Allow me to continue to earn my keep on the fairground ride we call “PUMPKIN SPICE ALL THE THINGS!” with this decadent, pumpkin-y pumpkin spice body lotion. You’ll smell a bit like a pie and your skin will be soft and happy—I think you’ll like it. Don’t blame me if you have to fend off hordes of PSL (pumpkin spice lattes, for the un-initiated) lovers, though.
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Like all lotions, this one is an emulsion of a water part and an oil part. I’ve spiked the water part with a bit of maple syrup instead of honey—it felt much more pumpkin-y to me, but the high sugar content means the maple syrup will perform a similar humectant (moisture attracting) role in the lotion. I’ve also added some silk, ’cause it’s awesome.
The oil part is lovely, lovely pumpkin oil. Mine is bright orange, but you might find yours is green (my pretty orange one is from Saffire Blue). If you’re buying your pumpkin oil specifically for this recipe I’d seek out an orange one (your supplier should be able to tell you what colour theirs is), but if you already have a bottle of the green stuff, that’s totally fine. Your lotion just won’t be the pretty orange shade that you see in the photos. If you want the orange and are ok with dropping the pumpkin seed oil, you can use a blend of grapeseed or safflower oil and a bit of bright orange sea buckthorn seed oil.
Pumpkin seed oil is a pretty cool oil. Pressed from the seeds of the pumpkin, it’s rich in Vitamin E MT-50 (USA / Canada), which helps the skin regenerate, making pumpkin seed oil a great carrier oil for irritated autumn and winter skin. It’s also rich in zinc and protein, but I wouldn’t recommend making a pie out of it 😉
Not surprisingly, the essential oil blend is inspired by pumpkin pie spice. A base of sweet, vanilla-like benzoin is lightly accented with cinnamon bark, ginger, clove, and nutmeg essential oils. If your skin is quite sensitive you may find this blend to irritate your skin as it has quite a few “hot” essential oils in it. You can try halving the spice essential oils, or dropping them all together. Or, if you have a pumpkin spice tea on hand you could steep a cup of that (or just some whole “pumpkin spice” spices) and use it for the water part of the recipe (this is also a great alternative if you don’t have all the essential oils on hand).
The lotion itself comes together quickly and easily, with just a bit of weighing, melting, heating, and whisking. I stored mine in a wide-mouthed clear glass jar to show off the pretty colour, so I was sure to add a broad-spectrum preservative since finger-dipping causes lotions to mould in a flash.
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Pumpkin Spice Body Lotion
6g | 0.21oz emulsimulse/ritamulse (or other complete emulsifying wax—not beeswax!)
19g | 0.67oz pumpkin seed oil (orange hued preferred)3g | 0.1oz maple syrup (dark is best)
¼ tsp silk peptides
72g | 2.43 fl oz distilled water2 blobs benzoin essential oil
2 drops cinnamon bark essential oil
1 drop CO2 extracted ginger essential oil (the steam distilled stuff smells awful)
1 drop nutmeg essential oil
1 drop clove bud essential oil
(See note in entry above on alternatives for sensitive skin/if you don’t have all the essential oils)2020 update: Given the irritation potential for this essential oil blend, I’d recommend using a pumpkin spice fragrance oil rather than the essential oil blend. Please refer to supplier documentation for maximum usage rates for the particular fragrance oil you’re using when used in soap.
Broad spectrum preservative of choice (why?)
Weigh out the emulsifying wax and the pumpkin seed oil in a small saucepan and melt over medium heat.
While the waxes and oils are melting, combine the water, maple syrup, and silk in a small glass measuring cup and gently warm.
Once the oils have melted, add the water mixture. Heat through to ensure everything is melted before removing the pan from the heat.
Whisk the mixture as it cools, whisking in the essential oils and any broad spectrum preservative you may want to use. Decant into a 120mL/4oz pump-top bottle or jar. The lotion will thicken into a nice orange-tinted cream (the thickening may take a few days if you are using a different emulsifying wax than emulsimulse/ritamulse). Don’t worry, the cream won’t colour your skin! Enjoy your new PSBL (pumpkin spice body lotion) 🙂
New to lotion making? Watch my basic lotion how to video!
Sounds wonderful! Any substitution for the emulsifying wax? I don’t have any on hand right now.
Sorry, read the FAQ after posting my previous post!
😉
Link for you 🙂
I had just been thinking I wanted to make something like this! Thanks Marie, now I have a recipe! and I made it, it smells so good! and soaks in nicely too.:)
What a happy coincidence 🙂 I am so thrilled with how quickly this particular lotion sinks in, my skin feels happy and hydrated in no time!
This looks great, thanks. I personally like the steam distilled Ginger root essential oil and it’s much more affordable.
Have you smelled both? I didn’t mind the steam version until I tried the CO2 version—it smells just like the fresh root! You are definitely right about the price, though.
Wowza!! Marie this stuff is awesome. Every where I went I could smell something delicious then I realized it was my lotion!!! Ilove it and can’t stop smelling my arms, I must look totally freaky. Tomorrow I might even start licking myself, if that happens I will head over to the coffee shop!! thanks
Thanks, Cari! I’m so in love with this lotion as well. In fact, I’m wearing some right now and I might be sniffing myself… 😉
Wow, this sounds lovely! But I had no idea whatsoever there is such comparatively plain-coloured pumpkin seed oil — the only kind I know is the Austrian, most intense dark green (which stains horribly)!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumpkin_seed_oil
While the green stuff is the most delicious oil to eat (i.e. in salads or soups), I suppose the colour really makes cosmetic use impossible.
Hmm… if you’re eating the green stuff, it sounds like you’re using food grade pumpkin seed oil, and there are often processing differences between food and cosmetic grade oils (the seeds/nuts for making food grade oils are often roasted before pressing, where they aren’t for cosmetic grade). Can you see if you can find some cosmetic grade if what you’ve got is food grade? That might help 🙂
…love your website, but based on your comments I would shop at saffire blue..i’m not sure what’s going on but they have the worst reviews imaginable.. their customer service is critical. maybe you should suggest checking it out before anyone places a large order.. just thought I would’ve wanted to know beforehand 🙂
Honestly, I’ve had nothing but fantastic experiences with them. I recommend them because of those consistent good experiences.
I am not so much fond of pumpkin spice
Could you please suggest a recipe for a rich emollient body lotion with floral fragrances
The recipe you commented on yesterday to ask this question again would be a good one 😛
This is a classic.
I’m eating a pumpkin donut and doing the finishing touches on this lotion, again. I think it’s becoming an annual event!
And what a delicious and decadent annual event it is 😀 Thanks for involving me in your traditions!
Hello Marie, I love your videos, I watch them all the time. Great articles and I’ve been trying to make my own bath and body products for about a year now.
Anyway I was just wondering in this lotion formula, there is no co emulsifier or polymer.. just curious , I sometimes get confused reading other blogs or from FB groups that we need the co emulsifier and polymer in lotion making or are these 2 just optional? Thanks so much
Hey Jeanette! In my experience, when using a complete emulsifying wax, co-emulsifiers and polymers aren’t necessary for success. Including them is certainly a way to improve your end product (that’s why I tend to use them now!), but the complete emulsifying waxes like Polawax and Emulsifying Wax NF are pretty much foolproof when used as directed (note that both e-wax NF and BTMS-50 contain their own co-emulsifiers/stabilizers in the forms of cetearyl alcohol and cetyl alcohol respectively). I’ve made hundreds of simple lotions with those e-waxes and without co-emulsifiers/polymers, and they were all perfectly stable. I certainly cannot speak for all emulsifiers, of course, but when it comes to complete e-waxes used as directed, in my experience they do fine on their own. I’d recommend trying it yourself—make one lotion with, and one without, and see what you think. It’s a great way to learn! I hope that helps and happy making!