Are you struggling to keep dry skin under control? Join the many! Skincare for the face and body can be rather pricey, especially if you like high-quality and natural products. Well, there’s a solution: make your own body products at home!

Of course, there are still costs involved, but you get more bang for your buck when you buy ingredients in bulk and by-pass the high mark-ups of in-store products.

Dry skin can rear its (uncomfortable) head during cold months, causing flakiness, tightness, and a dull appearance. For some, dry skin is a year-round thing, requiring regular treatment.

In this blog, we are discussing the best homemade body product ingredients for dry skin! You can find many of these gems in our bath and body products section.

What causes dry skin?

Before we delve into the products, let’s explore what causes dry skin in the first place as it might help to inform which products suit you best.

Good old genetics

If you have a dry skin type and/or eczema, it may be due to genetics. Dry skin, sensitivity, and allergies can be passed down through your DNA, and can present in early years or show its face later in life. While climate and atmosphere can certainly exacerbate this skin type, it will always need to be managed.

Weather

One of the most common causes of dry, chapped skin is weather. Winter months are far less humid, offering almost no moisture. In fact, the cold, dry atmosphere causes your skin to lose moisture far more rapidly, and struggle to hold on to any existing moisture. If your climate is also windy, you may suffer from chapped lips.

Atmospheric conditions

Offices with air conditioning and heating are a breeding ground for dry skin! If your skin type is already dry, those moisture-sucking offices are bad news.

Diet and lifestyle

The quality of your skin is often a reflection of your lifestyle. For example, smoking, lack of sleep, excessive drinking, and a poor diet can lead to dry skin, breakouts, and a dull appearance. If your skin type is normal or even oily, you can still experience dry patches if your skin isn’t receiving enough nourishment from the inside. Your skin requires plenty of water, vitamins, fatty acids, and sleep in order to remain plump and hydrated.

Can I make homemade products for dry skin?

Absolutely, yes. You can make high-quality and effective products to hydrate and moisturize dry skin on your face and body. For example, you can make:

• A hydrating lip balm to act as a barrier from cold and wind
• A rich body butter to sink into dry skin and revive a glowing perfection
• A blended face oil to soften, plump, and hydrate dry winter skin
• A natural butter-based sugar scrub to moisturize your skin as you exfoliate in the shower

The best homemade body product ingredients for dry skin

Glycerine

Glycerine is one of the very best ingredients for dry, dehydrated skin. This simple-yet-effective ingredient is a humectant, meaning it attracts moisture into your skin. What’s more, it is very softening and relieves rough, scaly skin. Look for a high-quality organic vegetable glycerine free from palm oil derivatives.

Note: our melt and pour soap bases contain glycerine, making them a perfect base for hydrating soaps without harsh fragrances and chemicals. Why not make your own soap menu to restore moisture as you cleanse? Food for thought!

Tip: mix water and glycerine with a few drops of lavender essential oil in a spray bottle. Use this as a skin-nourishing spritz.

Cocoa, shea, or avocado butter

Natural butters are a wealth of fatty acids that penetrate and plump the skin layers. They also contain vitamins and minerals that help the skin to repair, renew, and remain healthy overall. The fatty, rich texture of butters such as cocoa and shea add a physical layer of hydration and protection onto the skin. This gives you that glowing, plump look while the fatty acids get to work hydrating those thirsty cells.

Tip: combine shea butter (or another nourishing butter) with jojoba oil to create the simplest body butter for sensitive, dry skin. No perfumes, no harsh ingredients.

Jojoba oil

Jojoba oil is a golden, thick oil known for its ability to help fade acne scars and help to slow the signs of aging (thanks to those antioxidants!). However, this luxurious oil is also incredibly moisturizing and soothing for dry, itchy skin. If you have oily or acne-prone skin as well as dry patches, jojoba oil is an ideal solution. Jojoba oil has a wonderful way of helping to control sebum production, reducing excess oil and breakouts.

You can use jojoba oil on its own as a part of your skincare routine, after your water-based serums and creams. Or, you can combine jojoba oil with natural butters and essential oils to make a multi-tasking face and body cream.

We love the jojoba seed golden cold-pressed oil, packed with fatty acids and antioxidants. If you’re looking for an anti-aging ingredient as well as a dry skin solution, this is a wonderful go-to as it helps to boost collagen production.

Tip: use as a spot treatment for dry patches, as a simple eye cream, or over the entire face to boost hydration. Combine with beeswax, natural butter, and glycerine to create the best lip balm you’ll ever use.

Urea

Urea is a lesser-known ingredient for dry skin, but it’s well worth a mention. Urea is used in many skincare products designed for extremely dry or callused feet, thanks to its keratolytic properties. This means that it breaks down any tough or built-up layers of skin, allowing the new, soft layers underneath to come through.

Tip: Urea is available in over-the-counter products as opposed to as a pure substance. Combine a low-dose urea product (as simple as you can find) with shea butter and jojoba oil to make your own heel, knee, and elbow cream for cold winters.

Exfoliants

It may seem counterintuitive to use an exfoliator on dry skin. However, it’s important to remove built-up dry skin to prevent clogging and the dreaded breakout. Plus, by removing dead layers, your moisturizing products are far more able to penetrate into the deeper layers. This doesn’t mean you should scrub away at your skin aggressively, or often. A couple of times a week, a gentle exfoliation followed by a generous application of rich moisturizer can make a huge difference.

While chemical exfoliators are popular and effective, physical exfoliants are still perfectly acceptable. For example, coffee green seed exfoliant combined with coconut oil makes for double-tasking scrub for the body. Get rid of dry skin, reveal newer layers, and hydrate all at once. Be a little more cautious when it comes to your face, as the skin is more delicate. A simple and affordable trick is to take your face cloth or flannel and rub it in small circular motions over your face after you apply your cleanser. This physically buffs and removes any dead skin while remaining safe and non-irritating.

Tip: make a homemade exfoliating soap by combining the goat’s milk melt and pour soap base with an exfoliator, shea butter, and a little jojoba oil.