Pin Busters! D-I-Y Shave Cream

Have you seen all of those pins on Pinterest for a D-I-Y shave cream? I don't usually bother with using a shave cream. I just grab whatever's handy in the shower - body wash, shampoo, conditioner, or nothing at all. But Lulu uses Skintimate, so I thought I'd give the D-I-Y stuff a try.


The pins led back to A New Leaf blog. The original recipe called for baby oil. I didn't have any baby oil, but I did have a lot of other oils, so I opted for using one of those over spending money.


Ingredients I used :

• 1 cup Suave coconut conditioner
• 1 cup Suave coconut shampoo
• 5 TBSP. sweet almond oil
• 5 TBSP. lotion (I used a bunch of little bottles from hotels)
• coconut fragrance oil (optional)http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=570198118769325052#editor/target=post;postID=7519445307713889254

Directions:

• mix shampoo & conditioner (gently so the shampoo doesn't foam)
• add oil, mix
• add fragrance oil, if using
• add lotion, mix
• pour into container for use/storage

The original directions said to mix everything in the bottle you're going to use for storage, but I didn't have a bottle large enough for that, plus I wanted to make sure it was mixed well. So I put my ingredients in a quart measuring cup with a spout, and used a whisk to gently mix them together. I ended up filling five 2 oz. bottles and one 16 oz. bottle.


I also opted to use a fragrance oil in mine. I just wanted it to have a little extra "smell good" power, and I love the scent of coconut. You don't have to do this - and if you're sensitive to fragrance, I would recommend using a fragrance-free shampoo, conditioner, and lotion, as well as leaving out the extra fragrance.

The original poster said that hers has lasted several months without any problems. Since the shampoo, conditioner, & lotion all have preservatives, I don't see any reason why it shouldn't last a long time without growing green fuzzies - unless, of course, you contaminate it. That's one reason why I put mine in 2 oz. bottles with pull-open tops - less chance of contamination.

The verdict: Pin-worthy! It works really well - but (there's always a but!) - I do wish it was a little thicker. It's very runny. I've been trying to think of a way to thicken it without having to go to a lot of trouble. I do have things here that I could use, but most people wouldn't have them, so it makes it a little less D-I-Y.

I tried putting it in a foamer bottle. A foamer bottle can take a runny liquid and make it thick & foamy - especially if there is a detergent/soap component to the liquid.


But as you can see below, that didn't work at all. It was still really runny, it just had a few bubbles in it rather than being smooth.


I also tried using an aerator to whip the shave cream, because sometimes whipping a product will make it thicker. It did cause the volume to double, but it didn't change the consistency.


I'm thinking of maybe leaving the shampoo out next time, or maybe using a thicker shampoo & conditioner. Or even using a thick hand cream instead of a lotion. If I succeed, I'll update!