DIY Tallow Skin Care

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Hello all, and also, hello fall!  I hope everyone is having a very restful and slow September! The month is almost over, and I feel so recharged and refreshed from all the slowing down.  It kind of helped that I was sick this past week, so I really couldn’t do much, and honestly, I welcomed it.  I’ve also been feeling really restful from the change in weather.  I haven’t had a PSL yet, but my friend made some homemade pumpkin syrup, so I might just have to recreate this yumminess with my own little twist.  

Anyyyways, while we’re talking about slowing down and taking care of yourself this month, and also since the weather is cooling down and our skin is getting chapped, I thought it would be a great idea to share my newest skincare superstar: Tallow. 

Why use tallow for skincare? Well a few reasons…

First off, it’s usually a cheap/free byproduct of butchering. So ask your local farmer for some beef fat or suet and render your own! I got mine for $1/pound at our local farm where we pick up milk and meat.  It was SO easy to process it, and I plan on sharing the how-to at a later date. 

Secondly, it’s so good for your skin. It’s thick, so it will lock in moisture, and it’s full of vitamins and minerals that’s great for your skin! 

And finally, if we’re talking about going off grid (which I seem to do a lot around here) it’s going to be one of your only options for a shelf stable fat, which you can use for balms, salves and even soap! 

I made a few different creams with the tallow that I had.  The first one is an all purpose balm, which I used for dry-cracked hands, lips, and a face night cream.  The second one is a magnesium tallow balm, which I put behind my knees and around my feet and ankles each night.  The last one is a tallow body oil, which I use on my entire body after my shower each night. 

All of these recipes require some kind of oil. I chose jojoba because it is the most similar to your skin’s natural sebum. You could get fancy here and infuse some herbs into your oil.  I am currently infusing rosehips (hello, vitamin c!) into some jojoba oil for my next batch! You could also consider tamanu, olive, or coconut. 

If you read my blog post about how to make an all purpose salve, you’ll see the same concept here for the all purpose balm.  There are a few ways to do it, and you can find which ratios work for you but you will need exactly 2 things:

1. Grass fed tallow
2. Oil of your choice. 

I used a ratio of 3:1 (tallow:oil) but you could go up to as much as 8:1 if you’re trying to ration your oil.  Since I plan on extracting herbs into my oil, I’d like to get as much medicinal qualities out of the oil, so I opt for a lower tallow amount.  Plus I love how creamy it gets.  I used 6 oz. of tallow and 2 oz. of jojoba. 

Here’s the process:

• In a double boiler add tallow and oil
• Melt the tallow into the oil
• Pour into containers 
• Let harden 
• Use to your heart’s content on your face, elbows, hands, feet, diaper rash, anything and everything

For the tallow body oil you will need:

1. Grass fed tallow
2. Jojoba oil (can be infused)
3. Cocoa/Shea/Mango butter (optional)

We are using a 6:1:.5 (oil:tallow:butter) ratio here, so the main star here is the oil.  The tallow and butters are just adding a little bit of thickness and creaminess to lock in the moisture of the oil.  

The process is as followed: 

1. Add all items to a double boiler
2. Pour into a container once melted
3. Shake occasionally as everything comes back to room temp
4. Add to a pump bottle 
5. Enjoy luxurious massages with this body oil!

Finally, for the magnesium body balm you will need:

1. 8 oz. Grass fed tallow
2. 8 oz. Magnesium oil (equal parts magnesium chloride and boiling water)
3. 3 oz. oil of choice (jojoba, olive, coconut, etc.)
4. 1 oz. butter of choice (Shea, cocoa, mango, etc.)
5. 1 oz. Beeswax (to emulsify it since there is lots of water in the magnesium oil and also to help maintain its shelf life because of the water content) 

Here is the process:

1. Combine tallow, REGULAR oil, butter and beeswax to a double boiler 
2. Melt to combine 
3. Slowly add magnesium oil while blending with a stick blender and blend until it’s thick enough to your liking! 
4. Only use a tad bit behind your knees for best absorption, you can slowly work your way up 

I hope that was helpful! I know tallow skincare is a really popular choice for people in the natural health space, so I hope I’ve encouraged you to try and make some simple body care staples of your own for cheap! Tag me in your creations or comment below to let me know how they all worked out for you!