Basic Hand Cream

The price of creams and moisturizers is astonishingly high. Eight dollars or more is far too much when you can make it very easily and cheaply at home. Although it might seem daunting at first, it is very easy and you will get a lot out of making your own creams. You also have the freedom to scent and change the consistency as you wish. By making your own creams, you also know what is in them and won't risk having a reaction from the chemicals they love to add to creams.

When making a cream, don't let yourself be distracted. It shouldn’t take more than half an hour at the most. The reason you don't want to be distracted by your cat biting your toes is that beeswax can burn and when the cream cools, it can form lumps. Set aside a little bit of time and go for it. I can now make a good cream in fifteen minutes.

Basic Hand Cream

1/3 Cup of Almond Oil

1/6 Cup Beeswax

1 Tablespoon Herb Tea

Melt the beeswax in a heavy saucepan that is slow to heat while mixing carefully. When the beeswax is melted add the almond oil. You can use other oils but for a cream, almond oil is best as you will use it every day. Don't panic when you find that the beeswax turns milky when the oil is added. As the oil is cooler than the wax, it starts to solidify. Keep mixing until the wax is again melted and the ingredients are mixed well.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and pour the mixture into a small glass jar. Make sure ahead of time that your hand can reach the bottom of the jar or you'll find you won't be able to get to the cream. As soon as the cream is in the jar, put the lid on and start shaking. Keep shaking until the mixture has cooled slightly. Take the lid off and add the herbal tea. This should be prepared ahead of time and perhaps left to steep overnight. Take a fork and start mixing. You'll have to keep mixing until the cream is cool. To hasten this process, you can submerge the glass jar in water but be careful to mix fast or it will turn lumpy.

If the cream is lumpy, it doesn't really matter. The smooth texture is only to please you and so that the ingredients are mixed evenly. If it is very lumpy, fill the saucepan with hot water and simmer with the glass submerged in the water. Stir the cream as you do this until the lumps disappear. Then remove and keep stirring until cool.

Essential oils if you use them should be added while the cream is just warm enough to aid their spread through the cream. If the cream is too hot, the oils will just evaporate. Don't add too much or it may irritate the areas you use the cream on.

Patience is called for when making creams. The product is worth the care! A cream made with mint tea is wonderful on chapped or dry skin and a rose cream is wonderful. The ratio of oil and beeswax can be changed and experimented with so that the cream is thicker or thinner. Honey or glycerin can also be added.