Sweet Dreams Homemade Recipe for Body Cream

As women we are so busy, often running at lightning speed all day.  I spend a lot of time at my home being a work-at-home, homesteading, homeschooling mom, yet my days are jam-packed and each night I fall into bed good and tired.  That’s why today I’m sharing a recipe for body cream – because there’s something about a good body cream that helps us relax at the end of the day.

When bedtime rolls around I am looking for everyone in the house to peacefully wind down after a busy day (which, pretty much is EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.)

I think both kids and adults need a good bedtime routine.  You know, things you do every night to set the atmosphere and help everyone get the best night sleep possible.  Sleep is SO important and so many of us just aren’t getting enough.

If you aren’t getting good sleep your whole health can suffer.  I work really hard to make sleep a priority because I know my body just doesn’t function well if I don’t.

We are fortunate to have a fairly calm and peaceful bedtime routine in our home. Our kids go into their rooms a half hour before bedtime and either read or play legos together quietly.  We’ve done this ever since they were preschoolers.  It’s been a good idea for our family.

My oldest is now 12 and it’s still part of our night time rituals.  I love the quiet time before everyone goes to sleep and I also love that they enjoy spending that time together.

Whatever I can do to help my kids sleep better, I will.  Sometimes it’s their favorite essential oils in the diffusers, sometimes it’s warm, cozy jammies on a cold night, and sometimes it’s extra hugs. You see, night time hasn’t always been so relaxing in my house.

Bedtime itself has always been easy, but two of my kids had suffered from night terrors for years which means they were waking often.  At one point they were happening every night for my one little guy.

It was awful.  I always dreaded them waking up a couple hours after they went to sleep with a night terror.  I remember some nights just crying as they screamed and cried and would hit and kick because they couldn’t see me holding them and didn’t know it was me. There’s no easy way to endure night terrors.

If you ever had a child who experienced night terrors you know what I am talking about.  It’s when their eyes are open like they are awake, but they actually aren’t awake and are having a nightmare.

My boys eventually outgrew them, and our house has been night terror free for a couple years now.

BEDTIME CREAM AS PART OF YOUR NIGHTLY ROUTINE

Needless to say, if there’s anything we can add to our routine for both us and our families, I’m all for it.  A nice, relaxing bedtime diy body cream that has essential oils known to encourage relaxation along with containing sedative properties seems like the perfect addition to a bedtime routine.  It’s one of those beauty products you’ll want to have on hand.

This bedtime homemade body lotion recipe is perfect to rub on feet, big or small, before bed.  The unrefined shea butter in this lotion is perfect for moisturizing the skin, especially during the colder months.  We have some dry skin issues in our house and so the shea butter is always put to good use in the winter.  Our house is definitely a dry place and so having our own lotion on hand is a must.

Shea butter may also help muscle soreness as it reduces inflammation.  If you can’t tell yet, I  am a huge fan of shea butter!

The secret with shea butter is that a little goes a long way.  That means you only need a little bit of this rub everytime you use it. My two older kids have skin issues in the winter, and they rub this stuff on their cheeks and hands as well. It’s really a perfect hand cream any time of the day, not just at bedtime and it can be used on any body part – it is a full-body moisturizer if you want it to be.

In this recipe I use an lavender essential oil and cedarwood essential oil. However, if lavender oil or cedarwood isn’t your thing, you can replace them with other different essential oils.  Just do your research and make sure it’s essential oils that can safely be used on the skin. 

If you have sensitive skin you will definitely want to be careful that you don’t put any oils that can cause irritation.  Lavender is a really good option to keep in this recipe though because it’s mild and lavender is also known to help you relax and sleep.  But, if you prefer different scents, use what works for you!

Just be sure to not use fragrance oils.  Fragrance oils are not the same as essential oils.  Essential oils contain natural ingredients, fragrance oils are full of ingredients that you don’t want to be using on your skin if you can avoid it.  Also, while I like a good smelling lotion, I find fragrance oils emit a strong scent that is a little too much for me.  Essential oils tend to be a nice, gentle aroma.

Once you start making your own skin care products you won’t want to stop.  Okay, let’s get to the recipe for body cream so you can use it tonight at bedtime for some top level relaxation!

“SWEET DREAMS” HOMEMADE BODY CREAM RECIPE

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What you will need:

1/2 cup Shea butter (find where to buy it here)

1/4 cup Coconut oil (find where to buy it here)

1/4 cup Sweet Almond oil (find where to buy it here)

15 drops Lavender Essential Oil

5 drops Cedarwood essential oil

 

Add your shea butter and coconut oil to a pot or bowl using the double boiler method.  I make a double boiler by adding a bowl on top of a pot and putting water in the pot that is holding the bowl.

Heat over medium or low heat until it is all melted.  I tend to use medium heat because…well, I’m impatient!  But you definitely don’t want it up too high.

Add the almond oil to it and stir.

Now you want to wait until it solidifies a little before you move on.  I put it in the freezer to help it along.  

It took about 30 minutes for it to solidify a bit but you’ll want to keep an eye on it and check it because you don’t want it hard as a rock or it will be difficult to work with and then you’ll probably have to wait for it to thaw out again before you can do anything with it.  

As you can see by the picture, it barely solidified, there is even some thicker liquid left.

Once it reaches this state add your essential oils into it and using a beat it with a hand mixer for two minutes until it’s reached a whipped consistency.  

If you don’t have an electric mixer you could try doing it by hand, though I haven’t tried that myself.  I think it would just take a LOT longer to turn into the consistency you want.

​See?  It becomes a nice creamy consistency.

Store it in a mason jar or some other glass jar and use this homemade lotion recipe at bedtime.  Store it at room temperature so it doesn’t get too hard.  

Besides bedtime you can use this homemade body butter during the day on dry, red skin.  Remember, all you need is a small amount as a little goes a long way.  

Either way you will love this luxurious lotion that is all natural.  This batch will last you quite a long time as well. It sure beats store-bought lotions, that’s for sure.