How to make a lotion for your skincare? In this simple guide I’ll walk you through the world of handmade oil in water emulsions and you’ll learn how to formulate and follow a lotion recipe.

What do you need to make a lotion?

If you want to make a lotion you’ll need the following tools:

• Immersion blender suitable for cosmetics
• Mini silicone spatula
• 2 heat-resistant beackers
• Precision 0.05 g scale
• Digital food thermometer
• Spoons
• Empty cosmetic jars
• PH test stripes

Which ingredients do I need to make a DIY oil in water emulsion?

• Distilled water
• Vegetable oils (at least one per density for better results as explained here)
• Glycerin
• Emulsifier (like Olivem 1000)
• Natural preservative (Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid)
• Actives (hyaluronic acid gel, panthenol, bactipur, bisabolol...) to enrich the cream
• Essential oils or natural fragrances
• Lactic acid to lower the pH if needed
  
  

Standard percentages of oil in water emulsion ingredients

For 100 g of final product you’ll need the following ingredients percentages:

Water phase

• Water: 100% minus the percentage of the other ingredients (usually used around 60-80%)
• Glycerin: 2-4% 
• Gelling agent: 0-0.3% (optional but useful to stabilize the emulsion) 

Oil phase

• Vegetable oils: 3-20%*
• Emulsifier: 5-8%

Cooling down phase

• Fat-soluble actives: 0-5% (optional)**
• Water-soluble actives: 0-5% (optional)**
• Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid Preservative: 0.6%
• Essential oils/fragrances: 0-3% (optional)

* Check the 'Fats cascade' paragraph of the cosmetic oils and butters chart to know how to choose the oils for your emulsions.
** Check the cosmetic ingredients chart to know how to choose the actives for your formulas and the related dosage.

How to make a lotion base

To make a oil in water emulsion to create a lotion, you need to combine the water-soluble substances (water and water-soluble ingredients) and fats (oils and butters) by means of an emulsifier. The magic is all here!

The procedure is as follows: 

• Place a heat resistant baecker with the water ingredients (Water phase) and one with the fat ingredients + the emulsifier (Oil phase) in a water bath until they reach about 75 degrees. Check the temperature with the digital food thermometer.
  
  
  
  
  
• Combine the oil and water phases and whisk for about 2 minutes. The fats and water will combine, and our mixture will begin to whiten rapidly and to become creamy. To avoid incorporating air, the end of the blender should never come out of the cream.
  
  
• Transfer the container with the lotion to a cold water bath (i.e., a pot containing cold water and ice), take a spatula and keep stirring until the mixture reaches about 38 degrees. It will thicken more and more. The spatula is used to prevent bubbles.
  
  
  
  
• Add the natural preservative and possibly the actives, essential oils and fragrance to enrich your DIY lotion. Mix well with the spatula after adding each ingredient.
  
  
• Measure the pH and lower it with one or two drops of lactic acid in case it is too high. Typically the pH should be between 5 and 6, preferably 5.5. If you have oily skin or want an exfoliating effect, you can lower it to 4.
  
  
• Transfer your DIY lotion to a clean jar. 
  
  

Important!

In this guide, I have roughly explained how to make a lotion to give you a general idea about how it works. If you have never made one before, please don’t improvise by making up recipes following the doses above. The standard percentages are purely indicative and vary depending on the ingredient used and the final product you want to achieve.
I recommend starting with real cosmetic formulas (check my recipes for more info).
You’ll work with hot ingredients, so please be careful and protect your hands and eyes with protective glasses and gloves.
You should use beakers and not regular glasses, as they could break.