There’s lots of homemade lotion bar recipes out there, but this one has natural ingredients infused with the wellness benefits of essential oils. Not only are these lotion bars soothing for dry skin, they are easy and fun to use. Plus, the step-by-step video tutorial answers all your questions about how to make them for yourself or as easy DIY gifts!

Looking for other DIY self-care ideas? You’ll love these Homemade Bath Bombs and Soothing DIY Shower Steamers.

You’re in for a real treat today! Imagine you’re in the middle of the winter doldrums and need some self-care. You whip up a batch of these DIY lotion bars made with essential oils, and suddenly your dry winter skin gets the royal treatment with an organic moisturizing lotion bar massage.

These homemade lotion bars are perfect for moisturizing dry skin and rough areas like your elbows, knees and feet. Scented with essential oils, they also supply additional wellness boosting benefits.

What’s even better is they’re a home-run DIY gift idea, so make up a batch and gift them to friends and family so they can moisturize organically and beautifully too. You can make them in tons of shapes because of the variety of silicone molds available (I’ve linked several below.)

What is a lotion bar?

A lotion bar is moisturizing like lotion but has the shape of a bar of soap. Unlike lotion, it is solid when kept at room temperature but melts when it comes into contact with body heat. This makes the moisturizing effects of lotion bars easy to apply. They are a wonderful way to combat winter dryness, especially in typically dry areas such as your elbows, knees, and heels.

Benefits of homemade lotion bars

Other than feeling like buttahhhh when smoothed across your skin, lotion bars are self-contained so they lessen the environmental impact of plastic bottles. Also, they contain less water than lotion which makes them more powerful and moisturizing. They are fast acting and longer lasting, too.

Which oils should I use for homemade lotion bars?

It’s important to note that some essential oils, particularly citrus oils, are photosensitive so should NOT be used on your skin when it’s going to be exposed to the sun. You can skip adding essential oils to your lotion bars if using them on skin that will see the sun.

During the winter when I’m not exposed to the sun (or in areas covered by clothing if going outside in winter), I love using lavender essential oil for calming, rosemary for soothing, and peppermint for focusing.

In this recipe, we use lemon and lavender for a wonderful spa-like scent– again, noting that lemon oil is photosensitive and should NOT be used if skin will be exposed to the sun in the next 24-48 hours. For myself, using it in the winter on areas that will be covered in clothing and not exposed to the sun it’s absolutely wonderful.

Materials for homemade lotion bars

wax pouring pot
medium saucepan
silicone molds (or you can use muffin tins or silicone cupcake liners)
shea butter or cocoa butter
coconut oil
essential oils
beeswax

While it may be a bit of an up-front investment, I’ve found we use the materials for lots of other DIY projects and recipes. For example, the wax pouring pot comes in handy when making homemade candles such as these DIY citronella candles. The silicone molds can be used for toilet cleaning bombs and shower steamers. And coconut oil for errrrrrrthing!

Shapes for homemade lotion bars

The shapes for the bars are limited only by your imagination (and what’s available as silicone molds, haha!) There’s hundreds of possibilities out there, here are a few favorites:

How to Make Homemade Lotion Bars (VIDEO)

How to Make Homemade Lotion Bars (Recipe)

DIY Lotion Bars with Essential Oils

These luxurious and moisturizing lotion bars infused with essential oils make wonderful gifts and are great for supporting dry winter skin.

Yield:

Materials

1/2 cup extra-virgin coconut oil
1/2 cup beeswax
1/2 cup shea butter or cocoa butter
10 drops lavender essential oil
10 drops lemon essential oil

Equipment

Instructions

Combine the coconut oil, beeswax, and shea butter/ cocoa butter in a wax melting pot.
Place the wax melting pot inside a medium saucepan, and fill the saucepan only with water that rises to halfway up the outside of the measuring cup (make sure not to get water inside the wax melting pot.)
Place pan over medium head and bring the water to a boil, stirring frequently until ingredients are completely melted.
Remove the melting pot from the saucepan and place on a heat-proof surface.
Add essential oils to the mixture and stir until completely combined. Immediately pour into the silicone molds.
Let the lotion bars cool overnight, and once set remove from the molds.
To use, warm slightly in your hand and rub over your skin (focusing on rough areas such as knees, elbows, and other dry areas) and enjoy!

Make these DIY lotion bars with essential oils in bulk and your skin will thank you all winter long. Wrap up a few for friends, too– these luscious lotion bars always appreciated as homemade gifts.