Home Made Deodorant (that REALLY works!)

Before going no poo I was pretty much a chemical war zone. I estimate I probably used well over 200 chemicals a day on my body and hair including but not limited to:

• shampoo
• conditioner
• face wash
• body wash
• toothpaste
• deodorant (applied twice a day at least)
• face creams
• nail polish
• face masks
• perfumes

God, that list is disgusting. Ever single day I used almost ALL of those products. Come on!

So, since going no poo I have been awakened to the uses of chemicals (good and bad) in the products we use every single day. The word CHEMICAL is overused in the crunchy society as being anything bad so excuse me if I over use it... by chemical we pretty much mean sulfates and parabens and other carcinogens. Pretty much all the nasty stuff you really want to keep away from your body.

In our house we now use soap-nuts on our hair, soap-nuts for laundry, home made MP soap and natural deodorant. On top of that I now no longer use 80% of the products listed above. I do still use toothpaste and perfume but I am looking in to a healthy homemade alternative to that. (I have heard oil pulling is great alongside natural toothpaste so if any of my readers have tried please let me know in the comments.)

So anyway, bla bla bla. On to the deodorant...

I was extremely fortunate to already have all the ingredients for this and I'm sure 99% of people will also as it is so basic but it really really does work. I used to apply deodorant twice a day at minimum and it had to be antiperspirant. This IS NOT an antiperspirant, it doesn't stop you from sweating, what is does do however is make your sweat smell nice. I have had zero B.O since using this. Yes I have had people check... (thanks Pete and Mum...) I also only have to apply this once a day after a shower. It's amazing.

So... the recipe.

• 1/4 cup cornflour (cornstarch) or arrow root powder
• 1/4 cup baking soda (bicarb) 
• 5 TBS of coconut oil
• 4-6 drops of essential oils (I use rose)

Here is how it looks:

And that is literally it, nothing else. There are other little bits you can add to make it more tailored to you, for instance Zinc stops you from sweating so you could add a bit of Zinc powder or something but I really don't need to. Also, aloe gel is antibacterial, that might work... just experiment.

The first thing I noticed when first making it is how easy it is, you just add all the ingredients together and stir until combined. It will quickly turn thick and lovely and it will feel exactly like a cream stick deodorant. 

At this point you can either fill an empty stick applicator or put into a little pot or jar. I usually put in the fridge for an hour to harden up a bit more and then I just take it out and leave it on my dresser.

Not sure about the shelf life but I cant imagine it would go off as none of the ingredients have a short shelf life. I would maybe throw out if not been used in 6 months or so but I reckon it would be well used up by then.

Happy making guys and if you try and love/hate let me know!

*UPDATE*

My Mum used mine and then immediately asked me to make her some which she is now using in place of shop bought deodorants. We have a convert!