Soothing & Cooling Aloe Vera Gel Recipe

We were able to get a shipment of Lily of the Desert aloe vera gel at a good price that we can pass on to our customers, a 4oz. bottle usually retails for $4.99, but with the sale we’re able to sell them for $2.99 a bottle while supplies last.

We’ve developed this recipe based off a favorite soothing aloe vera gel that is no longer being made. It’s wonderful for sunburned skin or even just to cool off and calm down skin this summer (my daughter actually feels like it helps with reducing itching from bug bites).

You can either make this recipe in a single use handful, or else for the whole tube, I’ll list amounts for both below. The below recipes use a 2% essential oil dilution, which is recommended for regular adult use, though if used on young children I would reduce the amount of essential oils by half.

Soothing and Cooling Aloe Vera Gel Recipe

Single Use Recipe (one handful):

1 tbs. aloe vera gel

4 drops peppermint oil

2 drops lavender oil

Whole Bottle Recipe:

4 oz bottle aloe vera gel

32 drops peppermint oil

16 drops lavender oil 

Stir oils into the aloe gel and apply generously to sunburned or itchy skin. Do not use near the eyes.

When making the recipe for the whole bottle, we recommend pouring contents into a plastic bag, cutting the tip, and squeezing back into the original aloe vera tube for a more convenient application.

Try storing this in the fridge and applying cold to the skin for even more of a cooling sensation.

DIY After Sun Spray

This simple recipe is absolutely fantastic as an after sun spray and is also very soothing and healing for sunburn.

Both aloe and witch hazel are soothing to the skin, and can help with reducing pain, itching, and peeling if you do happen to get a sunburn. In addition to the aloe and witch hazel, this recipe also uses a bit of essential oils, which add additional healing properties. The peppermint oil in this spray gives a fantastic cooling sensation to the skin, and lavender oil is calming and healing to the skin.

This recipe makes a 2oz bottle, but can easily be doubled (or tripled!) for a larger spray bottle.

The witch hazel has preservative properties, so it can be stored at room temperature, but storing in the fridge can make this spray feel even better on hot, sun damaged skin.
Interestingly, my daughter also feels this spray helps with reducing the itching of bug bites, so that’s a nice additional use!

Ingredients:

2 tbs. witch hazel
2 tbs. aloe vera juice
6-12 drops lavender oil
6-12 drops peppermint oil

Add all ingredients to 2 oz. amber bottle (available at the store), taking care not to overfill. 

The different essential oil amounts are for two different dilutions. The smaller amount is for a 1% essential oil dilution, which is the amount recommended for children or those with sensitive skin, whereas the larger oil amount is a 2% dilution, which is the amount recommended for general adult use.

Apply as desired after sun exposure!