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Use this recipe to make homemade eczema cream with natural ingredients that can soothe inflammation and aid healing. This is a copycat recipe of the popular Eczema Honey product and includes colloidal oatmeal, honey, aloe vera, olive oil, beeswax, and other nourishing ingredients.

DIY Eczema Cream Recipe inspired by Eczema Honey

If you or a loved one has eczema, you’re well aware of the discomfort it can cause. Rashes, itching, inflammation, and broken skin, to name a few. Most conventional treatments are incredibly helpful, but some can also cause issues such as skin thinning or further irritation. I think that’s one reason that so many people turn to natural remedies to help. Not only are they often cheaper, but they are usually gentle and have no side effects. Many of the ingredients you can use for eczema flare-ups might be in your kitchen right now.

So, it’s time to throw those cupboard doors open and have a look—I’m going to show you how to use them to make homemade eczema cream. It’s a recipe that you can make with honey, olive oil, and aloe vera, and most of the ingredients take inspiration from one of the most popular eczema creams available on the market. One of the main differences between them is that, instead of costing $35, making your own costs under $5.

Treating Eczema

Eczema is one of the most common skin conditions worldwide and affects15-20% of children and 1-3% of adults¹. There are nine different types, ranging from contact dermatitis from being exposed to an allergen (like laundry detergent) to seborrheic dermatitis that only affects oily skin. Atopic dermatitis is the one that most people suffer from, though. You can have it due to genetic and immune-related factors.

Homemade Eczema Cream Recipe—Use this recipe to make homemade eczema cream with natural ingredients that can soothe inflammation and aid healing. This is a copycat recipe of the popular Eczema Honey product and includes colloidal oatmeal, honey, aloe vera, olive oil, beeswax, and other nourishing ingredients #naturalskincare #eczemaskincare#eczema

Regardless of the type, eczema symptoms typically include dry and itchy skin that can be red and flaky or even blistering and oozing. It can be unsightly and irritating, but more worryingly, if the affected area is weeping or has sores, it can become infected.

Doctors and dermatologists treat eczema in various ways. The treatments depend on how severe the symptoms are, the patient’s age, and whether they have any infections or allergies. Common prescriptions include antibiotics, antihistamines, and steroids. Light therapy is also common².

However, the primary treatment is to use ointments and lotions that help protect and repair the skin barrier. This homemade eczema cream recipe is one that you can use for that! It includes loads of skin-calming ingredients and is inexpensive and easy to make at home.

Eczema Honey Copycat Recipe

I share a lot of skincare recipes, and some of the most popular include neem balm and psoriasis cream. I share them because I know many people want more control over their skincare or need high-quality products, but might not be able to afford them.

A finger has been dipped into a pot of creamy yellow skin cream. There's a good amount left on the tip. — The finished cream is quite fluid and creates a nourishing layer on your skin.

I also think it’s appalling how expensive some skincare products are, considering how cheap the ingredients are. Manufacturers are taking advantage! So, if you can make homemade creams from your kitchen, it can save a ton of money and give your skin the best therapy possible. There’s an initial investment in getting the bottles of ingredients, but once you have them in your cupboard, you can make loads of batches.

The back of a hand is shown with a think shiny layer from where the eczema cream has been rubbed in. — It spreads easily but needs a few minutes to absorb.

One product that I’ve realized is hugely popular for eczema skincare is called Eczema Honey. It’s an American product, so I had to ask my mom to buy and send it to me to try out (thanks, mom!). It’s loaded with honey that helps with dry skin and itchiness, colloidal oatmeal for calming, aloe vera for moisture and healing, and oils and waxes that protect and nourish. With thousands of positive reviews and such simple ingredients, I knew that it was something that I could work out how to make.

Is Eczema Honey for You?

When you use Eczema Honey, your first impressions might be how delicious it looks and smells, and how much it looks like a thin peanut butter. Being high in honey (a known skin-healer), it’s also a little bit sticky once you put it on. Give it a few minutes, though, and it dries and becomes less so. It feels quite emollient and soothing, and I think my copycat recipe replicates that.

Two pots of skin cream seen from above. On the left is the copycat recipe and the right is the original Eczema Honey. — My copycat recipe is slightly thicker, more stable, and lighter due to the type of honey I use.

By its popularity, I can see that it works for a lot of people. However, if you have oily or acneic skin, I don’t think that it will be suitable for you due to the high amount of oil it contains. If you have an allergy to any of the ingredients, you can leave them out or find an alternative. If you’re unsure about anything, drop me a comment and I’ll see if I can help.

Close-up of an opened pot of Eczema Honey. It's separated into a thick layer on the top with a pool of oil below. — Eczema Honey contains beeswax but no true emulsifier, causing it to separate over time.

One major issue I have with Eczema Honey is that it lacks a proper emulsifier. And predictably, much of the oil separated out of the cream over time. I stirred it back in, but it will eventually separate again, which can cause the product to have an unusual texture or spoil. For that reason, I’ve included a small amount of emulsifying wax in the ingredients to help with shelf stability.

About the Ingredients

Here’s a run-down of the main ingredients and how they can help with different eczema skin symptoms. When shopping for them, opt for certified organic products to minimize the risk of herbicide and pesticide residue, which can cause skin reactions. You’ll also notice that there are no added scents or essential oils in the recipe. That’s because they’re known contributors to eczema flare-ups.

A pool of honey on a wooden cutting board. A honey dipper sits in it. — This is organic honey from my own bees. The specks in it could be propolis, an allergen.

Raw honey*—adds moisture, reduces redness, is anti-microbial, and is a known wound-healer.
Olive oil—a thick oil that mainly adds conditioning.
Beeswax—a gentle wax that adds a protective layer over your skin, locking moisture in.
Aloe vera—reduces inflammation, calms redness, and adds hydration.
Colloidal oatmeal—an extremely fine oatmeal that disperses completely. Oatmeal is a skin-calming ingredient and wonderful for stopping itching. You can even use ordinary breakfast oats to make a soothing oatmeal bath.

*Raw, organic honey is excellent for skin, but you shouldn’t use it if you have a sensitivity to propolis, another bee product.

Tips on Making this Eczema Cream Recipe

This is a relatively easy cream to make, but it’s also a proper skincare formula with an oil phase, water phase, and cooling phase. To make it, you will need a few pieces of equipment, including a thermometer (I use this typ e). I’ve included volume measurements for those who don’t have a digital scale, but have the weights and percentages listed, too.

Close-up of a knife filleting an aloe vera leaf. — Fresh aloe vera gel can be chunky, so it would need blending and sieving for this recipe.

If the honey you have is solid, rather than runny, you will need to melt it down before using it. One way to do that is to put the amount you need in a small bowl and then float it in another bowl filled with scalding hot water. As for aloe vera gel, yes, you can use some from your own plants. Just make sure that you clean, blend, and strain it properly before using it. It should not have any lumps.

Some of the ingredients can be damaged if added at too hot a temperature.

When making this recipe, please be accurate with your measurements and don’t leave anything out. The cream will quickly spoil if you don’t use a preservative, and the pH might be too harsh if you leave the baking soda out. Other than that, have fun, and I hope you and your skin love this homemade eczema cream recipe! Here are a few more skincare recipes that I think you’ll like as well:

Calendula Salve Recipe
Simple Soap Recipe
Aloe Vera Skin Cream Recipe
50+ Uses for Honey in Skincare and Cooking

DIY Eczema Cream Recipe

Tanya Anderson

This gentle and effective eczema cream recipe contains colloidal oatmeal, olive oil, beeswax, honey, aloe vera, and other natural ingredients. It's a cream with a fluid consistency that's very high in soothing honey, so it can initially feel sticky on your skin. Its formula is inspired by the very popular Eczema Honey skincare product, but is formulated to be more stable. This is a true skin cream recipe made up of an oil phase, water phase, and a cool-down phase, and it makes just over 4.05 oz (120 ml).

5 from 1 vote

Print Project Pin Idea

Author Tanya Anderson

Cost $5

Equipment

2 heat-proof glass jars
2 ramekins (or other small glass/ceramic container)
1 jar or cosmetic container
silicone spatula
stainless steel spoons
cloth or pot holder
saucepan
thermometer
milk frother (optional)
pH testing strips (optional)
digital kitchen scale (optional)

Materials

Oil Phase

8.5 tsp olive oil (organic) 35.6 grams (29.62%) / or sunflower oil
6 tsp sweet almond oil (organic) 22 grams (18.3%) / or sunflower oil
3 tsp beeswax 9 grams (7.49%)
1/2 tsp emulsifying wax NF (or BP) 2.4 grams (2%)

Water Phase

3 tsp distilled water 12 grams (9.98%)
1/4 tsp colloidal oatmeal 1.2 grams (1%)
1/4 tsp vegetable glycerine 3 grams (2.5%)
1/32 tsp baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) 0.2 grams (0.17%)

Cool Down Phase

3 tsp honey (organic) 19 grams (15.8%)
3 tsp aloe vera gel 10 grams (8.32%)
1 tsp distilled water 4 grams (3.31%)
1/2 tsp Geogard Ultra* 2.42 grams (2%) – you may also use another broad-spectrum preservative such as Leucidal SF Complete*

Instructions

Preparation

Begin by mashing the vegetable glycerine and colloidal oatmeal together to form a paste. This step ensures that the oatmeal doesn't form clumps in the end product.
Scrape the oatmeal mixture and the rest of the water phase ingredients into a heat-proof glass jar. Mason jars are fine, but I'm using beakers in the images.
Place all of the oil phase ingredients into a second jar.
Measure the honey and aloe vera gel from the cool-down phase into a small dish/ramekin.
Place the distilled water and preservative into their own small dish and mix with a spoon.

Heating the Ingredients

Heat the oil and water phases on indirect heat on the stove top. The simplest way to do this is to make a double boiler by first placing a folded cloth or pot holder at the bottom of a saucepan. Place the two jars on top and then fill the pan with warm water up to the level of the ingredients in the jars.
Bring the pan to a simmer and stir the phases as they heat and melt.
When the oil phase is completely melted and both phases are about 158–167°F (70-75°C), remove the jars from the water.

Making the Eczema Cream

Stir and then pour the water phase ingredients into the oil phase ingredients. Use the spatula to scrape out as much as possible.
Now it's time to emulsify. If you have a milk frother, it's a piece of cake—submerge the head and turn it on. Move it around to stir, but keep it under the surface. The ingredients will emulsify and begin to thicken as they cool. You can also continuously stir the ingredients with the spatula until they emulsify and thicken. It may take several minutes.
Once mixed, allow the cream to cool until it's under 104°F (40°C). Then stir in the cool-down phase ingredients—the honey, aloe vera gel, and the preservative in water. Stir to mix it thoroughly.
Pour/scrape the cream into a cosmetic jar and allow it to come to room temperature before sealing. It's best to let it sit for a day for the ingredients to settle before using it. Shelf-life is dependent on whether you used the Geogard Ultra or another preservative*.

Notes

Though I strongly encourage you to use the ingredient weights to make this recipe, I’ve used volume measurements as the main unit for those who don’t have a kitchen scale. The finished cream, made using the same ingredients, will have a pH of about 6, which is ideal for sensitive skin.

*Geogard Ultra is a brand of gentle, broad-spectrum preservative that’s suitable for organic skincare recipes. It comes as a powder and is also known as Neodefend or ‘Gluconolactone and Sodium Benzoate’. If you cannot source it, please use another broad-spectrum skincare preservative to stop microbes from colonizing your recipe and making it unsafe for skin. Refer to the manufacturer’s instructions for usage rate and how to mix it in.

*Geogard Ultra provides eighteen months of protection against bacteria and other microbes as long as the pH is not altered in any way, it’s kept at room temperature, and isn’t used. Once open, you must use it within six months.

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