Some people balk at the price of my natural deodorant. And I understand, it shocked me a bit too! But I'm not interested in making a cheap deodorant, I'm interested in one that is effective. Here's the short version of how I arrived there.
I research all the possible ingredients I can use, how they work and their benefits. I look at problems with other deodorants. I learned stories about deodorant stains, irritation such as armpit burns and deodorants that pulled out armpit hair! Ouch! I make a list of requirements my deodorant needs to meet and some added bonuses:
- effective against odour
- cause little to no staining
- be easy to apply
- absorb easily
- cause no irritation
- have nice but light scents
- added bonuses: moisturizing and helps with sweating.
Did you notice that price is not in there?
I select a few different recipes and test them on myself. I test out arrowroot powder, bentonite clay, magnesium myristate and zinc oxide for their ability to prevent odour. I find that arrowroot powder leaves me a little stinky and eliminate the bentonite clay as it can cause irritation. The magnesium doesn't seem effective but wow, that zinc oxide! I keep improving the recipes and testing the scents, oils and butters for the best results. I spend a lot of time smelling my pits! I ensure it's moisturizing and use clary sage in one scent, which is known to help with sweating. Once I'm happy with it, I provide samples of my top two formulas to my testers to get their feedback. My testers confirm the zinc oxide sample was more effective (no odour for 8 hours or more!). As an extra bonus, you won't sunburn your pits! And then, and only then, do I calculate the price! And yes it shocked me a little but I confirmed its in line with similar products. I mean, I could make it cheaper by substituting other ingredients but why?
So if you find a cheaper one that works for you, that's great. Every body is different. If you can't find anything that works - please give mine a try!
For more information on natural deodorant and how to use it, see here.
