Need an easy homemade deodorant that is perfect for sensitive skin and pH balanced for a woman and a man? Well read on to get my super easy homemade deodorant recipe!
Rashy Pits Anyone?
I switched to a deodorant about a year ago and have been loving it. However, my husband wasn’t able to use the same deodorant because it gave him a nasty rash under his arms. Turns out those old lady deodorant commercials were correct – my new deodorant was apparently pH balanced for a woman not a man.
I decided to try my hand at making him some homemade deodorant for sensitive skin (aka pH balanced for a man). The key difference is in how much baking soda a person can handle. I could use a lot more than he could. This homemade deodorant for sensitive skin recipe really worked for him except for one small issue…it was very hard and difficult to get out of the jar in our freezing cold home.
Coconut oil hardens at just below room temperature and for whatever reason…we keep our house a bit on the cool side. The only way my husband could get the concrete (er, deodorant) out of the jar was to stand there with a hair dryer for a few minutes to warm it up! Clearly this was not sustainable. I mean it was no small feat to get him to ditch his Right Guard in the first place. Am I right, ladies?!
A New Homemade Deodorant Recipe for Sensitive Skin (that is easy to get out of the jar)
I had to see if I could make him something that was more pliable at the temperature in our home, and this easy homemade deodorant recipe for sensitive skin was born! I am happy to report that this recipe works for BOTH of us and is super easy to get out of the jar. It almost has a playdough like texture to it, but it melts right on the skin for easy application. And the best part – a little goes a long way. I bet this jar lasts both of us 6 months!
Easy Homemade Deodorant Recipe for Sensitive Skin
Ingredients
- 6 Tbsp Arrowroot Powder
- 3 Tbsp shea butter
- 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 2 Tbsp Bentonite Clay
- 10 drops of the essential oil of your choice (I used Purification essential oil blend because it neutralizes odors) (where to buy)
Directions
Add the shea butter and coconut oil to a stand mixer and whip it until incorporated. Turn down to low and slowly pour in the essential oil.
Meanwhile, in a separate small bowl, mix together your dry ingredients.
With your stand mixer on low, add 1/3 of your dry ingredients. Mix until incorporated and push down the sides as necessary. Then add another third of your dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Then add the last of your dry ingredients. You should now have what appears to be little bits of dough in the bowl. Scoop the mixture out and roll into a ball like you are working with play dough. Then press into an airtight 2 ounce glass jar and store away from direct sunlight.
Apply a tiny pea sized amount to both underarms for all day protection. I also carry some in a tiny container in my purse for days when I really need to re-apply midday.
Video Tutorial
Further Reading from Around the Web
- Attend one of my Essential Oils 101 classes here!
- Getting Started with Essential Oils
- Make Your Armpits Happy!
- How To Buy Therapeutic Essential Oils
- 6 DIY Personal Care Products for Men With Essential Oils
More Natural Beauty recipes here!
- Homemade Deodorant For Sensitive Skin
- DIY Deodorant (stick style)
- Summertime Strength Homemade Deodorant
- Homemade Body Spray
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This brand is a great option to purchase to try out a similar style of deodorant, however, this one can make you (or maybe your spouse) rashy due to the baking soda content so keep that in mind! I have loved it for over a year though so if it works for you great! Get some here.
Ah fantastic another use for my Bentonite clay! I make my own deo with coconut oil, baking powder and milk of magnesium but would like to mix it up – will give this one a go!
Thanks for the tutorial. I have question does it stains your clothes? Great day!
It has not stained any of my clothes.
Thank you, Lindsey :).
Thanks for the recipe. I also have sensitive arm pits but I have a question. From my understanding, you are not suppose to mix bentonite clay with any metals. Can you clarify this? I think I’ll mix the clay in once I place in the container.
Thanks for the recipe. Is there a substitute for the baking soda in this recipe? My skin is very senstitive to baking soda. I’ve made a homemade version before & it burned my armpits. I’ve bought from the Primal Pit Paste company and their deodorant reddened my arms but didn’t burn.
I’m glad that you mentioned or linked to Primal Pit Paste, their customer service is superior. PPP sent me their sensitive skin formula when I asked about a product that didn’t have baking soda, because of the redness, and it works great. I was interested in a homemade version in case I run out of my PPP.
BTW, even though the PPP doesn’t claim to be an antipersperant it does a better job than the clinical strength deodorants/antipersperants that I had been using & the scented version doesn’t have a strong scent like most scented deodorants. The product seems to last longer too.
I love these safer alternatives, thanks for the good work!
This recipe is formulated already for sensitive skin…
That doesn’t answer her question. Given the title, it is obvious that it is formulated for sensitive skin. She didn’t ask if it is for sensitive skin, she asked if there is something that can be used in place of the baking soda as she has a bad reaction to baking soda. Your curt response makes me disregard anything you have on your site.
I am sorry you feel this way. I must have read her question incorrectly. I will go back now and take a look.
Wow, I would not jump to such a conclusion. Maybe Lindsey was just confused and needed some clarification – talk about throwing the baby out with the bath water. Grace, mercy, forgiveness, empathy, sympathy, anything else missing?
You might just try doing all bentonite clay and using no baking soda at all. I have not tried this yet but please try it and let us know how it works for you!
Thank you. I’m not sure how soon I’ll be making this, it might be some time. I’ll try to remember to let you know how it works.
BTW, I wasn’t offended in any way by your reply…
I have made this recipe on my own for awhile now and do not use baking soda. I subbed beeswax. It works better than ANY of the PPP products and other natural deos I’ve bought. Very impressive!
I’m interested in how you use bees wax. I think I am too sensitive to baking soda, too, because this recipe caused my armpits to break out and itch. How much bees wax do you use? I’m assuming you melt it first? I recently bought some little pellets but I have never used them before.
This didn’t work for me. Any tips?
Can you please provide some more info so I can help? Was your coconut oil melted for firm?
Should the shea butter and coconut oil be melted first?
No–I did not melt them. I just whipped them together with my stand mixer.
I’ve been working on making several types of “Pit Paste” recently. I wanted to point out in case others are trying different recipes that sometimes Shea Butter can be an irritant as well. At first I thought it was the baking soda but for me it turned out to be Shea butter. In place of Shea butter I used Mango butter and it worked great.
Sometimes you just have to keep experimenting until you find something that works for you. You many also need to adjust the amount of baking soda. Some people can tolerate it more than others. My husband uses a recipe with 4Tbsp while I use one with quite a bit less. One way I’ve found to experiment is make up a recipe and split it between several containers and share it with friends. Get feedback and change whatever wasn’t liked about it. Do this until you find a product you really like.
Couldn’t agree more! Thank you for stopping by with this comment!
My only problem with this is that these ingredients aren’t cheap! I have a whole jar of this stuff that I can’t use and I’m hesitant to experiment more and end up wasting more high quality, expensive ingredients. I guess it would work to make small sample batches? That means I will have to work on my math skills to figure out the amounts – noooo!! lol
I LOVE this recipe! I have tried PPP and like it a lot, but I wanted to save money. I tried several other recipes before I found this one, and it has worked the best for me by far. It seems to have just the right amount of baking soda for my skin. Instead of whipping the ingredients, I melt the coconut oil and shea butter in a double boiler and then stir in the other ingredients. Then I pour it into an old solid deodorant tube. It firms up perfectly to use like a store-bought deodorant stick!