it is deeply hydrating. This moisturizer is unique because you can whip it up to create double the product. I use this ingredient in many of my DIYs.
Beeswax Pastilles: Beeswax creates a truly protective layer on the skin and is an excellent alternative to petroleum-based ingredients. Adding beeswax to a product helps firm it up, and it gives your skin a waterproof barrier. If you are vegan or allergic to beeswax, you can use candelilla wax or bayberry wax.
Sweet Almond Oil: Almond oil is an emollient, (3) which means it smoothes the skin. Hands are often one of the first parts of the body that show age, and almond oil can help reverse those effects! (4)
Myrrh Essential Oil: This excellent essential oil is made of terpenoids, which are incredible healers. Myrrh is a beautiful gift from God, which might be why it was one of the presents given to Jesus at the time of His birth.
Cedarwood Essential Oil: This EO is exceptionally calming besides having a lovely woodsy scent. It can repel some insects (not mosquitos, unfortunately!), so it is the perfect addition to a gardening cream.
If you don’t have cedarwood on hand, you can customize this recipe to include your favorite essential oils. I love using peppermint and orange EO because it makes me feel wide awake! No matter what you choose, use only 20 drops of essential oils.
If you want to make this DIY more like a lotion bar, you can experiment with adding more beeswax. Add a little more than this base recipe calls for and cool some on a glass plate to see how hard it gets. Keep adding till you get it just right!
Mama Z’s Pro Tip: Do this before adding your essential oils to this homemade hand cream recipe. Heating the essential oils can change their chemistry and thus impact their healing properties.
How to Make Non-Toxic Hand Cream
This DIY is as easy as melting butter on a stovetop. Within minutes, you’ll have the perfect addition to your pampering routine. Here’s how you make it.
- ¼ cup unrefined shea butter
- 1 tablespoon beeswax pastilles*
- 2 tablespoons sweet almond oil**
- 10 drops myrrh essential oil
- 10 drops cedarwood essential oil
- Supplies:
- Glass jar
- Salve container or glass jar for storage
- Set a glass jar in a saucepan filled with an inch of water.
- Place the shea butter, beeswax, and sweet almond oil in the jar and melt slowly over low heat, stirring occasionally.
- Once everything is melted, remove the jar from the pan and allow it to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Stir in the essential oils. Allow it to harden completely (this usually takes several hours, but refrigerating can speed up the process).
- Apply this cream to your dry hands as often as needed - especially after a long day of working outside or playing in the dirt.
** No matter what allergies you may have, there's a carrier oil that's right for you. You can use any or a combination of these: Avocado, Fractionated Coconut, Grapeseed, Jojoba,Sweet Almond.
Step One: Prepare Your Double Boiler
Create a double boiler by placing a glass jar in a saucepan filled with an inch of water. This allows the ingredients to melt slowly and not overheat.
Step Two: Melt the Moisturizers
Place the shea butter, beeswax, and sweet almond oil in the jar and melt slowly over low heat. Stir occasionally.
Step Three: Add Essential Oils
Once everything is melted, remove the jar from the pan and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in the essential oils and allow the mixture to harden completely. This can take several hours, depending on your climate. If you’d like to speed up the process, you can place your jar in the refrigerator.
To use this homemade hand cream, apply it to dry hands as often as needed. It comes in handy after a day of playing outside or gardening!
