DIY Natural Rose Face & Body Cream Recipe (2024)

I created this DIY natural rose face and body cream as a gift for my mom. She absolutely adores all things roses and the color pink, so I think she’ll love this!

(Update: I never can wait to give gifts to people & already gave my mom some of this. She LOVES it. Success!) :)

There are a few things to remember when making this homemade cream:

• Use the utmost care in cleanliness. I use the sanitize cycle in my dishwasher to pre-wash all utensils, bowls, jars, everything!
• Use clean fingers, or better yet a sterile spoon, to scoop out your finished cream, avoiding any “double dipping.”
• If you don’t add a preservative, it will be quite perishable and have a short shelf life of around 1 week, when stored in the refrigerator between uses. (See * below for more information.)
• This cream is thick and rich and is best suited for those with dry or mature skin. If you have oily skin, you may be happier with a lighter cream such as Basil Anti-Aging Face Cream.
• It may take a few times to get the hang of making creams with beeswax. Don’t get discouraged if the first batch doesn’t turn out quite right. Make sure to follow the directions and beat for a full 10 to15 minutes. The cream will thicken up more once it settles into the jar.

For a cream that uses emulsifying wax and comes together more easily – check out Basil Anti-Aging Face Cream HERE.

For an in-depth resource about making lotions and creams from scratch, plus loads of helpful information about the best oils, butters, essential oils, herbs, flowers, and other natural ingredients to use for your skin type and needs, be sure to check out my !

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DIY Natural Rose Face & Body Cream

• handful of organic fresh (or dried) rose petals
• at least 5 ounces of distilled water
• 2.5 ounces sweet almond oil
• 0.5 ounce rosehip seed oil
• 1.5 ounces mango butter
• 0.5 ounce beeswax pastilles
• 2 tablespoons stearic acid (a natural thickener)
• a few drops of geranium or rose essential oil
• alkanet root powder (optional, for pink coloring)
• preservative of choice (see * below)

You can buy all of these ingredients at Mountain Rose Herbs, or you may be able to source them locally.

Step 1:

Place a generous handful of rose petalsinto a small heat proof jar. Pour simmering hot water over them, cover with a saucer and let this steep while you gather your ingredients together.

Step 2:

Weighout 2.5 ounces of sweet almond oil into a heat proof measuring cup. I infused mine with dried rose petals several weeks ago in anticipation of this recipe, but you can skip that part if you’re crunched on time.

Add the mango butter, beeswax pastilles and stearic acid. Set the cup into a saucepan filled with a few inches of water and heat on medium-low heat until everything is melted.

Step 3:

Remove the cup from the pan, let the hot mixture cool a bit, then add the 0.5 ounce of rosehip seed oil. Pour into a mixing bowl, then let it cool further until around body temperature.

Strain the rose petals from the water and measure out four ounces of liquid. (Any leftover rosewater makes a nice hair or face rinse or addition to your bathwater.) Make sure it’s roughlywithin 5 degrees of the oil mixture.

Step 4:

Using a hand mixer, turn the beaters on low and slowly drizzle in the rose water. As the oils start to thicken, increase the speed to high.

Beat on high for a full fifteen minutes. Don’t skimp on this part or you may end up with a runny cream.

I used alkanet-infused olive oil that I keep on hand for making lip balm to add a pale pink tint to the cream. If you don’t have the time to make this up, just thoroughly mix a pinch of alkanet root powder with a bit of olive or sweet almond oil and use the resulting paste to color the cream, a few drops at a time. (If your rose water is a dark enough pink, you may find that’s sufficient enough to tint the cream.)

You can add color at any point during the mixing, so it’s better to start out with less then add more if needed.

Step 5:

During the last minute of mixing, add the rose and/or geranium essential oils to your scent preference.

Once your fifteen minutes of mixing is done, scoop the cream into clean jars (don’t use metal tins for recipes that contain water or they could rust), leaving as little air space as possible. Once completely cool, cap tightly.

* If you don’t add a preservative, store this cream in the refrigerator and use within 1week.To make it last longer though, try adding a nature-derived preservative.

I’m currently a fan of using NataPres(made from a radish root ferment filtrate with honeysuckle and aspen bark extracts) at a rate of 2% or Leucidal Liquid SF at 2 to 4% (I prefer to use closer to the full 4% amount).

To figure the amount needed, add up the weight of the ingredients – which are 267grams in this recipe – then multiply by 2% (.02) to get 5.24grams needed, which I would just round to 5grams of NataPres for this recipe. If using Leucidal Liquid SF, use the same amount (for 2%) or up to twice as much (for 4%). Lotioncrafter has a variety of other preservatives and their usage rates listed on their site, so don’t feel limited to using one of these,just because I do.

For more preservative options, check out my article:

10 Natural Preservatives for Homemade Skin Care