Thread: Homemade Aftershave Tips

Originally Posted by rtaylor61

As cheap as A/S products are, I really wonder why bother making your own?
RT

Hi,

well, for me it was three reasons. Number one, I react to a number of substances found in many aftershaves (or cosmetics in general), so making my own where I know whats in it was the prime reason. Number two, it actually is cheaper than getting a good quality aftershaving that has all the nice ingredients required for a good skin-care. And finally its hard to find bay-rum aftershaves in general stores here in Germany, so I could make my own and could also fiddle with nuances in scent.

-Axel-

I'd like to try it....but My german is good enough to buy something, not to order a list of chemicals. Could you send me a small bottle of your aftershave perhaps? I'd like a Bay rum scent kind of thing and in the Netherlands it's hard to get as well.
(Offcourse I'll pay you for it).

No problem, YGPM :-)

coolness. Looking forward to it.

Oh noooo another hobby...Making aftershave. I could really get into this.. I will have to think about it..

Thanks for the tips guys. I may even add chamomile to the mix since it also has antiseptic properties and a nice scent. The reason I'd like to use alcohol (other than its astringent properties) is that it's an excellent solvent. That's why I'm adding aloe to the mix. To counteract the irritating/drying properties of ethanol.

How about napalm. Add to the skin, ignite, no shaving necessary

Gary

ps The smell would be a bit off putting though...

Actually if your talking about common stuff its cheaper to buy it but if your into high end aftershaves you could manufacture your own by the gallon for a fraction of the cost of the store bought stuff.

And also its just another side of this hobby to explore if your a mind to.

I want to produce something that is:
1) effective
2) natural
3) easy to produce
4) nice-smelling
As I said, I'd make it public domain information, not just for my own benefit, but also for the benefit of this community. As soon as I start experimenting with my formulas, I'll post the results. Hopefully it will be a success...

I had a long discussion about this with Nenad, and here's what I'm planning on doing so far:

-Dissolve some Mint/Sage/Chamomile in 70% Eth. (*)
-Add glycerine
-Add aloe vera gel
-Add a drop or two of peppermint+eucaliptus EOs
-Add a bit of distilled (*) (*) water to take the Ethanol percentage into the 50% range
-Shake well before use

(*) How long should I let the herbs stew in alcohol before straining them out?
(*) (*) Some people prefer using bottled/mineral/spring water, but there's a reason why you don't put it into your coffee-maker. It contains mineral sediments, which may not be good for your skin. Distilled water does not contain them.