Along the Bumpy Road

Since the beginning of our journey into DIY lotions and body butters, I've wanted to try out a natural deodorant as I'm sick of the store bought brands because they work for a while and then suddenly my body starts rejecting them.

(Possibly the ingredients are causing the problems?)

We scoured the internet and library books for good recipes before settling on one that had all of the ingredients we already had at home so we wouldn't have to make an extra trip to the store.

It was July when we made our first batch and the perfect time to try it out since just stepping outside can make you sweat (dry heat or not be damned). It worked! I was sweating around my bra band and the crease of my panties, but my armpits were as dry as the moment I spread on the natural deodorant. I was exultant but tried to rein in my excitement since I was only ten minutes into the experiment.

Three days later, I was still riding that high because I only had to apply the deodorant once a day instead of two or three times. This stuff really worked, and it was made with chemical and preservative free ingredients which really spoke to the new lifestyle I'm slowly cultivating.

Two weeks later, my pits were still dry when I used it, but when I didn't, there was an odd smell, and the right axilla odor was stronger than the left. I panicked wondering if I was dying, infected, or reacting to the ingredients. I went back to the websites touting similar recipes and discovered in a lot of the comment sections that people complained of the same phenomena. Supposedly the stronger than normal pit odor was due to the body unclogging pores of the aluminum present in most store bought brands - though it could also be due to a change in diet. The only change in the past month was my deodorant, so I tended towards believing that was the cause. Fortunately, the smell dissipated within a few days and I continued using our product.

Then I developed a rash.

Apparently my sensitive skin was reacting to the baking soda, an ingredient used for its excellent deodorizing properties. My business partner was also trying it and didn't experience the same problem, but since I refuse to endorse a product I couldn't or wouldn't use, we've had to experiment with the recipe and see what else could be substituted in order for it to work.

I still haven't lost my enthusiasm for using natural deodorants, but I do have to adjust my expectations and needs in order to find one that works. Right now we're working on a recipe with less baking soda and more bentonite clay; I'm really psyched to try it out as I hope this be the one.