de-funk de pits

TeresaT said:

Look what I did today! (Well, yesterday and today. I made the deo yesterday and piped it into the containers. I put labels on them today.) I'm going to give these to a couple of friends to try out. I finally did the Mg(OH)2. I used 306 grams babassu and 250 grams Mg(OH)2. I had only purchased an 8 oz bag of the Mg(OH)2 so I used it all. I was going for IL's 50/50 recipe, but didn't feel like melting the oil then reweighing it. Once they were mixed, I zapped them with my (food) stick blender to make a nice creamy concoction. I started to fill the tubes with a spoon and gave up on that because it was too thick. I put the blend into a small plastic baggie and snipped the end. It worked wonders!! Each one is about 1.35 oz (40 g). It's enough for a few weeks depending on how much the person decides to use. I really like this formula much better than just the oils because putting it on is not as greasy and absorbs much faster. Also, I put the deo on after my morning shower yesterday and there was no odor at all by the time I went to bed. I put a little bit on before bed and woke up smelling good. No funky odor at all. Haven't had a shower today and didn't put any more on and still don't stink. I'm definitely hooked on the Mg(OH)2 and babassu combo. There is no need for fragrance oils or essential oils to cover up any smells or use as antibacterial agents. The Mg(OH)2 leaves a bit of a residue on the surface of my skin after the oil has completely soaked in. I think that Mg(OH)2 residue is acting as a barrier to sweat and odor. I know the oil combos never prevented me from sweating, but this does seem to. Irish Lass, thanks for the awesome idea!! This thread started out as somewhat of a joke, but I think it turned out to be a great help!! I've been without a commercial deodorant since I made my first entry. Although the various mixtures I've tried worked to some degree, they were not as good as the Mg(OH)2. Maybe I should have just bought a bottle of milk of magnesia to begin with; but then again, I wouldn't have had as much fun..

Click to expand...

First question is where did you get the underarm tubes and second question is did the mixture stay fluid while you were piping it in and third question is once it hardened was it easy to push up??? Thanks

Gaisy59 said:

First question is where did you get the underarm tubes and second question is did the mixture stay fluid while you were piping it in and third question is once it hardened was it easy to push up??? Thanks

Click to expand...

I was thinking the same exact things. Thanks for posting.

Scooter

Nice job on the labels & packaging T, those look great! I just got some magnesium hydroxide powder from Amazon so am going to try this next and compare it to my pit stop lotion.

Gaisy59 said:

First question is where did you get the underarm tubes and second question is did the mixture stay fluid while you were piping it in and third question is once it hardened was it easy to push up??? Thanks

Click to expand...

I bought the tubes at Got Oil Supplies. However, they no longer have those tubes and, more importantly, their delivery and customer service both suck. I would never do business with them again.

The texture was more of a creamy lotion than a liquid so it wasn't very fluid at all. It was like a medium-heavy trace. It had the texture of thick clotted cream or Greek yogurt. It was actually much easier filling the tubes with the cream than with the melted oils. The oils leaked out but the cream did not. Having the Mg(OH)2 in with the babassu was incredibly helpful to get the tubes filled. I ended up throwing one of the tubes away the first time I tried filing it (with just the melted oils) because it leaked all over the place. The tubes did not come with any kind of instructions (you're supposed to know what you're doing). I figured out quickly you shouldn't use warm liquids to fill them.

After I filled them, I put them in the fridge to harden so I wouldn't accidentally knock them over. Once they've warmed up a bit, they're actually very easy to move up and down. The lids are screw on lids, which makes it kind of nice. You don't have to worry about the lid popping off. I also discovered that I can re-use these because they're really hard plastic. (The ones in the photos are brand new!)

Once my original tube was empty, I tossed it into hot water to melt all of the residual oil off. Once that melted down, the whole thing came apart easily. I was able to wash it in hot soapy water then let it dry over night. That's actually a good thing because I completely forgot about weighing a tube before I filled them. Once that old tube was dry, I reassembled it and weighed it, then weighed the filled tubes and was able to put the weights on the labels. I now have two tubes for personal use that I can re-use. If my test subjects want to clean out their tubes and return it for a re-fill, then that will be great. If not, they'll be getting little cups of product.

BTW: SKS Bottle has really nice deodorant tubes that are much bigger than the ones I bought. I think I'm going to get these the next time I order: https://www.sks-bottle.com/340c/fin8ai.html. When I ordered the blue tubes, they were 6 for only $5.94; however, the shipping was $6.95. That pushed them to $2.15 each. SKS Bottle shipping wasn't cheap either, but their products are better priced. I didn't remember about them until after I found Got Oil Supplies and ordered the deodorant tubes; otherwise I would have ordered the deodorant tubes from them as well as the powder bottles I ended up getting. I first used SKS Bottles a few years ago when I bought some decorative canning jars from them. I really like their selection and customer service. I hope this helps.

doriettefarm said:

Nice job on the labels & packaging T, those look great! I just got some magnesium hydroxide powder from Amazon so am going to try this next and compare it to my pit stop lotion.

Click to expand...

Thanks!! I really like the ease and convenience of the babassu and magnesium hydroxide. It is not greasy at all and I can use the tube to apply. I'm happy to report that I showered yesterday morning around 10 AM and used the new deodorant then and last night before I went to sleep. I didn't have to work today, so I was lazy and didn't shower. It's 11:11 PM and still no stink. That is a world record for me!!

ETA: Oh my gosh! I just realized, today is Monday. I actually haven't had a shower since Saturday morning. I'm a pig. But I don't smell like one. I didn't have to work today so I've been busy all day doing things and it just occurred to me. This babassu and magnesium hydroxide combination really do work!! Wow. Too bad I have to work tomorrow. I might have waited to see if it worked one more day.

Okay, I have decided to try the babassu and magnesium hydroxide together. I can order the Mg(OH)2 from Amazon Prime (500g for $17.00), but the babassu is too expensive from Amazon. So if I go for the better price from Soaper's Choice of 7 pounds for $30, what would y'all suggest I use all the extra for? I've never used babassu oil in soap, so I suppose I could try some. Are there any other uses y'all can recommend?

Also, what kind of formula would you recommend? I see Teresa went for a 50:50 mix, but I seem to recall IrishLass is using a much different mix. Perhaps I should try smaller amounts of Mg(OH)2 until I find a mix that seems right for me.

Babassu oil has similar qualities to coconut oil in soap; however, it is not as drying. I've made some soap with it and it was really nice. I'd have to find out what exactly I did. However, I'm thinking of doing a sample batch of salt soap using babassu oil instead of coconut oil and reducing the SF to a normal 5% instead of 20%.

earlene - babassu is really nice in lotions and soap . . . like T mentioned it seems less drying to me than coconut

I love Babassu oil in so many ways. I am very sensitive to coconut oil, it makes me itch. So I use babassu in soap. It also makes a killer lip balm with just a bit of beeswax. I have been known to use it as a moisturizer. It's a skin-loving oil and can be used in any way.

earlene said:

I've never used babassu oil in soap, so I suppose I could try some. Are there any other uses y'all can recommend?

Also, what kind of formula would you recommend? I see Teresa went for a 50:50 mix, but I seem to recall IrishLass is using a much different mix. Perhaps I should try smaller amounts of Mg(OH)2 until I find a mix that seems right for me.

Click to expand...

I think my babassu oil came from WSP since I was already ordering from them. My bottle is 1 lb.

I definitely agree that the babassu oil is more silky and soothing to the skin than coconut oil. It felt like my underarms were saying, "Ahhh" when I put it on. For myself, I haven't figured out a consistent formula (which is due to my morning rush more than not caring) but I prefer the mix to be on the dry side, so more magnesium hydroxide than babassu oil. When I let the formula veer over to majority babassu oil, it seems like I feel my underarms are damp that day. I'm a sweat-er (haha, no, I'm not a piece of clothing so I had to add the hyphen) so my pits seem to need more dryness than soothing oil. However, on those days when I felt like my underarms were damp/sweaty because of a heavier babassu oil percentage, I did not stink so for me it was a comfort issue. As always, YMMV.

earlene said:

I've never used babassu oil in soap, so I suppose I could try some. Are there any other uses y'all can recommend?

Click to expand...

Besides soap and lotions, you can also use it in lip balms.

earlene said:

Also, what kind of formula would you recommend? I see Teresa went for a 50:50 mix, but I seem to recall IrishLass is using a much different mix. Perhaps I should try smaller amounts of Mg(OH)2 until I find a mix that seems right for me.

Click to expand...

I've been experimenting with a few different ratios in small lip balm jars that I have on hand. The one I'm using now is a 50:50 ratio by weight, which is a little too thick /dry for my likes. I think I'm going to try tweaking it to a 60:40 ratio (babassu:magnesium).


IrishLass

Holy cow! I cannot believe there are 171 comments on this thread!! (172 now that I've made this astute observation.)

I cannot believe a member of the secret service discovered a way to defunk my pits! Teresa you are so cool! And everyone else who posted I've just been reading up on this half year of research you all did, love it!

redhead1226 said:

I am having a so-called discussion, maybe an argument soon with a soaper on a FB group. He made a "deodorant soap" and is telling everyone they can use it as a deodorant instead of deodorant! That some of his men friends (customers) are saying that they wanted him to make a soap that lasted and kept them fresh lol. He said he used the BB deodorant additive. I explained to him in my opinion on that no soap is going to be a deodorant. That it can get rid of the funk of BO because your washing yourself. But he is saying no that isnt true. I need some help here as I have exhausted my explanation. I told him its a wash off product what does he expect to stay on them? Aren't I correct? Or am I missing something with this BB additive?

Click to expand...

There are possible ways he could be right. Some commercial deodorant sticks use a soap base -- a low-solubility soap, sodium stearate. So maybe his product isn't for washing, but an actual leave-on product.

But assuming it is a soap for washing with, I'll remind people that when Dial soap contained hexachlorophene, some of their advertising claimed it obviated the need for underarm deodorant. Now that its antibacterial is triclocarban, they claim only about a 25% reduction in BO. Also, soaps that leave perfume on skin make it hard to smell body odors, just on the basis of the inability to perceive more than one smell at a time.

Millie said:

I cannot believe a member of the secret service discovered a way to defunk my pits! Teresa you are so cool! And everyone else who posted I've just been reading up on this half year of research you all did, love it!

Click to expand...

That made me laugh!!

I'm coming out of lurking to reply to this thread, which I've loved, by the way. When I first read it, I was thrilled to find some ideas on modifying homemade deodorant. I've used homemade deodorant for 7ish years, and been mostly happy with it.

I've used a coconut oil based deodorant with beeswax, arrowroot, baking soda and essential oils. It's been the best natural deodorant that I've ever used, usually working 24 hours without reapplication. This past year I've noticed an unpleasant smell when I used it (which was every day). It was not BO. It is reminiscent of . . . graphite . . . you know, what you smell when you sharpen pencils. Strange, I know. I not only smelled it on me, but on other family members who use the deodorant.

I readily admit that I have a sensitive nose. Nobody else said anything about it, and happily kept right on using the deo. First question: why would I recently notice this after years of use? I thought it might be some of the ingredients, so I began making some slight alterations. Maybe my containers weren't clean? I thoroughly cleaned them and spritzed with alcohol. Nothing helped.

Then, the pit thread! Okay, I began swapping ingredients. Babassu? Check. By the way, I really like the way the deo applies when made with babassu - much smoother and silkier application. I reduced the baking soda and added some kaolin clay. The graphite smell isn't there, but the deo is not as effective now. I'm smelling at the 24-hour point. Here's my latest sample:
coconut oil, babassu oil, baking soda, arrowroot powder, kaolin clay, vitamin E, lemon, lavender, tea tree, white thyme, rosemary essential oils (not in descending order - the babassu is actually the highest, by weight).

My next venture is the magnesium hydroxide and babassu. I just ordered the magnesium and can't wait to try it! I'll update when I have some results to report. I really, really want to keep the babassu an integral part of it; it's just so pleasant to put on. My hopes are up .

JasmineTea

Thank you, Theresa, for starting this thread.

Sorry . . . I meant Teresa, not Theresa :-(.

Dr. Bob said:

There are possible ways he could be right. Some commercial deodorant sticks use a soap base -- a low-solubility soap, sodium stearate. So maybe his product isn't for washing, but an actual leave-on product.

But assuming it is a soap for washing with, I'll remind people that when Dial soap contained hexachlorophene, some of their advertising claimed it obviated the need for underarm deodorant. Now that its antibacterial is triclocarban, they claim only about a 25% reduction in BO. Also, soaps that leave perfume on skin make it hard to smell body odors, just on the basis of the inability to perceive more than one smell at a time.

Click to expand...

I beg to differ. Additional scents may confuse the issue sometimes for some noses (or rather the brains deciphering what the nose is smelling), but not for all noses. Strong BO and certain types of BO (not all BO is created equal) underlie or overpower added scents. The result can be quite unpleasant.

The human sense of smell is absolutely capable of perceiving more than one scent at a time.

And then regarding advertising, in my experience that needs to be taken Wirth a grain of salt.

I am so glad this thread exists! Like TeresaT, I also get pretty stinky when I sweat. And I sweat. I don't sparkle, glisten, or any of that other garbage; I sweat! And like many others before me, I have tried many of the various natural deodorants, all to no avail. Tom's of Maine should just stop making deodorant because they are so ineffective it's ridiculous. The crystals have pieces flake off and you don't notice it until you have a bright red, angry scratch in your armpit. (I can't be the only person that's done that, right?) I was using a homemade liquid formula that was moderately effective at the smell part but not at all effective at stopping the wetness. And since I sweat when I'm nervous, anxious or just one degree too warm (so basically quite a lot), something that helps with the wetness would be great. I know that we're talking deodorant, not anti-perspirant, but still.

So I got very, very happy as I read this thread and discovered that an effective natural deodorant can be made. I ordered the needed supplies and mixed up my first batch the other day. I went for Irish Lass' 60:40 blend (babassu:magnesium) and added some lavender EO both for scent and for the skin benefits. It goes on beautifully-I put mine in a mint tin and use my fingers to apply. It's so creamy and just melts into my skin. And my underarm skin is definitely happier now. For the big test, I went to the gym today; when I got home from my workout-no smelly pits!

So a huge thank you to TeresaT, for your extensive testing and humorous sharing of the results, and to Irish Lass for the magnesium addition.

I am ready to report on my babassu/magnesium hydroxide deodorant trial:

I made a small batch of 1:1 ratio on January 20 and began using it the next day. The consistency is smooth and firm, perfect for application from a roll up stick. It goes on beautifully, unlike my previous recipe with baking soda and coconut oil.

Is it effective? Yes! It's winter here, so the true test will come this summer, but it works now to keep odor at bay for at least 24 hours. And . . . no graphite smell!

My husband and a friend have also tried it and like it.