Make your own Hand Sanitizer with Essential Oils

Photo by Rafał Szczawiński on Unsplash

We are all struggling with drier hands than usual, thanks in part to the extra dose of hand sanitizers that we are plying onto our skin.

But what if there was a DIY hand sanitizer using essential oils that could help see you through the day? As it happens, there is! And we want to share our top recipe for making your own hand sanitizer. 

Hand Hygiene

As we try to combat the spread of contagious germs, hand hygiene has never been more important. The most effective way of removing germs is by washing our hands frequently and thoroughly with soap for a least 20 seconds. This guide on handwashing versus using hand sanitizer includes a useful checklist to see if you’re doing it right.  

But there are times when it’s not convenient to wash our hands and we need to clean them on the go – this is where hand sanitizer comes in. 

Key ingredient

The key ingredient for making an effective hand sanitizer is isopropyl alcohol, also known as rubbing alcohol. (Do not use other types of alcohol as they can be harmful). To kill germs effectively, your hand sanitizer must contain at least 60% alcohol (see the CDC recommendation here). Without this minimum level of alcohol, your hand-sanitizer may only reduce the growth of germs rather than kill them. 

Combat dryness

The alcohol in hand-sanitizer is vital for it to do the job properly, but it’s also the culprit in causing our skin to dry out. So, what else can we use? 

When making your own hand sanitizer with essential oils we suggest including both aloe vera gel and glycerin. 

Aloe vera can help on three fronts: it’s cooling, anti-inflammatory and moisturizing. So it can be used on already tender hands, or as a way of combatting the drying effects of alcohol. 

Glycerin is known as a humectant, which means that it helps the skin to retain moisture. For this reason, we also add it to our Aroma Guides hand sanitizer. 

Essential oils

To help protect and nourish our hands, we can add essential oils. Adding oils is advantageous for more than one reason. By adding lavender oil we benefit from both the antibacterial and healing properties of the oil, along with its general soothing effects and ability to promote relaxation. 

We also include tea tree oil in our recipe, as it has excellent antibacterial and anti-microbial properties. Take a look at this article which explains more. 

These two oils are especially good for hand sanitizers as they are safe and gentle, even for children to use.

Other oils you could consider adding would be, cinnamon, clove, rosemary, oregano, and thyme. Please check the dilution guidelines of each oil carefully before replacing any oils in the recipe provided. 

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Aroma Guides Hand Sanitizer

Ingredients (makes 100ml) 

• 1 x clean 100ml pump bottle 
• 75ml isopropyl alcohol (70%) 
• 20ml aloe vera (shop-bought will last longer) 
• 5 ml glycerin 
• 3 drops lavender essential oil 
• 3 drops tea tree essential oil 

Method 

Add the alcohol, aloe vera, and glycerin to a clean mixing bowl and mix together.  Add the drops of your chosen essential oils and mix thoroughly.  Using a clean funnel, pour the mixture into your pump bottle. If you use alcohol that contains less than 99%, the mixture may seem more watery. In this instance,  a spray bottle may work better.

Shelf life 

If you stick to the recipe as detailed above, your hand sanitizer will last for 6-months to a year without compromising its effectiveness.  If you are using fresh aloe vera, for example, this would need to be kept in the fridge, and has a much shorter shelf life of around 2 weeks. 

Give it a try to enjoy clean, safe, and soft hands! Leave us a comment below to let us know if you made it.

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Aroma Guides Hand Sanitizer

We are all struggling with drier hands thanks in part to the extra dose of hand sanitizers we are plying onto our skin. Try our moisturizing DIY hand sanitizer with essential oils to help see you through the day.

Keyword Hand sanitizer

Servings 100 ml

Equipment

• 100ml pump bottle
• Mixing bowl
• Stirring rod
• Funnel

Ingredients

• 75 ml isopropyl alcohol 70%
• 20 ml pure aloe vera gel (use store-bought)
• 5 ml glycerin
• 3 drops lavender essential oil
• 3 drops tea tree essential oil

Instructions

• Add the alcohol, aloe vera, and glycerin to a clean mixing bowl and mix together.
• Add the drops of your chosen essential oils and mix thoroughly.
• Using a clean funnel, pour into your pump bottle. Enjoy!

Notes

If you use alcohol that contains less than 99%, the mixture may seem more watery. In this instance, a spray bottle may work better.

Shelf life: If you stick to the recipe as detailed above, your hand sanitizer will last for 6-months to a year without compromising its effectiveness. If you are using fresh aloe vera, for example, this will need to be kept in the fridge, and has a much shorter shelf life of around 2 weeks.