Healthy Hand Sanitizer

Finding a healthy hand sanitizer has become a real challenge for me. I’ve been forced to use the generic “hand sanitizers” made by major companies at work. Every time I goop on that clear jelly, I get an eczema break-out a day later… It’s harsh, toxic, and filled with perfumes.

I get the need for hand sanitizers, especially during flu season, but on the flip-side I’m also a health-nut and won’t just goop anything on my skin. Coming-up with my own healthy hand sanitizer recipe only made sense, so I put my aromatherapy skills to work.

I’ll share my entire recipe below, it’s quick/simple and you don’t have to be a chemist! You’ll be able to spay this stuff on guilt-free, all day and night. It’s aloe vera based with some witch hazel love. Three essential oils that won’t break your bank (tea tree, thyme, and peppermint) and you have yourself a DIY healthy hand sanitizer.

I know pictures make life easier, so I’ll lay-out ever step for your eyes too.

RECIPE:

• 1 ½ cup witch hazel
• ¾ cup aloe vera gel
• 1 tsp vegetable glycerin
• 1 ml vitamin-e oil
• 25 drops peppermint essential oil
• 10 drops tea tree essential oil
  
• 5 drops thyme essential oil
  

Supplies:

• Glass bowl for mixing (anything but alumin bowls, they react negatively with essential oils…)
• Mixing spoon
• Amber glass spray bottles (I buy mine from NewDirectionsAromatics)
• (optional) A large liquid syringe for transferring liquid to bottles – makes life easier…

DIRECTIONS:

Step 1: Get supplies, ingredients, and bottles ready.

Step 2: Pour aloe vera gel into bowl (sometimes can be a little lumpy- stir it and break down as many lumps as you can – some aloe vera gel can be really gooey and lumpy…)

Step 3: Pour witch hazel into bowl and mix into aloe vera gel for a few minute… The goal is to break down every last aloe vera gel lump. You can’t have lumps in your final product; it must be pure liquid or it won’t spray out of the spray bottle.

Step 4: Add vitamin-e oil and vegetable glycerin, mix well.

Step 5: Drop-in the essential oils (peppermint, thyme, tea-tree) and mix well again.

Step 6: Transfer your final healthy hand sanitizer to bottles (whatever method works best for you… funnel, straight pour etc…)

Since my bottles have these tiny little holes, pouring is a no go. My solution was to order a liquid tranferring syringe on Ebay.com for a few bucks. Very worth it, makes the job way easier!

(Products expires after 6 months – store in cool area, in amber glass bottles)