Cookouts, ballgames, fireworks, pool parties, late night hide-n-go seek: the list of things to do in the warmer months is endless, and I love everything about them. I love to be outside making memories with my family. The one thing I do not like is the amount of mosquitos and black flies. I am sure everyone shares the same dislike for these annoying little buzzers.
One of my children in particular seems to be their favorite snack; they are relentless with her, and it does not stop when she goes to sleep. The other night we had a cookout with some of our friends, so we had bug spray at the ready. After we sprayed all the children and ourselves down, I forgot to wash my hands and touched my lips. I tasted every chemical known to man, and it instantly left me thinking about my children’s skin. It seems their hands somehow always end up in their mouth.
A couple nights later, we attended the firework show at our church. My mother-in-law met us there to enjoy the evening with us, and I stated to her that I had forgotten to bring anything for the bugs. Low and behold, she pulls out this wonderful little jar of homemade bug repellant. This wonderful little jar, made my night so wonderful. The cream worked amazingly at keeping the black flies and mosquitos at bay, without that chemical taste and smell.
It was a late night so naturally our kids fell asleep in the car. I felt so good knowing I did not have to wake them up to take a shower because of bug spray chemicals. How I had never thought of making my own repellant? Especially since one child has eczema and the other has the typical overly sensitive skin that comes with a fair complexion. Nonetheless, I was on a mission to find a great recipe and achieve my desired results.
A moisturizing cream was what I was after. I figure if I am going to be slathering something on my skin, I want it to do double duty and moisturize as well. After much searching, I found this wonderful recipe, which both moisturizes and protects against bug bites.
Ingredients:
¼ cup plus 1 tbsp. stearic acid powder or beeswax. Stearic acid is a white, waxy, natural acid found in animal and vegetable fats. A Stearic acid formed from vegetables (which is what I used) originates from palm and is manufactured and designed to blend well with cosmetic recipes. Beeswax is readily available and the pellets or block will work well for this recipe. You can find stearic acid on Amazon, for $10.39 per pound.
¼ cup plus 2 tbsp. coconut oil
¾ tsp. baking soda – the baking soda is used for a bit of grit for the emulsification process and helps the oils “ grab” together. It is great for the skin as well.
¾ cup distilled water
1/8 tsp. of 1 vitamin E capsule
10 drops each of citronella and eucalyptus essential oils (You can use lemongrass oil instead of citronella if preferred.)
First, melt the beeswax and/or stearic acid, vitamin E, and coconut oil over low heat. A double boiler works great for this step on the lowest setting in the oven, around 100 degrees. If a double boiler is not available, simply add water to a pot for the bottom and then place one on top of the bottom one to melt the ingredients. This works wonderfully.
Heat the distilled water to almost boiling, remove from heat, and stir in the baking soda.
Next, pour the water slowly into the oil while mixing with a hand blender. Asking someone to help you with this step will make it much easier, but it can be done by yourself as well. You will see the oil turn white immediately if you have successfully achieved emulsification, at which points it turns to a cream.
Immediately place the pan in an ice water bath in the sink.
Add the essential oils, and mix occasionally until evenly and completely cooled. Scoop the cream up and store in an airtight jar. If stored in a jar with the lid sealed properly the cream will last through the next season. You might need to stir the mixture before use, but it will be good to go!
Eliminating all of the harmful chemicals from store-bought brug spray was not that hard of a task. Our home backs up to a greenbelt, so there is no way around the bugs in our backyard – the place where we spend so much time during the summer months.
April Sherrill is a staff writer for the Hamilton County Herald. Contact her at april@dailydata.com.
Cookouts, ballgames, fireworks, pool parties, late night hide-n-go seek: the list of things to do in the warmer months is endless, and I love everything about them. I love to be outside making memories with my family. The one thing I do not like is the amount of mosquitos and black flies. I am sure everyone shares the same dislike for these annoying little buzzers.
One of my children in particular seems to be their favorite snack; they are relentless with her, and it does not stop when she goes to sleep. The other night we had a cookout with some of our friends, so we had bug spray at the ready. After we sprayed all the children and ourselves down, I forgot to wash my hands and touched my lips. I tasted every chemical known to man, and it instantly left me thinking about my children’s skin. It seems their hands somehow always end up in their mouth.
A couple nights later, we attended the firework show at our church. My mother-in-law met us there to enjoy the evening with us, and I stated to her that I had forgotten to bring anything for the bugs. Low and behold, she pulls out this wonderful little jar of homemade bug repellant. This wonderful little jar, made my night so wonderful. The cream worked amazingly at keeping the black flies and mosquitos at bay, without that chemical taste and smell.
It was a late night so naturally our kids fell asleep in the car. I felt so good knowing I did not have to wake them up to take a shower because of bug spray chemicals. How I had never thought of making my own repellant? Especially since one child has eczema and the other has the typical overly sensitive skin that comes with a fair complexion. Nonetheless, I was on a mission to find a great recipe and achieve my desired results.
A moisturizing cream was what I was after. I figure if I am going to be slathering something on my skin, I want it to do double duty and moisturize as well. After much searching, I found this wonderful recipe, which both moisturizes and protects against bug bites.
Ingredients:
¼ cup plus 1 tbsp. stearic acid powder or beeswax. Stearic acid is a white, waxy, natural acid found in animal and vegetable fats. A Stearic acid formed from vegetables (which is what I used) originates from palm and is manufactured and designed to blend well with cosmetic recipes. Beeswax is readily available and the pellets or block will work well for this recipe. You can find stearic acid on Amazon, for $10.39 per pound.
¼ cup plus 2 tbsp. coconut oil
¾ tsp. baking soda – the baking soda is used for a bit of grit for the emulsification process and helps the oils “ grab” together. It is great for the skin as well.
¾ cup distilled water
1/8 tsp. of 1 vitamin E capsule
10 drops each of citronella and eucalyptus essential oils (You can use lemongrass oil instead of citronella if preferred.)
First, melt the beeswax and/or stearic acid, vitamin E, and coconut oil over low heat. A double boiler works great for this step on the lowest setting in the oven, around 100 degrees. If a double boiler is not available, simply add water to a pot for the bottom and then place one on top of the bottom one to melt the ingredients. This works wonderfully.
Heat the distilled water to almost boiling, remove from heat, and stir in the baking soda.
Next, pour the water slowly into the oil while mixing with a hand blender. Asking someone to help you with this step will make it much easier, but it can be done by yourself as well. You will see the oil turn white immediately if you have successfully achieved emulsification, at which points it turns to a cream.
Immediately place the pan in an ice water bath in the sink.
Add the essential oils, and mix occasionally until evenly and completely cooled. Scoop the cream up and store in an airtight jar. If stored in a jar with the lid sealed properly the cream will last through the next season. You might need to stir the mixture before use, but it will be good to go!
Eliminating all of the harmful chemicals from store-bought brug spray was not that hard of a task. Our home backs up to a greenbelt, so there is no way around the bugs in our backyard – the place where we spend so much time during the summer months.
April Sherrill is a staff writer for the Hamilton County Herald. Contact her at april@dailydata.com. v