Natural Vaseline Substitute

A few weeks ago I released a natural dupe for  E45 Cream, and you have all been loving it. So I thought I would do a natural dupe of another famous product that we’ve all grown up with: Vaseline!

Vaseline is without doubt an amazing product with multiple uses that is also highly effective. But like E45 Cream, it is filled with petroleum derivatives that do a great job of occluding and protecting the skin but without any other true benefits. And I’m not bashing that - sometimes this is all it takes to make a great product!

But we’d like to make a more natural version without any petroleum derivatives, so let’s dive in.

To me, the most unique thing about Vaseline is the great consistency. In anhydrous natural products it can sometimes be quite tricky to achieve certain consistencies. It may go too hard in winter or too soft in summer, or even go grainy with temperature fluctuations.

So we need to be careful about which ingredients we use. While you can use them, I’m going to avoid butters in this case, as the stearic acid content is what gives the grainy appearance in cold weather. There are ways to get around that but I want something simple that doesn’t require much technical expertise.

Instead, I’m rather going for oils with viscous consistencies such as castor oil and olive oil, and thickeners and texturizers like beeswax and lanolin.

In the end I think I managed to achieve a pretty good Vaseline/petroleum jelly substitute. It has a similar texture and feel: proof that you can achieve everything that petroleum derivatives do, without the petroleum derivative!

 

Makeup remover, moisturiser, lip balm, wound salve, cuticle balm, heel balm, anti-chafe - these Vaseline dupes can do it all. Give them a try!

N.B these are not vegan formulas as they make use of beeswax and lanolin.

#1 Super Simple Vaseline Dupe

80%  olive oil 

20% beeswax

Beaker

Spatula

Scale

Weigh the olive oil and beeswax into a beaker then heat until the beeswax is fully melted through. Set aside to cool. When the mixture has cooled a bit but hasn’t completely solidified yet, give it a good stir through to keep everything well combined. Allow to cool fully and store in a jar or tin.

 

This formula uses a couple of different oils plus lanolin and Vitamin E for an even more balanced and nourishing mixture.

#2 Vaseline Dupe With Lanolin

36%  fractionated coconut oil

25%  olive oil 

10%  castor oil

20%  beeswax

8%  lanolin

1% vitamin E 

 

Beaker

Spatula

Scale

Weigh all ingredients into a beaker then heat until the beeswax is fully melted through. Set aside to cool. When the mixture has cooled a bit but hasn’t completely solidified yet, give it a good stir through to keep everything well combined. Allow to cool fully and store in a jar or tin.