One of my earlier posts was about the simplest and easiest 3-ingredient DIY moisturizers you could make at home, without having to fuss with making actual creams or lotions (i.e. emulsions).
It was more about the 2-step method you can use to moisturize, to make sure you include both the moisture (water) and the oil (skin softener and occlusive) necessary to keep the skin properly moisturized.
You see a lot of DIY ‘moisturizer’ recipes online that are actually just a balm-like product – meaning a combination of different oils and fats, but no water-based ingredients. And people usually will just slather that on dry skin, like any typical commercial moisturizer.
These balm-like moisturizer recipes are more prevalent because it’s very easy and straightforward to just melt different oils together and let them solidify – anyone can do it. There’s also no need for emulsifiers or preservatives, because there’s no water in it.
Anytime you do add water, or water-based ingredients, you need to add emulsifiers (to mix the oils with the water) and preservatives (to keep bacteria from proliferating in the water) to the equation. It makes things slightly more time consuming and you do need to purchase more ‘specialized’ ingredients that most people typically don’t have on hand.
Now, balm-like moisturizers can be just fine. As long as you’re adding water to the skin and using the balm to lock that moisture in – it’s perfect. But if you’re skipping the ‘water’ step, and especially if your skin is already naturally dry, you might find that these types of moisturizers are not getting the job done. This is where creams come in.
In this post I’ll share a basic, nourishing and healing DIY skin barrier repair cream you can easily make at home, with just a handful of ingredients.
First I’ll go over some relevant specifics about each of the ingredients in the recipe, so that you understand why I chose to include them. Then I’ll go over the step by step process to make the cream.
If you’ve already made emulsions before (creams and/or lotions), feel free to skip that part and move straight to the recipes at the bottom.
If you’ve never made a cream, then read through the steps carefully, before you try to mix the ingredients together – it’s important to follow that order and not skip over things. It’s not a complicated process at all, it’s just slightly more involved than only melting stuff together.
Like I said, at the end you have the actual recipes, divided by skin type – dry, normal/combination and oily. They all use the same ingredients, but in different ratios to accommodate for the different needs of each skin type. Again – we love simplicity here!
Important notes on the ingredients
There are many ingredients we could be using to make a good skin barrier cream.
You basically only need water (or a water-attracting ingredient/humectant) and a skin barrier-friendly oil and occlusive to lock all that moisture in. If you provide the skin with these basics, it will do the rest naturally.
You can read more about the skin barrier in this post, where I go over how to heal damage holistically and what are the most barrier-loving ingredients you should add to your routine.
But basically, you have a good variety of ingredients to choose from that have all been shown to be very effective. Other than the individual reasons specific to each of the ingredients, that I’ll go over bellow, my two main criteria for choosing the ones in this particular cream are also:
- They’re some of the most ‘neutral’ (non-reactive) ingredients. So, they’re generally very well-tolerated by most people. Which you especially want, if you’re trying to heal an already damaged skin barrier.
- They’re easily sourced and generally (more) inexpensive. Some oils, butters and humectants can be a bit pricier. The ones below are typically in an acceptable range.
Now, about the ingredients…
Distilled water / floral waters
Obviously to make a cream (or lotion) you need a water phase and the most neutral (and basic) ingredient you can use here is just water in its purest form – distilled.
It’s important that it’d be distilled because this is water that’s free of any and all mineral deposits, microplastics and microorganisms. It’s the cleanest water you can get. Due to the fact that it doesn’t have any minerals, distilled water is also more acidic, which is beneficial for your skin barrier (the acid mantle).
Alternatively, you can also use floral waters (also known as hydrosols), like rose, chamomile, lavender or calendula water.
They’re also a form of distillation, so you have the same properties of regular distilled water, with the added benefits of the particular plant it was distilled from. This type of distillation makes a very mild herbal product, that’s very forgiving and soothing to the skin.
You could actually choose any hydrosol you want, but rose, chamomile, lavender and calendula are plants with proven skin healing and soothing properties. They’re more expensive than just plain distilled water but not outrageously.
Shea butter
The occlusive in this recipe. It’s very rich in triterpenes, which are natural compounds that can be found in plants, as well as animals or fungi. They have been shown to have great properties, like anti-oxidative, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and even anti-cancerous.
It’s been shown to accelerate wound healing and tissue repair. Shea also has a high content of stearic acid, which makes it creamy and occlusive, helping to prevent water loss through evaporation and to maintain moisture in the skin.
It’s been proven to be as effective at healing eczema and atopic dermatitis as ceramide-based products.
Jojoba oil
It’s technically a liquid wax and so structurally and chemically the most similar to sebum, our skin’s natural oils. This makes it very well tolerated by all skin types.
It’s very moisturizing but lightweight, so it doesn’t clog pores and it absorbs easily.
Glycerin
The humectant. It has a much higher water-pulling ability than hyaluronic acid and it’s been shown to significantly accelerate skin barrier recovery. It’s actually part of the Natural Moisturizing Factors (NMF), or naturally occurring humectants, that our skin produces to hydrate the outer layer.
Niacinamide powder
Niacinamide is a form of vitamin B3 that can brighten the skin, support the natural moisture barrier and help build up protein.
This ingredient is one of the optional ones (I personally don’t usually add it to my cream). This is because the idea for this cream is to make it as bare-bones and basic as possible – to include the most neutral but nourishing and effective ingredients, while at the same time making sure they’re also easily sourced.
Niacinamide is inexpensive and easy to source, but it’s also the kind of ingredient people don’t use much and probably would only buy to make a specific recipe. On top of that, some people do have reactions to it, so you might find it a bit irritating.
Of all the ingredients in this skin barrier repair cream, niacinamide is the most superfluous – you can totally do without it.
Leucidal®
The preservative. Leucidal is a “natural” preservative derived from the lactic acid bacteria of fermented radishes (technically a ‘fermented lysate’). This makes it a kind of postbiotic ingredient as well, which is actually also really nourishing to the skin’s microbiome (one of the four barrier layers of the skin).
Leucidal has also been shown to have an added moisturizing effect in creams, by slightly acidifying the formulation. The skin needs to be slightly acidic in order to maintain proper barrier function.
Related post: Your Holistic Guide To Repair a Damaged Skin Barrier Naturally
Borax-Beeswax Combo
Both work together as the emulsifier – helping to mix the oil and water phase. They’ve been a standard in commercial cold creams since pretty much the beginning of cold creams.
Borax (sodium tetraborate or sodium borate) is a natural alkaline powder, also mildly antibacterial and antifungal. It has some emulsifying properties on its own but those are greatly enhanced by combining it with beeswax.
When the borax is dissolved in water it will produce both boric acid and sodium hydroxide (the lye used in making soap). The sodium hydroxide will react with the acid in the beeswax to form the emulsifier. The boric acid component, on the other hand, will help buffer the solution. So, it technically saponifies the beeswax into soap, which is what emulsifies the ingredients.
The borax has been widely used in creams for decades, but it has even more centuries of use in a variety of creative ways in medicine, mummification, alchemy, soap manufacturing, among other things.
There is some controversy over the safety of borax. I’ve researched quite a bit of the evidence for and against it and feel pretty confident in using it to make my creams. You can read a bit of a ‘summary’ on the controversy here, if you want. It gives you a general idea and you can use it to jump-start further research, if you feel the need.
Rosemary extract
Rosemary has many well-known and widely researched bioactive properties, like antifungal, antimicrobial, antioxidant and antibacterial. Here we’re using it to help reinforce the preservative action of the Leucidal and to slow down the oxidation of the fats we’re using (jojoba and Shea). This helps keep the cream ‘fresh’ for longer.
There are different types of rosemary extracts – they can be water-based (like hydrosols), alcohol-based, oil-based, glycerin-based, and more recently, even CO2 extracts. For this recipe, I’m using a glycerin-based extract, but if you want to get fancier, get a CO2 extract – it’s the purest form, producing the highest quality result (with the corresponding price tag, of course).
Otherwise, you can also use a rosemary essential oil, although you’d have to lower the amount significantly, since it would be a lot more concentrated. If you want to substitute with essential oil, keep it between 6-12 drops for this 2 oz (60 ml) amount (0,5%-1% concentration). Although, it’s best to avoid using altogether, if your skin is very reactive.
Try to avoid any alcohol-based extracts – they’re drying to the skin and not good for the microbiome.
Equipment & ingredients
Below is list of the things you’ll need to make this skin barrier repair cream – optional and necessary.
Equipment
Essential ingredients
Optional ingredients
The Steps – how to make the skin barrier repair cream
Step 1 – Prepare the tools for use
Clean whatever surface or counter top you plan on using to make your cream. It doesn’t have to be sterile, but it should be clean and free of debris. It should also be cleared of unnecessary clutter, so you can move around easily and keep your tools clean.
You can also set a clean kitchen towel or chopping board on your counter, where you can place your equipment for sterilization and measuring.
Now, you’re going to need to sterilize the equipment you’re going to use to make and store the cream.
This is very important when we’re working with water-based formulations, because water attracts bacteria, so you want to start with the cleanest possible slate.
Now, you don’t have to obsess about this step, because we are making this cream for ourselves and not for sale. It’s enough to clean everything well and to take some basic care – remember, the preservative will take care of the rest.
There are different ways to sterilize equipment, like boiling things or putting them in the oven, but for my money the simplest one is to clean it thoroughly with rubbing alcohol. It kills pretty much everything you need to worry about in approximately 10 minutes.
For this, you can either put the alcohol in a spray bottle and spritz all the tools and jars thoroughly, or you can soak a paper towel in alcohol and rub everything down well. You’ll need a few paper towels for this.
I usually go for the second method, also because I can then set the items I’ve just disinfected directly on top of the paper towels, to make sure the sterilized surfaces don’t come into contact with a non-sterilized counter/kitchen towel/etc.
Set aside the disinfected tools and equipment for at least 10 minutes, before they are ready to use.
Step 2 – Measure the ingredients
Once the tools are properly sterilized (you’ve waited at least 10 minutes), you’re going to measure out all the ingredients and set them into their respective containers.
We’re going to separate the water phase and the oil phase into different containers, so that they can both go into the water bath together. The water phase and the oil phase need to be at roughly the same temperature, for the emulsion to work.
Since this cream is a water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion – meaning we’re going to be adding the water phase to the oil phase – we’re going to put the oil phase ingredients directly into the 2 oz (60 ml) wide mouth jar, which will also be the jar where the final product will live.
And we’re going to put the water phase ingredients into the heat resistant beaker/measuring cup.
Step 3 – Heat both phases together
Place both containers – the wide mouth jar and the measuring cup – into the pot and fill it halfway with water, making sure that it covers no more than half of the length of the jars. This is to avoid tap water spilling over into the containers accidentally, as it heats up and simmers.
Place the pot over a medium heat until just under the boiling point and reduce to low. Wait until the oil phase melts completely. You can help it along by stirring the oil phase occasionally – it helps it melt faster.
Also, stir the water phase a bit to make sure the borax and any other water-soluble ingredients you’ve added blend completely. Make sure to not move the stirring spoon between both phases without wiping it first – you don’t want to mix things just yet. Alternatively, you can use different spoons.
Step 4 – The emulsion step
Once the oil phase is completely melted and both phases have been well blended, remove from the heat and place both containers on top of the kitchen towel or chopping board. It’s best not to place them directly on top of the counter, because they’ll be very hot and the difference in temperature might crack the glass.
You can wait a couple of minutes or start blending right away.
To do this just take the blender or whisk, put it in the container with the oil phase and start whisking/blending, as you SLOWLY tip the beaker with the water phase.
Don’t dump all the water in directly – do it in stages. Pour a little bit in slowly, always blending or whisking, then stop and just blend for a moment. Then pour in some more slowly, while blending and stop. Continue like that until all the water has been poured into the oil phase.
Continue blending or whisking intermittently as the mixture cools – for this amount it might take about 15-20 minutes.
You don’t have to blend it continuously all that time, but try to keep it up for the first 5 minutes. Then rest for 5 minutes and blend some more, for a couple of minutes. Do this until you can feel that the cream is almost room temperature, or about the same temperature as your hand when you touch the sides of the jar.
Step 5 – Adding the preservative
Once the cream is room temperature, it’s time to add the preservative and antioxidant (if you’re using it).
Again, add each slowly using the dropper as you continue blending the mixture. Blend for a minute after adding each, to make sure the preservative and extract has fully incorporated and dispersed into the whole cream.
Put the lid on and place the jar in the fridge or in your bathroom – it’s ready to use.
DIY Skin barrier cream recipes by skin type
Bellow are the specific skin barrier repair creams for the different skin types – they all use the same basic ingredients but at different ratios.
Glycerin and niacinamide are always optional ingredients – remember niacinamide can be irritating to some people.
Barrier repair cream for dry (or very dry) skin
This is the heaviest version of the cream – it has a thick cold cream consistency – meant for very dry skin, or if you just prefer a thicker cream. It has an almost 50-50 blend of oils and water.
Oil phase
- 1 TB (15 ml) jojoba oil
- 1 TB (15 ml) Shea butter
- ½ TB (7,5 ml) beeswax
Water phase
- 2 TB (30 ml) water or floral water
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) borax
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) glycerin (opt.)
- 3,6 ml niacinamide (opt.)
Cool down phase
- 50 drops of Leucidal
- 50 drops Rosemary extract
Barrier repair cream for normal / combination skin
This is a lighter version but still rich. For my combination skin, it’s the one I enjoy using the most, although I do prefer thick creams and a dewy look to the skin.
Oil phase
- 1 ½ TB (approx. 22 ml) jojoba
- ½ TB (7,5 ml) Shea butter
- ½ TB (7,5 ml) beeswax
Water phase
- 2 TB (30 ml) water or floral water
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) borax
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) glycerin (opt.)
- 3,6 ml niacinamide (opt.)
Cool down phase
- 50 drops Leucidal
- 50 drops Rosemary extract
Barrier repair cream for oily / acne-prone skin
This is the lightest version of the cream, consisting of more water than oils.
Oil phase
- 1 ½ tsp (7,5 ml) beeswax
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) Shea butter
- 3 tsp (15 ml) jojoba
Water phase
- 2 TB (30 ml) water or floral water
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) borax
- ¼ tsp (1,25 ml) glycerin (opt.)
- 3,6 ml niacinamide (opt.)
Cool down phase
- 50 drops Leucidal
- 50 drops Rosemary extract
How long does the cream last
This cream uses Leucidal® Liquid as a preservative. It’s used by several natural skincare brands and it’s generally considered very effective and safe to use.
It’s water-soluble, stable up to 158.0 °F / 70°C and remains active under acidic (pH 3) and alkaline environments (pH 8).
There was a study some years ago that disputed the preserving effects of Leucidal and it caused some controversy – you can read more about that here, if you’re curious. Personally, I’ve been using it for years to preserve creams and lotions and have never had a problem with it.
I also personally know and have worked with a natural skincare brand in Sweden that used Leucidal to preserve their formulations. Before settling on it, over other options, they put it through several stress tests to make sure the products would be stable – no issues!
They used their Leucidal with a CO2 rosemary extract in order to help keep the product as “fresh” as possible (like I mentioned earlier), but the bulk of the preservation was done by the Leucidal itself.
Now, this formula is using Leucidal at a 4% concentration, which is the upper limit suggested by the manufacturer (between 2%-4%). Like my “mentor” in the natural skincare arena, I also choose to use rosemary extract, but if you don’t have it on hand and don’t want to buy it, you can just use Leucidal. It should be just fine.
If you’re on the fence, here is another formulator online who put several natural preservatives to the test, by using at-home mold and bacteria kits, giving Leucidal® Liquid (at 4% concentration) the A-OK.
According to the manufacturer, it should provide a shelf-life of about 12 months (when properly stored in a sealed container).
I’ve never tested this myself and my creams and lotions are usually used up within 2 months, tops. I’ve kept some in the fridge and others in the bathroom cabinet – I’ve noticed no difference between them. Only in the consistency, of course, since the creams kept in the fridge will be ‘stiffer’ for obvious reasons.
I’d say that even if you want to be VERY conservative with your estimation, you’re most likely good for 6 months, easy.
Emulsions, though a bit fussy, are VERY satisfying to make. I’ve been loving this particular skin barrier repair cream formulation on my skin – it feels very luxurious and nourishing. If you make it, let me know what you think.
If you haven’t made a cream before, the step by step process might seem overwhelming at first – I hope you find the explanation clear enough. But if something isn’t clear, or you have any questions, please let me know in the comments!
