Cooling Aloe Mint Lotion

This Cooling Aloe Mint Lotion is my most popular lotion recipe for a good reason, it’s so moisturizing! It’s all thanks to a lot of aloe vera gel for hydrating combined with coconut oil for conditioning and moisturizing the skin. It’s an easy to make DIY that you can customize by changing up the essential oil to suit different seasons. This homemade lotion is easily absorbable with so much aloe vera in it, and keeps my skin nice and smooth.

This lotion is perfect for summertime, or after excercising because of the ‘cooling effect’ from the aloe and mint. It’s particularly awesome after a long day on your feet. And I really love it massaged into my legs and feet after a day hiking in the mountains. With warmer temperatures, I like to use a light moisturizer, and the cooling effect is an added bonus.

I use straight coconut oil as a moisturizer year round. But sometimes I just need a little moisturizing, not the full coconut conditioning. The 50:50 ratio of coconut oil to aloe vera in this recipe has been the perfect amount, with just enough moisturizing. It sinks right into my skin, leaving a smooth non-greasy surface.

Ingredients for this Cooling Aloe Mint Lotion:

• Beeswax – I have a giant block of beeswax I’m still using up. But if you’re looking to buy beeswax I most definitely recommend getting some beeswax pellets so you don’t have to bother with grating it. However the most accurate way to use beeswax pellets is to measure by weight. So if you don’t have a scale, consider grating your beeswax instead.
• Coconut Oil – makes the perfect lightweight and easily absorbable oil to use in this lotion. And because it’s solid at room temperature it helps to thicken up the lotion as well.
• Aloe Vera Gel – I use bottled aloe vera gel, (the Desert Lily brand) because fresh aloe vera spoils too quickly to put into a lotion.
• Peppermint Essential Oil – adds to the cooling feeling of this lotion, but feel free to omit the essential oil for an unscented lotion. Or you can use any essential oil you like the smell of that works for you.

Tip: to get the beeswax off your grater, pour boiling water over the surface and watch it melt away. Or buy beeswax pellets for the easiest DIY projects!

How to make Cooling Aloe Mint Lotion:

I like to have all of my ingredients ready to go before I start. That way, when the beeswax has melted into the oil, you’re ready to whisk in the aloe vera.

There are a couple key points to this lotion:

1. It’s very important to make sure the beeswax has completely melted into the coconut oil, with no flecks remaining. If it’s not completely melted, the lotion won’t emulsify properly. And there will be little gritty pieces of beeswax in the finished product as well.

2. The aloe vera gel must be at room temperature. If you put it into the hot oil/wax mixture straight from the refrigerator, the mixture might not emulsify. Instead you might end up with clumps. Also if you add cold liquid to hot oil it can splatter. So it’s best to keep the oil mixture as cool as possible when melting the beeswax, (pictured above). Just warm it enough to melt, but don’t let it get super hot.

This mixture will look too thin at first, (above photo). But it thickens up as it cools (photo below). I like to blend mine on the lower settings of the blender to make it fluffier. Also, it sometimes separates as it cools if it hasn’t been properly emulsified.

If this happens running it for a few seconds on low in the blender has always made it stable for me. Once it’s fully cooled, I haven’t had it separate. You can also lightly warm the mixture and whisk thoroughly to emulsify if it didn’t come together the first time.

The cooling process can take 2-4 hours depending on your room temperature. It’s really best not to rush this process because by cooling down slowly the lotion becomes more stable. I’ve also put the lotion over an ice bath and stirred it vigorously until it thickens.

But if you keep it over the ice water too long, it will harden and separate, (so it really is best just to let it sit on the counter for a couple of hours). It’s not worth the hassle to speed up the cooling process all in all!

This is one of my most popular DIY recipes, and I hope all the extra tips I’ve added today will help you be successful in making your own lotion. Once you get the hang of it, it’s actually quite easy, and only takes a few minutes to whip up.

The reason this lotion needs a little extra care and attention is the large ratio of water to oil, which makes it less stable than normal lotions. This is also the reason it’s such a great summertime lotion though! If you’re looking for an easier first time project, try my Lavender Sugar Scrub, or my Easy Buttercream Lotion.

At home spa day inspiration:

• Refreshing Peppermint Sugar Scrub
• Moisturizing Mint Body Wash
• At Home Facial
• Finish with this lotion!

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This recipe has been updated with new photos, step by step process, and more tips and additional information in 2021.