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If you’ve battled with dry, itchy skin or eczema, you know how frustrating it can be to find relief. What if the answer isn’t in store-bought cream, but in something our ancestors used for centuries- tallow.
After many hours of research and a lot of trial and error, I have finally created a tallow lotion recipe for eczema. Using this tallow balm and a few extra things found in my free guide below, we were able to go from sleepless nights and itching until they bled, to completely clear skin.
Right from the start of my kiddos birth, I knew things were different for us. They were always spitting up, couldn’t lay on their back and would only sleep on me. Through a lot of elimination diets and research, we were able to figure out my kiddo had food allergies and quite a few of them. If you know about food allergies, they usually go hand in hand with eczema so on top of the health concerns, we were also dealing with skin so bad that it landed us in the hospital.
All that to say that if you are going through eczema or allergies… I get it. Here is the ONLY lotion that worked for us.
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This is not medical advice. Always consult a physician before use and perform a patch test.
This post is all about a tallow lotion recipe for eczema.
Table of Contents
If you are in the throws of an eczema flare, you need this FREE guide
Before you dive in: if you’re making tallow skincare because store-bought products still cause flares, it’s important to know that ingredient choice and timing matter just as much as the recipe itself. I learned this the hard way as an eczema mom. I put together a free guide that explains the 3 hidden triggers that can undo even the cleanest DIY. Grab it here before you start.
Why does tallow work so well for eczema?
Tallow very closely mimics your skins natural oils and is really good at moisturizing and protecting your skin barrier. It is anti inflammatory and deeply moisturizing. It is rich in vitamins A, D, E and K and can be customized to add extra skin loving oils.
One of the best things about tallow is that it does not burn. When my kiddos skin was raw and bleeding, all of the commercial lotions were awful. They burned and stung so bad that my child dreaded lotion time. It made me seriously question what I was doing as a Mom to my kid. When we discovered tallow we ended up calling it miracle cream because it worked with zero pain.
What oils should I mix with my tallow lotion?
Eczema mom note: choosing oils for sensitive skin isn’t just about texture. Processing methods, sourcing, and how oils interact with tallow can all impact flare-ups. This is why I teach a decision framework inside my system… not just a list.
To talk about oils we first need to talk about the comedogenic scale. This scale tells you how likely an oil is to clog your pores. Tallow sits around a 2 (out of 5) so it is quite neutral. It can be mixed with oils higher on the scale for an amazing scar cream, or it can be mixed with something low on the scale to help with acne.
For eczema, it is best to focus on oils that are low on the comedogenic scale to soothe skin and avoid irritation.
Let’s cover a few oils and their comedogenic ratings.
Oils high on the comedogenic scale
There are a couple oils that are high on the comedogenic scale…
Cocoa butter (4 on the scale)
Coconut oil (4 on the scale)
Palm oil (4 on the scale)
Flax seed oil (4 on the scale)
You might want to choose one of these oils to combine with tallow if you are looking to make a cream good for scars, burns (post healing) or very dry skin.
Oils low on the comedogenic scale
Here are a few oils that are low on the comedogenic scale…
If you have eczema, acne or are looking to make a tallow face cream, choose one of these oils.
What materials do you need to make tallow lotion?
One of the great things about making your own skincare is how few materials you need to make it. To start all you need is:
- A kitchen scale ( a basic model like this is perfect)
- A heat proof bowl (I usually go with stainless steel as I have cracked pyrex like the pictures before)
- A hand mixer (if you want to make a whipped tallow balm)
- A spatula (to scrape out your bowl)
- Dried herbs such as chamomile or calendula (you can use tea bags to infuse your tallow but make sure they only contain the herb you are trying to infuse)
What ingredients do you need?
- 250 grams of freshly rendered tallow
- 75 grams of carrier oil of your choosing (pick your oil from the list above)
- No more than 1% of essential oils. I would leave it plain if you or your child are in a flare. Without essential oils, tallow balm does not burn but depending which essential oil you add, it can sting a bit.
A few optional ingredients
The base recipe is all that I have ever needed but if you notice that your balm feels greasy, you can add 1/4 tsp arrowroot powder to your base.
If you live in a warm climate and you are worried about it melting, you can add no more that 3% the total weight of beeswax to your blend. This can make it feel waxy and more difficult to spread so start slow at around 3 grams. You will need to add this in during the melting phase.
If you need to add either of those ingredients, you can always remelt your balm and start fresh!
How to make tallow lotion
This tallow balm is very straightforward to make!
- Start by weighing out your tallow and oils on your kitchen scale in your heat safe bowl.
- Place the bowl on a double boiler and allow it to melt over low heat, gently stirring it. If you are infusing your tallow, add the herbs in this step.
- When your oils are melted, pour them into an airtight container to harden into a balm. If you want to make whipped tallow, place the bowl in the fridge to quickly harden (this also avoids grittiness!)
- When the oils are completely solid, use a hand mixer to whip it up.
- Scoop or pipe it into a container and you are ready to use!
- Store it airtight for up to 6 months (longer in the fridge) ensuring no moisture gets into it or it will spoil faster.
What about infusions?
There are a few herbs that are absolutely amazing to infuse into tallow for eczema. Chamomile and calendula are the ones you hear about most often and the ones I tend to infuse most. I wrote a whole blog post about the top herbs to infuse into tallow so definitely check it out here to learn about each one and their benefits.
{Related: Top 10 herbs to infuse into tallow}
As far as the actual infusing goes, you can add the herbs into your balm when you place it on the double boiler and leave it on low heat for 2-4 hours. If that doesn’t sound like your jam, you can learn how I infuse tallow in the dehydrator and in the crockpot here.
A few more notes about eczema
Eczema is one of those things that can be a manifestation of what is happening in your body. The environment, laundry detergents, food and more can all trigger eczema so on top of having a solid lotion recipe, it is important to track triggers and find manageable solutions for them. In my free guide, you will find an eczema tracker and some other helpful tips around the skincare routine that finally worked for us. You do not have to do it alone.
More of a visual learner?
Thank you so much for reading! I hope that this post on a tallow lotion recipe for eczema helped you out. Don’t hesitate to reach out. I love to hear from you!