Make Your Own All Natural Deodorant … A Tutorial

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This post may contain affiliate links. Please see disclosures here.

In keeping with Breast Cancer awareness month and healthy living…I’m going to deviate a bit more from my usual painting & decor projects.
Healthy living is something I am passionate about.  :)
As you can see from the title, this post is about making your own, all natural deodorant.

Now on to the all natural deodorant:

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com #allnaturaldeodorant

I am a bit of a health nut and have been for many, many years.  And one thing I’m very passionate about is trying to eliminate as many of the chemicals that we are bombarded with daily…. as I possibly can anyway. It’s hard!

Getting exercise, eating healthy, little or no processed foods, little or no sugar, lots of green smoothies, etc. You get the idea.

Even though I’ve lived a pretty healthy life and been mindful of these things, I was diagnosed with (early stage) breast cancer in 2010. (you can read my breast cancer story…as well as learn about the importance of knowing your breast density and the role it plays in cancer risk,  in this 3 part post series –> here)

I was a health nut before but became one even more so afterwards.
When something like that happens it really makes you sit up and take notice.
And you become really serious about things in your life.
I got rid of anything and everything (as much as I could) that could possibly contribute to the type of breast cancer I had in hopes of keeping it from ever coming back.  (I will be posting about some of the things I changed/eliminated in a future post)
One of the (many) things I eliminated were commercial deodorants along with all of their chemicals (artificial fragrances, preservatives, aluminum, etc)
Think about it..as women (and men too, breast cancer does not discriminate!), we put that on an area of our bodies (directly on our skin, under our arms,  next to our lymph nodes, next to the breast tissue) every single day.
Well, hopefully we all do. ;)

But in all seriousness, who wants all those chemicals in our bloodstreams, in our bodies? And in that close proximity to that area of our bodies?

Not me. Not anymore.

I tried the natural deodorants in the stores and didn’t really like any of them.  I researched a bit and tried a few recipes I found on the web.
Through some trial and error I came up with a recipe that I have been very happy with.

I have used it for well over 2 years now and love it. (no stinkiness here, promise ;))
I made my hubby do the sniff test, more than a few times.  And he loved that job let me tell you!!

Not so much!! ;) …but the deodorant always passed the test! Yay…good thing for him, right?

*Now, just to be completely honest, I did seem to sweat more when I first switched over for the first month or so. I have read that it was most likely toxins being released and my body getting used to the switch. I’m telling you this in case you do decide to try this, you won’t quit too soon because you may think it’s not working.
But think about that for a minute. Sweating is one way our bodies release toxins and commercial deodorants block “wetness”.  Where do you think those toxins go??

I’m by no means an expert, clearly, but I believe in trying to stay healthy by living a healthy life and trying to let our bodies do what it naturally does best–which is keeping the body in a healthy state.

Or it tries to anyway. (really hard in our environment)
What I’ve come up with is  a 2 part-er but it works well. A solid and a powder to be applied over the solid.

Here are the ingredients for the solid:
I’ve included a few affiliate links for you below. See my full disclosure here.

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Make Your Own All Natural Deodorant

Course All Natural Deodorant Solid
Author Nancy - Artsy Chicks Rule

Ingredients

  • 1 / 4 cup Baking Soda aluminum free
  • 1 / 4 to 1 / 2 cup Arrowroot Powder
  • 1 / 8 cup Shea Butter
  • Just shy of 1 / 4 cup Cocoa Butter
  • 1 / 8 cup Coconut Oil cold pressed
  • 4 T+1tsp Beeswax pearls
  • Pure Essential Oils of your choice.

Instructions

  1. Mix oils and butters together over low heat. Remove from heat and add powdered ingredients. Let cool slightly, add essential oils.
  2. *You can adjust the above ingredients to your liking. (more arrowroot, less cocoa butter, etc)

You can find the ingredients here:

 

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com

You can find these ingredients online at Amazon or maybe even in your local health food store.
Most of the ingredients in this recipe have health and natural odor fighting properties as well.

  • First, add all ingredients, except the powdered ingredients and the essential oils, to the pan. Heat on low until completely melted. Don’t overheat.

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com
All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com

  • Once completely melted, remove it from the heat and add the powdered ingredients. Stir or whisk well.

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com

  • Set aside and let it cool for a couple of minutes. (not to the point of hardening in the pan, if it does, then just reheat slightly)

All Natural Deodorant Recipe & Tutorial - artsychicksrule.com

  • Stir in the essential oils. You don’t need a lot, just about 10 drops of each, depending on how many you use.

I use pure, natural essential oils for some scent and also for their health and odor fighting properties.  Stop in a natural foods store and sniff a few to see what you like.

I use the following in mine, among others:
Frankincense
Lime
Bergamot

*I don’t use Lavender, Geranium and some other oils (that I used to love!) with estrogenic properties because of my cancer history.

Edited to add: as one of my wonderful readers pointed out….please make sure that you are buying and using pure essential oils. This will be going on your skin (and ultimately into your bloodstream) so you want to make sure it is pure and unadulterated. Do your research and be sure the oils you use are stated as such. This will be going on your skin (and ultimately into your bloodstream) so you want to make sure it is pure and unadulterated. Another great source for essential oils is Eden Botanicals. You can read up on the properties of each essential oil there. I’ve also linked a set below on Amazon.

You can buy empty deodorant containers online but I just washed and used (and re-use) some I already had. Pour the liquid deodorant into the tubes. Let them cool completely.

Now here’s the thing…. you may also need to tweak the ingredients to your liking.  For example, several of the recipes I tried online had way too much baking soda in them for me.

Owie. Not a good thing.

But easily fixed. Play around with the ingredients until you get it just right — for you.

 

Here’s the ingredients for the powder:

I keep it in an old makeup (face powder sifter) container and use a big, flat type makeup brush to apply it.

You don’t have to use the powder as the solid works well on it’s own but I like it DRY, DRY, DRY. And the solid feels a little ‘creamy’ to me.
I’ve actually just put the powder on by itself, on occasion.
But together is what I use most days.
So just apply the solid like normal (you don’t need a lot) and then put a bit of the powder onto the brush and apply well over the solid.

Voila!

You Can Make Your Own All Natural Deodorant!! Easier than you think! artsychicksrule.com

Odor protection without all the chemicals you really don’t want in your body anyway, trust me on that.

I hope you try the recipe or a variation of it. I want you all to stay healthy! I know you do too! ;)

Do you think you might try to make your own all natural deodorant…and then follow through and actually use it?

I hope so!

I will be posting about some other tips on how I changed my “environment” to a healthier one in the future. So stay tuned! :)

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You might also like this post:

See the full post here >>> “Natural Soap Making {Cold Process}

Note: I am not a health professional or medical doctor. The information and directions given on this site are of my own opinions and my own experiences with such and not meant to take the place of medical or professional advice. You may choose to try any or all recipes, etc,  I post at your own discretion.

I’ve included a few affiliate links for you below. See my full disclosure here.



43 Comments

  1. Thank you so much for sharing this Nancy! I have tried natural before and had a reaction.But that was store bought I would love to try yours.Did you buy your deodorant containers somewhere special too?
    Thanks so much!
    xx
    Anne

    1. Hi Anne,

      Yes, I had that same trouble with some of the store bought ones. Also, too much baking soda (for me) in the recipe can do that too. So I just played with it until I got it so it works and doesn’t irritate. You can buy them online but I just washed out old containers and reused (and continue to reuse) them. :)

      Nancy

  2. I have been on the hunt for a natural deodorant for a while now….this is amazing! Like you said there are so many harmful chemicals in those products. It is just so important to be aware! I will be pinning this friend…all the best…. Nicole

  3. Hi Nancy! Thanks so much for posting this and especially good timing for me. I was diagnosed 6 weeks ago with DCIS breast cancer and just had a mastectomy 2 weeks ago. I too, am thinking environment and food is a big culprit to so much breast cancer. I had no family history either….just random! I am going to make this deoderant.
    Thanks again!

    1. Kelly,

      So sorry to hear of your diagnosis but very glad they caught it so early! If you have any questions about anything mastectomy related please feel free to email me. :) (or for anything!) Yes, I absolutely believe our environment is hugely to blame. It’s so hard to stay healthy when we are bombarded on a daily basis in so many ways. But I try!
      The great thing about this deodorant is that you can tweak and change the amounts in the recipe to your liking. I love it and it works extremely well for me.
      xo
      Nancy

  4. Wow Nancy this is fantastic! I have tried the natural ones too and didn’t like them at all mainly due to how wet they leave you feeling yuck! I wish you were selling these :) I’d so buy them from you! I may have to actually try making these :)

    1. Hi Dria!
      Yes, that was a problem with me too with the store bought ones. That or breaking out from them. The powder (the second part of the recipe) really does the trick on keeping it dry …and keeping it from feeling sticky! :)
      You know I am all about keeping it natural and healthy where ever I can! ;)
      xo
      Nancy

  5. I love this. I feel its something I can do. I’m going to be trying this. I never liked the natural deoderants either. This looks so easy & I already have a lot of the stuff. I’ll be near Whole Foods on Saturday & I know they’ll have the rest of the stuff.

    BTW, How many tubes of deoderant does your recipe make?

    1. Hi Aimee :)
      Great! The wonderful thing about making it yourself is you can tweak it to your liking. For me, the baking soda in most online recipes was much too much for me (sensitive skin I guess). So I adjusted to a level that I could handle. There are no set rules with this recipe…the amounts can be adjusted slightly. The powder (second part) really helps keep it from being sticky. Plus it also has drying and absorbent qualities along with the essential oils that help with odor protection. I love it and will never go back to commercial brand.
      Oh, and this recipe usually fills 2 containers (that I have here) with a little left over. If you have any left over just pour it into any container and then reheat at a later date to pour into the tubes when they empty. :)
      Hope you are doing well!! Was thinking about you!
      Nancy

  6. New here and love your site! I’ve been making my own deodorant for a while now and here in the south where August is a 5th season, I can tell you it is still working great for me. There are some great essential oil books out there and it always helps to educate yourself on the properties of each one before you take the plunge, just make sure you are using real essential oils, not aromatherapy grade. Frankincense & coconut oils are both antibacterial so they eliminate odor rather than covering it up the way other deodorants do & don’t require additional preservatives. Through trial and error I’ve found that adding 10 drops of lemongrass essential oil to my batch helps a great deal with perspiration. Sadly, even in small quantities I haven’t had much luck with the baking soda, but I think I’m more sensitive to it than others. I also never try two new things at the same time so I can pinpoint any bad reaction immediately. Remember, our skin is the largest organ in our body – it absorbs everything you put on it so treat it kindly and it will return the favor!

    1. Hi Terri,
      Welcome!! :)
      How great you make your own too. And yes, absolutely on the essential oils…totally agree. I have been working with and making things with essential oils and absolutes for about 14 years now (even natural perfume making which is definitely complex..but I love playing around with so many of the non main stream oils used in perfumery). Eden Botanicals is a great source for some of those. I LOVE but typically stay away from Lavender, Chamomile, Geranium, Grapefruit and Lemongrass EO’s (and a few others) now because of suspected estrogenic activity in the body. I’m sure some of these may be ok and may have less estrogen activity than others but it’s not worth the risk since the type of cancer I had was estrogen dependent. It is a shame because they are lovely smelling oils.

      And I am with you on the baking soda! I have to be super careful with that. Most recipes have way too much for me. That’s why I wanted to put that in the post so people would know to watch for that. That might be enough to put someone off of the natural. It almost did for me until I realized it was probably the baking soda. Sure enough! :)

      Good thought on only trying one thing at a time! You are so right. Only way to really know which ingredient is ok …or not.
      Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing all the great info Terri! I love to “meet” other like minded people!
      All the best!
      xo
      Nancy

    2. Hi Terri, I read a bit on Frankincense & it seems a lot of people are allergic to it. Such a shame because besides the positive attributes you’ve mentioned it also has anti-cancer properties.

      Thank you Terri for the tip on lemongrass stopping perseration. And thank you Nancy for the warning on lemongrass. I’ll have to weigh that out when deciding whether to add it or not.

      Can’t wait to try this :)

      1. Yep, that is exactly why I include the Frankincense in mine. I haven’t had any issues with that ingredient personally and I probably have about 4-5 different versions from different companies. So you could give it a try and see!
        The Lemongrass would be useful to those that don’t have any issues with estrogen though. I would definitely include it if I didn’t. :)

        Let me know how it goes Aimee!
        Nancy

  7. This is wonderful! I have tried to only use all natural deodorant since my friend was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago. That diagnoses changed everything for me. I stepped up my health habits, and read up all that I could to increase my likelihood of not getting cancer. However, with all of this, we still have so many chemicals in our environment. How great to share this with your readers where many people would otherwise not come across this information. Pinnin and hopefullly making this soon!

    1. So true Karen! It’s so very hard with all that we are hit with daily to stay healthy. We can actually do a lot though! It’s great that you took charge of your health after that.
      Hope you are having a great week! :)
      Nancy

  8. Nancy, thank you for sharing this recipe with us! I think I may make some. I’ll have to think about which EOs I want to add! I’m sure I’ll add Frankincense though. Since I use that in my DIY aches and pain salve and my DIY face cream, looks like I’ll be needing to order more, sooner rather than later!

    BTW, I use Sparks Naturals EOs and love them. They are 100% pure and very reasonably priced!

    1. Hi Karen! You are so welcome. I have other recipes I will most likely share at a later date too! I have not heard of Sparks…will have to check into them. :)
      Nancy

  9. Hi Nancy!

    Thank you so much for taking the time to post this recipe!!! I have two young daughters, and like you, have tried hard to keep our home a “chemical free” zone (well to the best of my abilities). I will be trying this recipe and would welcome any other tips you may want to share!!!!!

    PS I really enjoy your site

    1. You are so welcome Michelle :) I will probably be sharing some other recipes for things I use and make in the future. Plus, I do plan on posting about some of the things I changed in my environment after my diagnosis (make up, foods, storage, etc) I have considered doing a food blog separate from this one…haven’t decided yet, this one keeps me busy!;) I have some great healthy recipes I’ve developed (and green smoothie recipes too) that I’d love to share with my readers.
      So glad to have you here! Hope you are having a great week. :)
      xo
      Nancy

  10. Okay, this is intriguing. I run very hot and cold on being “healthy.” When I’m in “healthy mode” (training for a marathon, etc.), I pay very close attention to everything I eat. I confess I’ve completely fallen off the wagon as of late and have been putting a lot of garbage in my body. I can’t seem to get back on track. Do you have some fabulous green smoothie recipe to share? :) Or what’s a typical day in the Nancy diet? Sometimes all I need is a good example to get me going again. I love this natural deodorant idea.

    Cheers!
    -andi

    1. Andi,
      I fall off the wagon occasionally too! Just have to jump back on. ;) You’ve had quite a lot going on over there so it’s understandable! I just usually throw things together for the green smoothies. For example, a good one to start with (tastes good) is spinach, mango and/or banana, an orange, carrots, ice, etc. You can add berries to that (I usually keep a bag of frozen mixed berries in the freezer) or even more greens. I usually rotate my greens weekly. Just adjust to taste. I make a great “green smoothie” with cocoa powder (and sometimes instant coffee granules) that tastes like a frozen cafe/mocha drink. The key is to play around with the mixture…I’ve made some really bad tasting ones too!!lol (mustard greens, parsley and kale need a LOT of disguising…just a warning ;) )
      A typical day? Most mornings I have gluten free granola (home made or store bought) with unsweet greek plain yogurt and fresh fruit/berries. I eat lots of quinoa and vegis. Fish and chicken, not much red meat. I don’t eat much bread unless I make it myself with almond flour, etc. I’ve thought of starting a food blog also (well, I got as far as domain and even paying for a year of hosting….last March, lol) but have not had the time to mess with it. This one keeps me so busy! Maybe one day. Probably never. ;)

      xo
      Nancy

      1. Oooooh Nancy…. will you please share your recipe for the mocha smoothie? Thatss probably the only one I could get down! I can’t do the real green ones…. there’s just so much I don’t like… I’m too picky for my own good!

        And I wish you would do a food blog! :)

        Thanks!

    1. Hey, it’s about 2 containers with some left over. I just pour any I have left into another container and reheat to pour into empty containers later…so you could make a larger batch and just save the rest. You should try the original recipe, original size, to try it out and make sure it is to your liking first though. Things like this are sort of subjective (some like sprays, roll ons, solids etc) So you may like to tweak it a bit. Easier to do on the smaller recipe. :)
      Anyway, I hope you like it! I love it and will never go back!
      Nancy

  11. I’ve tried homemade deodorant before, and they ended up crumbly, and I’d end up sweating it off halfway through the day, needing to reapply. Was there not enough baking soda? Tom’s does not work for me and I don’t like the salt sticks, they don’t absorb odor well. I look forward to trying this recipe!

    1. Hi Jessica!
      This one wears well (for me anyway! ;) ). I think the addition of beeswax helps it to “stay put” a little. I really like to use this with the powder on top (as mentioned in the post). It seems to be the perfect mix that way. :)
      Good luck!
      Nancy

  12. Thanks for the comment about the extra sweating when you switch over. I purchased an all natural deodorant, but was turned off by the sweating so I didn’t persist. I’ll give it another shot!

  13. Reading this post it’s almost like I wrote it: all my reasons are the same as yours and I tell people the same thing–do you really want to rub all those chemicals on your lymph nodes?

    I’ve made my own deoderant before with 1/4 cup baking soda, 1/4 cup corn starch and a mixture of oils, and I thought it worked well to combat armpit odor but it gave me a rash if I used it every day. I’m going to try your recipe to see if it’s gentler. I’m using the crystal stick now but I’m not crazy about it. Thanks for posting this.

    1. Hi Pam,
      I would bet it is the baking soda. I can’t do much in mine. I hope this works out for you!
      (and I’m with you on the crystal type! ;) )
      Nancy

  14. Hi!! I just made this deodorant. So far it looks as thought it will be just lovely!! I added a four thieves blend, lemon and a couple drops of lime to mine :)

    1. Oh yay! I hope you love it! Did you make the powder too? I always use the two together.
      Your essential oil choices sound wonderful too.
      Nancy

      1. Hi! I just love this on its own. I tried it today. I hadn’t made the powder but I think I may mix up a bit just to give it a try. Thank you so much for this awesome DIY.

        1. Great! Yes, do, it’s a nice, little extra addition for some days!
          You are welcome…and thanks for the kind words and letting me know how you like it. :)
          Nancy

  15. I know this is an older post but just wanted to add something. I use white food grade bentonite clay instead of the arrowroot for mine. It has many beneficial properties. I also get sensitive to too much baking soda and once forgot to add the essential oils and it barely worked at all. My husband also uses on a daily basis and its better than his old spice he used for years.

    1. Sorry about that Lynda! I have updated the post to include all ingredients and where to find them. I also included a link for empty deodorant containers too. :)

      1. Hi, it is 2020 now, so don’t really expect you to answer, but I want to try your recipe but don’t want to use plastic containers, as I am trying to eliminate plastic as well. Can you suggest what would work as well as a container for your recipe?

        1. Hi Nancy! Oh no, I try to answer every comment that comes here on the blog. It may take me a few days but I get to them eventually. :) I don’t really have any other suggestions for you off the top of my head except many a round tin with lid. But I’d say to try Amazon OR try the larger supply places like SKS Bottle and Packaging. (the tins might be your best bet)

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