If you are heading out in the sun, you need a sunscreen to protect your skin from UVB and UVA rays. But, commercially bought sunscreen is loaded with chemicals and eventually gives skin cancer anyway! How does a chemical-free sunscreen sound like? Read on to know how you can prepare an easy and effective sunscreen for daily use.
Ingredients
Shea Butter – 4 Tsps.
Olive Oil – 24 Tsps.
Beeswax – 24 Tsps.
Non-Nano Zinc Oxide – 5 Tsps.
Coconut Oil – 24 Tsps.
Carrot Seed Oil – 1 Tsp.
Raspberry Seed Oil – 1 Tsp.
Essential Oil – a few drops
Vitamin E Oil – 1 Tsp.
Instructions
In a small bowl, add the beeswax, Shea butter and coconut oil.
In a shallow pan, add water (1”) and place it on your stovetop and place the small bowl in it.
In few minutes, the butter and wax will begin to melt.
If you are in tropical countries, the coconut oil will not need melting. When the butter and wax begins to melt, add in the Olive Oil and Vitamin E Oil.
Now, add in the essential oil, raspberry seed oil and carrot seed oil.
Stir to combine and remove from heat when the ingredients are fully incorporated.
Once you remove from flame, add the Zinc Oxide and mix well.
Transfer to a sterilized jar and use as needed.
Tips to Tweak the Recipe
You can reduce or increase beeswax according to the consistency you prefer. The above proportion offers a slightly thicker sunscreen, though you can reduce beeswax if you want it in lotion consistency.
You can substitute Almond Oil for Olive Oil if you prefer the former, or have acne-prone skin.
Carrot seed and raspberry seed oils are optional and I have added them for their SPF and skin benefits.
You can choose any essential oil you like, though Vanilla goes great with the other fragrances in the recipe.
If you skip the Zinc Oxide, it makes a luscious and moisturizing body lotion.
Vitamin E Oil is used as a preservative, though you can reduce the quantity if you prefer or even skip it entirely, as it is oil-based.
If you don’t have time for preparing this, you can also use your lotion or our easy DIY Lotion Recipe and just add Zinc oxide powder to make a quick sunscreen.
SPF of Ingredients
You are probably wondering why we are adding these ingredients for a sunscreen. Let’s take a look at the SPF for our ingredients, as that’s the most important factor for sunscreen.
Zinc Oxide – Make sure you opt for non-Nano, so it doesn’t get absorbed into your skin. 5% of Zinc Oxide offers 20 SPF, so you can increase the Zinc Oxide for better SPF.
Shea Butter – 4 – 6 SPF
Carrot Seed Oil –35 – 40 SPF
Raspberry Seed Oil – 25 – 50 SPF
Coconut Oil – 4 – 6 SPF
Shelf Life of the Sunscreen
It purely depends on the shelf life of the ingredients you use, though this recipe lasts for six months. I prepare a fresh batch every 3 months. If you change a few ingredients, make sure you check the shelf life, as some essential oils have a very short shelf life and tend to go rancid sooner like Rosehip Oil.
How to Use It?
Just use like your regular sunscreen. It is not completely waterproof and might need reapplying in case of rain or swimming.
Precautions
Don’t inhale Zinc Oxide, if you must, use a mask to prevent inhalation!
Don’t have time for DIY recipes? No worries, Aya Naturals have a range of skincare and beauty products for busy women. You could try their products when you don’t have time to prepare your own skincare products.
