My laboratory..make your own natural deodorant.

 Here is a partial assembly of what I used in my brew. How I would have loved to have had all this as a child. I was always making secret potions with anything I could lay my hands on.
I had read in a few places around the net about baking soda based deodorants. It was on my list of things to try one day, and that day was yesterday. So I had a long list of different recipes I had collected and being my typical self, I decided to try my own thing.
Many of the recipes used arrowroot powder in equal quantities with baking soda. They were then mixed up with coconut oil to a thick cream consistency. I wasn't keen on the arrowroot powder, as most was actually tapioca powder. I didn't fancy using a starch on my skin which I thought would be more likely to induce some funky fungus or something lol. Some more thinking and googling and I found some alternative recipes that used clay such as kaolin or bentonite. Another using zinc oxide (hey, it would keep your pits from burning if they ever actually saw the light of day lol). I used a minimum of the zinc as I was not convinced it wouldn't be bright white. As you can see on my fingers it ended up fairly sheer.

 So here is the final result. I made as small a batch as I could as it is experimental. It contains coconut oil for it's natural antibacterial powers and non greasy feel, kaolin clay for dryness and natural astringency, less baking soda than is usually called for as some people report a rash from continued use. baking soda creates an environment that bacteria cannot thrive in. Added to that is a slew of other oils and extracts. Calendula for skin conditioning, grapefruit seed extract as a natural preservative and bactericide, peppermint oil, benzoin oil, tea tree oil, and a touch of neem oil (phew that stinks on it's own! I'm trying to avoid that kind of funky smell here lol, but it has many excellent qualities).
 All the oils have natural anti-bacterial qualities amongst others.

And how did it work? Not too bad actually. Yesterday was quite humid and despite feeling damp under my arms in a hall full of people watching my daughter's play, there was no offensive smell. Not perfect in the morning, but OK. I think there is more improvement needed yet so I'm glad it is such a small batch. Once I have it perfected I'll happily share the recipe.

The final question is probably why? Why would I even bother? Well, probably more than anything I like not having to buy something from big multinational corporations and supermarkets. One more step towards self sufficiency and independence, and, just because I can, and can make something without all the nasties and petrochemicals! And of course, it's fun :)