Several years ago when we started using Essential Oils to support our wellness journey, we did quite a few DIY’s.
In fact, fast forward 2 years and I’m still doing just as many DIYs as I was back then – shifting out of the old, toxic personal care and household products took a while – instead, we made our own {non toxic} items and we have loved every minute of it.
One of the first personal care items we made was DIY Body Powder ~ the DIY was EASY – 2 ingredients and a container was all that was needed was cornstarch and essential oil.
But wait.. did I really want to use cornstarch? Or should I use arrowroot powder?
When it comes to cooking in your kitchen, cornstarch is used as a thickening agent, much similar to what you would do with butter and flour to make a roux. Arrowroot powder works just as well as cornstarch, and when mixed with egg yolk, and milk, can thicken things up quite nicely too.
What is Arrowroot Powder?
Arrowroot Powder is a white, powdery substance that comes from a tropical South American plant. It’s used as a thickening agent in soups, gravies and sauces. It can also be used for personal care items.
It’s name – Arrowroot, comes from its ability to treat the injured from arrows of poison. It’s well known for it’s healing benefits.
How does Arrowroot Powder differ from Cornstarch?
While Arrowroot is a powder that comes from South American plants, Cornstarch is also a powder – but made from corn. Cornstarch also thickens gravies, sauces and soups… and is also used in personal care.
Over the last 15-20 years, Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) have become incredibly popular in this country – and as a result, almost ALL cornstarch comes from corn that has been genetically engineered. The process of making cornstarch requires high heat and chemicals as well.
Although Non-GMO cornstarch is available, it’s usually pretty expensive.
How are Each of them Made?
Corn goes through a pretty lengthy process to turn into cornstarch – and upon completion, it’s used in everything from batteries to make-up, deodorant and more.
- Corn is hulled from the cob and soaked in warm water with sulfur dioxide.
- It soaks for two days – during this 2-day soak, the corn and starch will separate – the result is sulfurous acid.
- At the completion of the 2-day soak, the corn is rained and the endo-sperm is separated from the sperm to make the powdered starch. At this time, the endo-sperm is put through a strainer – this strainer separates the starch from the gluten.
- This separation creates a common cornstarch (which is then used in sweeteners and fermented products) – the cornstarch you pick up in store is then taken a step further and treated with chemicals.
Arrowroot Powder, on the other hand, goes through a different process – you can read about that HERE:
So how do you Use Arrowroot Powder?
Use essential oils to add scent or avoid adding scent – whatever you wish. Lavender would be amazing, but so is Geranium (my favorite..) – or, Gentle Baby... which is great for my smallest kiddos.
What You Need
- 2 C. Arrowroot Flour (we used Bob’s Red Mill)
- 1/2 C. Baking Soda
- 15 Drops Essential Oil of Choice (I used Geranium for mine, and Gentle Baby for my Daughter & her younger siblings)
How to Make: Mix the Flour, and Baking Soda in a Metal Bowl – add the Essential Oil, stir well to break up any clumps. We used these Salt & Pepper Shakers (see them HERE) from Amazon, as I thought they were the perfect way to store them. We try to avoid plastic with Essential Oils, so these were a great option.
You can sprinkle this alone or, use a dusting pouf (see HERE) – give as a gift by tying a ribbon around the shaker, too!
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