Written by Kate TietjeA lotion’s a bit of a different creature- an emulsion of water and oils.
I wanted a lotion for my face because I wanted something a little thinner and smoother. This lotion goes great with my oil-cleansing blend. If that blend is a little drying for you, add this lotion to your routine, and it might be perfect. Not too thrilled about making your own skincare? Try Earthley’s Skin Care Line!
Pineapple-Infused Face Lotion
Ingredients:
- 1 cup avocado oil
- 1/2 cup pineapple cores and skins
- 3 tbsp. beeswax
- 1/2 cup sweet almond oil
- 1/2 cup water
- 4 drops of ylang-ylang essential oil
- 10 drops of lemongrass essential oil
- 4 drops of lavender essential oil
Directions:
Step 1: Put your pineapple bits in a small pot (1 quart is fine).
Step 2: Add your oil on top. Simmer it gently for about an hour on low heat.
Step 3: Strain the oil into a measuring cup. Add your beeswax. Depending on how quickly you get the beeswax in after straining, you may need to put it back on the stove to completely melt. I did. Return it to your measuring cup when it’s melted, though.
Step 4: Add your sweet almond oil (fill measuring cup to 1 1/2 cups). Let this mixture cool until it’s just warm. It will get all gloopy and thick. Then, pour it into the blender.
Step 5: To this, add 1/2 cup filtered water. Then, add your essential oils.
Step 6: Start blending this, increasing it to about medium speed.
Step 7: our into a jar and scrape it all out. It will thicken as it cools and sits and be a very creamy lotion. This makes about a pint (16 oz.).
The blender will be hard to clean. Add hot water and soap and blend it on medium. Pour it out and repeat a few times, then run it through the dishwasher. Mine is better now. 🙂
After a week of using it, I loved it so much that I wrote this blog. It seemed to make my pores appear smaller and my skin much softer. Give it a try…I bet you will like it!
Do you use lotion? Are you ready for a healthy, junk-free version?
Can i use a different oil instead of almond? Maybe jojoba? My son is allergic to almond and coconut.
Sure. Any liquid oil would work in place of almond. Olive, jojoba, apricot, etc.
Do you think you could make it without the EOs? I’m concerned that my daughter may be scent-sensitive and I’d hate to aggravate that with a lot of odors…
You need a preservative! Anything with water needs ones.
Michele, I have heard that you should, but that it will still last a few months without. I would probably choose grapefruit seed extract if I used one.
I’m sorry but no it won’t! It will last a week in the fridge before it needs to be thrown out. Treat it like food if you don’t have a preservative in there… would you drink some pineapple juice that’s been sitting on the counter for 3 months? I wouldn’t. Nor would I put it on my body.
I’ve had it sitting on my counter for a few months now and I’ve had no issues. It does not have any fresh pineapple or juice in it; there is a tiny amount of the pineapple “essence” diffused into the oils. If it were composed largely of pineapple, there would be a problem, but that’s not true. Like I said, mine’s been sitting out for months and it’s completely fine.
I know that in dehydrating foods, pineapple acts as a sort of preservative, doesn’t it? Maybe that’s why no other preservative is needed. Could be wrong, but that’s my hunch. I’d also use distilled water, which will last forever without going bad.
That may be — that the enzymes preserve it. Mine is still fine a year later!
This looks amazing! I am wondering if it would need to be stored in the fridge because of the fresh pineapple, and also what the “shelf life” might be for the same reason. I’d love to know the longevity of the product itself over time–if it still seems fresh when you get to the bottom of the jar. Thanks for sharing!
Have you used this as a whole body lotion?
I have read that beeswax alone is not sufficient as an emulsifying wax and that you must mix it with borax in order for it to truly emulsify. Have you heard this? have you had any problems with just using straight beeswax when making this?
Hi Faith, no, I haven’t had any problems. I’ve been using it for a few weeks and it hasn’t separated or had any issues. And it emulsified easily when I made it. I have found that a lot of these “rules” are not really necessary…of course, there are some I found out the hard way, are. 🙂 But this is one I hadn’t heard and it hasn’t been a problem for me.
I made this lotion the other day and LOVE it! However, it seem to be a little bit greasy for my face. What adjustments could be made to make it a thinner, less oily lotion? Thanks!
Hmm…I’m not sure. I usually just put this on at night and don’t worry about it. Maybe up the proportion of water to oils a little bit?
Thanks for the advice. I may try that next time as I would like a good lotion to apply in the morning. I’m using it, and it really is not too greasy for day – I just would prefer it a little lighter. It’s PERFECT for nighttime. Thanks again for this post and all the others!
My car is at the shop and I’m stuck at home with no Lemongrass! Is there any other EOs I could use to replace with similar or better properties? What do you think of Bergamot/Neroli instead?
Does the recipe call for lavender oil or lavender ‘essential’ oil ?
Technically I used essential oil. I’m not sure of any other type.
[…] Homemade pineapple-infused facial lotion (Modern Alternative Mama) […]
This looks interesting. I have made lotion before using a similar method. What does the pineapple do for your skin?
Hi Kate,
I just made this lotion and LOVE it. However, I didn’t consider the shelf life of it when making it and so I did squeeze the pineapple in the pot with the oil thinking it would infuse more of the pineapple “goodness” into it. :\ I’m new to this obviously 🙂 So, now I am worried that this will not last me for more than a week like the one reader suggested above. Any ideas what I can do. I ended up with a LOT of lotion. Much more than I imagined it would be. Help 🙂
What adjustments would it take these ingredients & make lotion bars? I haven’t ever made them before but I did buy one at a Christmas Craft Show and absolutely love it and I would like to make some for thank you gifts at my daughters baby shower in 6 weeks.
If you left the water out, this would probably result in lotion bars. The emulsification with the water makes it a cream.
[…] This pineapple-infused facial lotion and this body butter both sound fun! […]
This sounds fabulous! It’s definitely going into my “Projects To Do” pinterest folder. Yet another reason to buy another blender. lol
~ Stephanie
I make my own lotions too. The above reader is correct that you should use a preservative with a water based lotion. If it is just for yourself, no big deal, but if you are giving these away as gifts I would use 3 months tops as a shelf life. I make something similiar to this called Beewax Lotion and it IS pretty greasy for my taste, though I have some friends that love it. Adding pineapple is a great touch! I love fresh pineapple!! it looks like an interesting recipe. I bet it would mix well with Apricot Kernal Oil. You can make lotion bars out of these too–which work fantastic if you add zinc oxide powder as a sunscreen.
[…] Pineapple-Infused Lotion […]
[…] Pineapple-Infused Face Lotion […]
[…] bottle) and it’s perfectly safe on babies and adults. I make my own oil cleansing blend and face lotion (both pineapple-infused) instead of some expensive facial-care system (if you need to, you can also […]
[…] Pineapple-Infused Face Lotion […]