By Katie Vance
Many test batches yielded this homemade deodorant stick that smells great, stores well, and keeps odor away! Plus it is inexpensive to make.
This year has been my year of experimenting with deodorants.
From oils and butters to waxes and powders, I have tried so many different DIY deodorants. While I still love my nourishing homemade deodorant for sensitive skin, it has a short shelf life. I prefer to make big batches of my favorite DIY beauty products. That way I have enough to last several months.
Because of this, I needed a deodorant that could sit on the shelf for several months. A homemade deodorant stick was my only option.
Making a Natural Homemade Deodorant Stick
I began my search for natural ingredients for my homemade deodorant stick by checking out what commercially sold natural deodorants contain.
Comparing ingredients in natural, commercial products is a great way to start any DIY. Especially because they often make natural products with simple ingredients. This is especially true of solid deodorants.
Some common ingredients I found in natural deodorants are shea butter, sunflower seed oil, jojoba, arrowroot powder, baking soda, candelilla wax, and Vitamin E.
I keep all of these things at my house for DIY projects, so it just made sense to give it a go! The first homemade deodorant I made was a little too sticky feeling and quite soft, so I played with the formula until I got a nice consistency, scent, and firmness.
The result was a solid deodorant that is easily stored, smells great, and keeps me smelling great too! Plus it is EXTREMELY economical to make. My recipe makes almost four full deodorant containers! I recycled empty store-bought deodorant containers for this DIY which made it, even more, cost-effective.
Natural Ingredients
This homemade deodorant contains jojoba oil, which is actually a wax. Jojoba feels less oily and gives this deodorant a more smooth and less sticky feel.
Shea butter gives this homemade deodorant stick a nice spreadable consistency. It is also a lovely skin moisturizer and protector.
I was very hesitant to use baking soda because it can be irritating to the skin in large amounts. I decided to use a higher percentage of arrowroot powder in my homemade deodorant stick for this reason. Baking soda is still included in this recipe because it is a great deodorizer and I really don’t want to smell! It has not been irritating to anyone in my family so far.
Lastly, I used candelilla wax. This wax has a higher melting point than beeswax, but it is not a super hard wax. It has a very smooth and shiny consistency and works very well in this homemade deodorant stick.
This is optional, but I use this blend of essential oils to add a subtle fresh aroma to this DIY deodorant. Cedarwood, marjoram, and bergamot essential oils give this deodorant a bright, refreshing smell. You can certainly choose to omit these if you are sensitive to essential oils or if you would prefer not to have them in a product you use daily.
Homemade Deodorant Stick
Many test batches yielded this homemade deodorant stick that smells great, stores well, and keeps odor away! Plus it is inexpensive to make.
- Prep Time
- 15 minutes
- Active Time
- 35 minutes
- Total Time
- 50 minutes
- Servings
- 4 sticks
Ingredients
- ½ cup shea butter find unrefined, organic shea butter here
- ½ cup jojoba oil find organic jojoba oil here
- ⅓ cup arrowroot powder find it here
- ⅛ cup baking soda
- ¼ cup candelilla wax find it here
- 10 drops cedarwood essential oil (optional)
- 20 drops bergamot essential oil (optional)
- 10 drops marjoram essential oil (optional)
Instructions
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Combine jojoba oil, arrowroot powder, and baking soda in a small bowl.
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Stir well until fully combined and no lumps remain.
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Place a glass measuring cup in a pot of boiling water (or use a double boiler).
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Add candelilla wax to the measuring cup and melt.
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Once melted, pour in the jojoba oil, baking soda, and arrowroot powder.
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When all is liquid once again, add in shea butter and stir until just melted.
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Take off the heat and allow to cool slightly.
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Add in essential oils and stir well.
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Let your homemade deodorant cool until slightly thick, but still pourable.
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Pour into deodorant tubes (you'll need 4 for this recipe) and allow to cool completely before adding caps.
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Store in a cool, dry place until ready to use.
Made this recipe?
Mention @diynatural or tag it #diynatural!
Have you experimented with making your own homemade deodorant stick? If so, how has it worked for you?
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Hi Katie, I love all the natural product recipes. Looking forward to trying this.
hi katie, i’m about tp try this out. i’ve used a similar one but been irritated by the baking soda, so have done what you suggested and used less. i’ve also thrown in a little zinc oxide powder which i’ve heard is a good addition. i’m using lavender, bergamot and tea tree for my essential oils. i’ll let you know how it goes tomorrow. thank you. natalie
Is this deodorant will make itchy & make our underarms skin become black?
hi Katie!
i’m new to making my own products
so i had one question if you know any Canadian stores that have Shea butter and arrowroot powder and jojoba oil
if you do please tell me have no idea where i could get them from,i would get them from here but i don’t like buying things online please help me out,also i am definitely giving this site five star!
Hi
I love all the natural product recipes.
I’m in S.A.
Where do I get the ingredients to mke
the products.
Thank you
Fathima
Hi Katie,
Any chance of getting the measurements in grams so that they are more precise please.
Looking forward to trying this.
Kind regards
Jo
Is there something that can be substituted for the candelilla wax?
Is it your experience that this actually does work? I too have tried many natural deodorants and as wonderful as they appear I really don’t find them to control odor. If you have been using this can you confirm it does work? I will definitely make it if you say it does.Thank you
Hi Colleen!
I have been using this deodorant for over a month now. It has been working fairly well for me although I will say that I do have to re-apply it after 8 hours to keep the smell away. My husband is also using this deodorant and likes it!
If odor is a concern for you, you might want to add a fixative essential oil like Sandalwood, Juniper Berry, or Patchouli that will stick around longer than the oils I used in this recipe.
I have been using coconut oil, tea tree oil & rosemary oil. Easy to make & seems to work for me.
Linda – sounds like your blend smells wonderful!
I have tried numerous homemade deodorant recipes and I either break out in my underarms or odor is not kept under control. I am hoping that this recipe will be the one! Could you look into another source for the containers you use? The link above does not have good reviews. When I searched it seems many of the containers do not work properly. Thanks.
Hi Rose! I hope this will be the one that works well for you too! When switching to a natural deodorant, sometimes the underarms need time to adjust (in regard to odor). When I switched, I started on a day when I knew I would not see anyone for a couple days. After 4 days of using natural deodorant my body started to adjust although if I am REALLY sweating (exercise, exertion, or stress), I will need to wipe and re-apply deodorant.
Also, I will look into changing the link above – I actually re-used deodorant containers for this DIY. Mine were Tom’s of Maine and Schmidt’s deodorant bottles that I had used up.
Hey Tom! These deodorant containers seem to have better reviews. We’ll get the post updated with this link too: https://www.amazon.com/Almost4Minds-Deodorant-Containers-Empty-2-65Oz/dp/B00C8SK2HS/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1539960048&sr=8-5&keywords=empty+deodorant
Would it be possible to add a photo of the containers you used for the deodorant?
Sure thing, Tom! I’ll try to get those up. I actually used recycled bottles of Tom’s Of Maine deodorant and Schmidt’s deodorant that I had used up. They were your average deodorant bottles with a wind up top.