Milk and Honey Body Wash

Materials:
1/3 cup / 60 g / 2.1 oz cocamidopropyl betaine
1/3 cup / 60 g / 2.1 oz jojoba oil (can sub for another liquid plant oil)
1/4 cup / 25 g / 0.9 oz milk powder (can sub for coconut powder)
2 tbsp / 45 g / 1.6 oz raw honey
up to 30 drops / 1.5 g / 0.05 oz essential oils (*see blends below)
30 drops / 1.5 g / 0.05 oz Geogard ECT (preservative)
12oz bottle

How to make milk and honey body wash:
The creamy body wash recipe couldn’t be easier to put together, and the milk honey combo is a skincare classic. Here’s how to make creamy body wash with milk powder:
– Mix liquids. Put the cocamidopropyl betaine, jojoba oil, honey, and essential oils into a glass measuring cup or mixing bowl. Stir until the honey has dissolved, which takes 2 to 3 minutes. The mixture will look streaky at first and turn cloudy once the honey is dissolved properly.
– Dissolve milk powder. Next, add the milk powder and stir until the liquids and powder are well combined. At first, the body wash mixture will look lumpy, and it can take several hours for the milk powder to dissolve and get a thick and creamy body wash. The dissolving process will happen on its own, and you don’t have to do anything else.
– Preserve. Add the Geogard ECT and stir well to incorporate the preservative in the body wash mixture.
– Store. Transfer the milk body wash into a shower bottle. Optionally, decorate the bottle with a printable label.

How to use DIY creamy body wash
You use this Body wash with essential oils like you’d use any other shower gel or body wash:
– First, wet your body with warm water.
– Apply the body wash with your hands or a wet washcloth. Use a loofah if you want a little exfoliating action.
– Gently rub the product over your entire body.
– Rinse with warm water, making sure to get it all off the skin.
– Gently pat your body dry and follow up with a lotion, moisturizer, or body oil.
This thick milk and honey body wash is highly concentrated, so you’ll only need a little. A dime-sized amount is enough.

As I mentioned, this milk body wash is very gentle and not stripping. Some may find it slightly less effective after a sweaty workout, or to clean the underarms and groin area.

Tips for creamy body wash
Milk powder is an amazing, all-natural thickening agent and creates a rich and creamy texture. Just look at the photos to see how viscous the milk body wash turned out.

In fact, milk powder works so well that you might end up with a creamy shower mousse rather than a liquid body wash. I made the first iteration of this project with 1/2 cup milk powder and ended up with a shower cream, which was still good to use, of course. So, don’t be surprised if your Body wash turns out a little thicker than you’d expect. Another thing to note is that body wash with milk powder doesn’t reach the final consistency right away, but the next day. Before adding more milk powder, let the body wash sit overnight to give the milk powder time to dissolve and absorb liquid.

This DIY milk and honey body wash allows you to reap the benefits of a milk bath in the shower. And the body wash recipe is easy as can be! You just measure and mix and end up with a lovely homemade shower milk. Aside from the simplicity, my favorite aspect of this natural body wash recipe is the rich, creamy texture. The milky shower gel lathers nicely and produces a hydrating, velvety wash. And your skin will feel soft, clean, and moisturized afterwards. You’ll love it!

That stingy, dry feeling post-shower means our skin is properly cleansed, right? Yes, but not in a good way. It can be an indication of harsh surfactants, such as sodium lauryl sulfate or sodium laureth sulfate. Many commercial body washes contain these surfactants because they’re cheap and potent foaming agents, which we have been trained to associate with cleansing power. But they also strip the skin of its natural lipids and fats, disrupting the skin barrier and causing dry, irritated, and itchy skin.

Not so this sulfate-free milk and honey body wash recipe! It’s formulated with a mild surfactant that cleanses gently. The body wash recipe also contains milk, honey, and jojoba oil, adding refatting qualities that replenish and protect the skin.

Skincare benefits of milk:
Milk is loaded with vitamins (A, D, B6, B12), trace minerals (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus), antioxidants and other essential nutrients that nourish and pamper the skin. Here’s a brief overview of the potential benefits of milk in skincare:
Moisturizing: Milk is an excellent moisturizer. Vitamins A + D, biotin and milk lipids combat dryness and keep your skin hydrated throughout the day.
Exfoliating: Milk contains lactic acid, an alpha-hydroxy acid that acts as a gentle exfoliator to slough off dead skin cells.
Cleansing: Lactic acid also acts as a natural cleanser and helps clear out pores and wash off acne-causing bacteria. Exactly what we want in a natural body wash recipe!
Anti-Aging: The proteins and vitamin D in milk are said to further skin elasticity, reduce fine lines, and boost collagen production, which helps to promote youthful skin.

Benefits of honey for the skin:
Honey is an effective ingredient for homemade skincare preparations. Packaged with peptides, antioxidants, vitamins, and fatty acids, honey is a powerhouse of nutrients. Let’s discover what honey can do for your skin:
Soothing: Honey soothes redness and irritation and helps alleviate chronic skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.
Hydrating: As a natural humectant, honey draws moisture into the skin keeping your skin hydrated and supple.
Anti-Acne: Honey also possesses antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties that calm acne and blemishes.
Brightening: Honey contains an enzyme called glucose oxidase, which converts to hydrogen peroxide on the skin. Hydrogen peroxide has a mild skin-brightening effect.
Safety tip
Omit honey if you react allergically to honey, pollen, or other bee-related products.

Milk and honey body wash ingredients:
The materials to make this moisturizing body wash recipe with milk and honey are pretty straight-forward:
– Cocamidopropyl betaine is the surfactant and gives the body wash its cleansing power.
– Plant oils replace the lipids that have been removed during cleansing. I used jojoba oil. Of course, you can opt for any other liquid carrier oil you have or like, e.g. fractionated coconut oil, avocado oil, sweet almond oil, etc.
– Milk powder is full of skin-loving nutrients and lends the body wash an incredibly rich, creamy texture. I used whole milk powder and listed other options below.
– Raw honey: A good-quality unpasteurized honey is perfect. While manuka honey may be a bit pricey for a rinse-off product, feel free to use it if you fancy a manuka honey body wash.
– Essential oils provide a natural scent and additional skincare benefits. You can find a few scent combinations in the next section.
– Preservative: I preserved my body wash recipe with Geogard ECT, a natural broad-spectrum preservative.

Essential oils for milk body wash:
I love scented bath products and had fun coming up with these body wash essential oil blends. Left unscented, the body wash has a subtle milk and honey scent, which is lovely as well.
– Skin-soothing: 17 drops blue tansy + 12 drops manuka + 7 drops chamomile
– Sweet and dreamy: 20 drops vanilla oleoresin + 13 drops petitgrain + 7 drops patchouli
– Milky florals: 12 drops lavender + 8 drops palmarosa + 6 drops yuzu
– Orange spice: 15 drops sweet orange + 10 drops copaiba oleoresin + 5 drops cedarwood
– Muscle ease: 20 drops ravintsara + 10 drops lavender

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