In my quest to rid my family of harsh and dangerously toxic chemicals, I am finding that with a little research and perhaps a little experimenting, I can make all my own bathroom necessities too!  You all saw my post on homemade laundry soap, which I absolutely LOVE!  Last week I made homemade body wash which I also LOVE!  It’s simple too!

Here’s what you need:

Ingredients

~1 Tbsp. steel cut oats

~1 sprig of lavender or other herb of choice (optional)

~1 cup distilled water

~1 Tsp. citric acid (this prevents bacterial growth in the body wash)

~2 Tbsp. coconut oil (or other organic oil of choice, i.e. almond, olive, etc.)

~1Tbsp. honey (I use organic raw honey)

~1.5 cups liquid castile soap (I used Dr. Bronners mild baby)

~1Tsp. guar gum (a natural thickening agent)

~20-30 drops of essential oils (optional and your preference, I used tea tree and lavender)

Directions:

1.  Boil water and pour over the oats and lavender or whatever you choose to infuse, cover and let sit for an hour, then strain to remove oats and lavender from your infusion.

2. In a bowl, whisk together your oil, honey (you may want to heat both slightly to make it easier to mix) infusion and citric acid.

3.  Sprinkle in the guar gum, whisk to combine and then immediately add and whisk in the castile soap (if you wait too long it will begin to thicken and you will have clumps) continue to whisk until well blended and smooth.

4.  Add your essential oils and mix well.

5.  Store in a clean empty bottle out of direct sunlight and shake before each use. ***Note: this mixture contains raw food ingredients with only a mild preservative (citric acid) to avoid any bacterial growth, you may want to break it down into smaller bottles, enough for about a week’s worth, and store the rest in the fridge.  I have not refridgerated mine and have not had any problems.  This is just precautionary.  Enjoy!

**the internet is filled with similar recipes for this, that’s where I found this.  I modified it slightly to make it my own.**