Homemade Deoderant vs. Deoderant Crystal

So, recently I've been growing more and more concern with the ingredients in ladies anti-perspiration. If you're interested in why, this is a good place to start. The best solution, I though, would be to make my own homemade deodorant (that, by the way, is my default solution for everything, "I'll just make my own!"). For homemade deodorant:


What You Need:

5tsp cocoa butter (you can instead use 2 cocoa and 3 shea butter)

3 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cornstarch

Old deodorant container

What You Do:

1) Melt coacoa butter in microwave at 20 second intervals.

2) Stir in baking soda and corstarch.

3) Pour into old deoderant container.

4) Leave to set in fridge.

Notes:

- This was a risky project. If it hadn't worked, I would have ended up smelling like a sweaty chocolate factory...eeewww...

- Even though all of these ingredients are edible, I wouldn't suggest tasting this mixture. Curiousity killed the cat...or at least my taste buds. 

- Take it from me, use the old deodorant container. You could just pour it into a small tub (which is what I did in the begging because I was too lazy to wash a deodorant container) but then you will be chipping away at your deodorant in order to get a piece to use each morning. Eventually, you will break down and re-melt it and put it into the deodorant container anyway, so you might as well start there!

Now, after using my homemade deodorant with much success for a couple of weeks, we chanced upon a mini deodorant crystal at the Dollarama (good find, Hubby!!). It claims to be free of all of the scary ingredients I am trying to avoid, so I though I would pick it up and give it a try. Much to my surprise, it too works like a charm!

So, here is my comparison of the two:

Odor Fighting Power 

Both have been tested in many conditions, including a Salsa class in which I dance in a non-air conditioned room with two babies strapped to me.

Homemade - 7/10 - Lasts about 12 hours before you would want to replenish

Crystal - 9.5/10 - Lasts 24+ hours and in extreme conditions (to my surprise). I was out salsa dancing and then playing in the 39 Celsius heat, where a black shirt and was still okay!

Scent

Homemade - Smells like cocoa butter. This, for me, is a plus. I like deodorant with some sort of scent. It somehow makes me fell like even if I was smelly, it would hide it a bit...

Crystal - Completely unscented. For those who are sensitive to scents, this would be a plus.

Ingredients

Homemade - I know what goes into it and I can use all 100% natural food-grade ingredients. I feel 100% safe wearing it. 

Crystal - Even though it says that it doesn't have anything sketchy in it, I have trouble believing it. Because the ingredients on bath and beauty products do not have to be listed, I'll never know for sure...

Ease of Use

Homemade - In the used deodorant container, the homemade is very easy to apply. You can put it in your purse and take it anywhere and use it just like regular deodorant.

Crystal - Has to be wet with warm water to apply, therefore making it hard to use anywhere but your bathroom.

My Personal Preference:

Based on this criteria, I can say that I am more comfortable wearing the homemade deodorant because I know what's in it and I like the smell. The crystal, however, lasts a lot longer. I would be most likely to carry the homemade in my purse for regular application and use the crystal when I know I will be out for a really long time or doing strenuous activity. 

So, no more poison deodorant for us! Yippee!