If you love natural skincare like I do, you are sure to love my homemade eye gel.

My homemade eye gel is a combination of ingredients that will freshen, soothe, cool and hydrate your under eyes. The mixture of these ingredients is totally nourishing for your skin. In this guide, I share exactly how to create your very own luxurious eye gel.

If you have ever been on the search for an effective under eye gel, you may have noticed the plethora of options available. Many of these store bought under eye gels contain chemicals that I am looking to avoid. Plus, the hefty price tag for such a tiny amount of product is enough for me to say no thanks.

My recipe for DIY eye gel is gentle on the skin, nourishing, soothing, hydrating and will leave you wondering why you haven’t tried making your own sooner. My eye gel can be used on all skin types, sensitive, dry or oily as the ingredients are gentle and healing.

Some of the ingredients in this recipe may not be things you typically have on hand, unless you do – which is awesome. However, they are easy and cheap to source.

My DIY eye gel is a great product for those looking to reduce puffy eyes, hydrate and nourish the under eyes and treating yourself to a little pampering.

This eye gel is a water based product and as such will require preservatives to ensure waterborne bacteria does not form. Do not worry though. The preservatives I have listed in this recipe are natural and easy to use – keeping your eye gel fresh and bacteria free.

In this guide, I will be running you through everything you need to know before making your own eye gel. Whether you are looking for a recipe for men under eye gel or a homemade eye gel for dark circles, I have you covered!

What Is DIY Eye Gel? What Does It Do?

A DIY eye gel is a mixture of ingredients that aim to refresh and wake up tired under eyes. They are a great product to use in the morning for this reason, but they can also be great for use at night for overnight hydration.

DIY eye gels can contain any variety of ingredients from aloe vera, witch hazel, hydrsols, cucumber juice and more. These ingredients are used to address a number of under eye concerns from dark circles, puffiness, aging and dullness.

Many water based recipes for eye gels found online do not contain preservatives, meaning the potential for bacteria growth is higher. I include preservatives in my eye gel recipe as this dramatically reduces the potential for waterborne bacteria to grow in your eye gel and extends its shelf life.

This eye gel recipe has a thin and light texture and feels soothing, hydrating and refreshing under the eyes.

If you wear makeup, an under eye gel may be a better option for you than an eye cream as eye creams can lead to the clumping of foundation. However an eye gel is more effective at evenly applying under the eye which can actually help produce a more even application of makeup.

Soothing Chamomile Eye Gel Recipe — Soothing Chamomile Eye Gel

Why Make A Homemade Eye Gel Recipe?

I can think of several reasons you should be making your own homemade eye gel recipe. I have listed some of these below.

All Natural

Making your own DIY eye gel is a great way to ensure the ingredients you are using are all natural and free of synthetic additives and unknown chemicals that can be harsh on our skin.

Using all natural ingredients gives me the peace of mind that what I am putting on my skin is nourishing and gentle.

Cost Effective

If you have ever seen the cost of many under eye gels, it can be ridiculous. For such a tiny amount of product, companies can charge a huge price tag.

If you are a fan of under eye gels, creating your own is a totally cost effective solution. These ingredients will go a long way and will cost you a fraction of the price of branded eye gels in the long run.

Gentle And Soothing

My homemade eye gel feels great and contains ingredients that are gentle, mild, healing and soothing on the skin. They are natural skin healers that can soothe irritated and inflamed skin.

Makes A Great Gift

Making your own under eye gel also makes a great gift for friends and family. They will be sure to appreciate the effort, and they will no doubt love the results.

Reduces Puffiness

Due to the anti-inflammatory properties found in the ingredients, this eye gel can be used for addressing under eye puffiness and can be made for a homemade under eye gel for dark circles.

Ingredients For The Best DIY Eye Gel For Dark Circles

One of the best things about this under eye gel homemade is that you don’t need many ingredients to make it, and these are all easy to buy online. So don’t be freaked out by the names you haven’t heard of before. You can simply buy them and use them without worrying about it.

eBay and Amazon Australia are quick and easy places to buy ingredients and all the gear you need. Below, I direct you to the best place to buy each ingredient or you can click here to buy now on Amazon or here for eBay. This is how I buy all of these ingredients.

Chamomile Hydrosol

During the process of making chamomile essential oil, a natural byproduct is created known as chamomile hydrosol or chamomile water. The properties found in chamomile hydrosol are a mild form of what is found in chamomile essential oil. It is totally soothing and relaxing and can help to soothe redness, irritation and inflammation on the skin.

When you purchase chamomile hydrosol/any hydrosols I recommend you read the ingredients to ensure you are buying true hydrosol. If aqua (water) is listed as the first ingredient or alcohol is featured in the ingredients, this is not a true flower water. A true flower water will only contain the hydrosol followed by a possible preservative.

Even if the hydrosol you purchase contains a preservative, you will still need to use the preservatives listed in this recipe as we are using additional ingredients.

It’s not essential to use chamomile hydrosol. If you want to make a DIY rosewater eye gel instead, simply switch this to rose hydrosol. Same if you would prefer any other hydrosol.

Click here to buy it on eBay now.

Aloe Vera Juice

Aloe vera juice is a great natural ingredient for your skin. It is a super popular product for the skin, and it isn’t a surprise to see why.

Aloe vera is soothing and nourishing on the skin and it is cheap and easy to find. Aloe vera juice contains high amounts of anti inflammatory qualities that are a great natural option for treating burns, rashes and inflammation.

It also contains vitamins A and C, antioxidants, astringent properties and enzymes that help to cool, soften, hydrate and soothe the skin. Some people also use aloe vera to treat their acne and dry skin conditions.

I like using aloe vera juice in this recipe as it is soothing and cooling and helps to wake up tired under eyes.

If you want to get more shelf life out of your aloe juice, it is a better option to buy it than to make it. You could also purchase powdered aloe vera or concentrated aloe vera juice – the recipe would need to be adjusted to fit the concentrated forms.

Click here to buy it on eBay now.

Glycerin

Glycerin is a naturally very sticky and sweet substance that is known as a humectant – meaning it draws water from the air to your skin.

It is a popular skincare product as it can be used to make a range of products and helps to keep the skin moisturised.

Glycerin only makes up a small percentage of the ingredients in my recipe as a little really does go a long way.

Glycerin is a great product for providing moisture and hydration to oily and acne prone skin types as instead of drawing moisture from oils it draws water from the air – meaning no oiliness.

Click here to buy it on eBay now.

Xanthan Gum

Xanthan gum is a natural product produced by the fermentation of sugar. It is commonly used in the food industry and in packaged foods. In skincare, xanthan gum is used to help thicken mixtures and can be used to make gel like textures, perfect for this recipe.

Xanthan gum feels luscious and incredibly smooth on your skin.

Click here to buy it on eBay now.

Essential Oils?

I love my essential oils. However, they should not be used in this particular recipe. The primary reason for this being that this is a water based recipe and essential oils, being oils, do not mix with water.

However, do not fret if you love essential oils. Hydrosols, like the chamomile hydrosol featured in this recipe, are just mild versions of essential oils. So if you wanted to create a specific eye gel like one with rose oil, instead of adding rose oil you could add rose hydrosol instead of chamomile for very similar effect.

Do You Need A Preservative?

Yes, you do need a preservative. Any skincare ingredients that include water, as is the situation with my DIY eye gel recipe, are going to need to use a preservative. If you create DIY skincare that is water based and do not include a preservative, you are risking waterborne bacteria and microbial contamination occurring in your product.

You may have seen other eye gel recipes that are water based and do not include a preservative in their recipe, and you can also choose not to. However, this means risking harmful bacteria growing inside of your eye gel.

Remember, whenever making any skincare with water based ingredients, you should be using a preservative.

Sodium Benzoate And Potassium Sorbate

These preservatives may sounds a bit intimidating. However, they are natural, easy to use and safe to use in your skincare. I personally recommend a mixture of the two preservatives I have listed above because…

They are both natural preservatives. When you are looking to use natural preservatives, options are limited and these products are natural and easy to use.
Both products are easy to purchase on Ebay in Australia. Other natural preservatives are not as easy to find.
When dissolved, both products are water soluble, odourless and clear and are best used when the product its being added to has pH of less than 5.5.

Click here to buy potassium sorbate on eBay now or here for sodium benzoate on eBay.

How To Make Homemade Eye Gel

If you like your skincare recipes to be super simple, you may be a bit put off seeing this recipe. Being someone who likes things to be super simple, I almost avoided making this as it can sound tricky.

But I am glad I didn’t as this recipe is still pretty straightforward. It is just not as easy as some of my other oil based recipes where mixing a few ingredients is all that is required.

Please take note that when you make this under eye gel that you need to mix the ingredients how I instruct – don’t just mix them all together at the start. When you heat it, use a cover to avoid any of your eye gel evaporating.

The tricky part is getting the mixture to 70 degrees Celsius and then keeping it there for twenty minutes, but actually it isn’t as hard as I thought it would be.

While you can see I heated the mixture in a beaker, you don’t need to use one. A good alternative is a double boiler like this one on eBay.

I recommend putting the eye gel in a small glass jar/air tight container (on eBay).

If you are confused about what to do, make sure you watch the video below.

Do You Need To Test The pH Of Your Under Eye Gel DIY?

Yes. It can feel a little tricky to begin with, but it is actually very simple.

Testing the pH of your under eye gel is an important step because the natural preservatives only work within a particular pH range. This under eye gel recipe will need to be a pH of about 4-5.5. It should be. However, it is always worthwhile checking to reduce the risk of any bacteria forming.

All you need to do is place a drop of the eye gel onto these pH strips on eBay before you store your eye gel in a glass jar.

Soothing Chamomile Eye Gel Recipe

Yield: 20g

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

This natural eye gel recipe is perfect for eyes that need a little pick-me-up! It's lovely and refreshing with soothing ingredients.

Ingredients

16g Chamomile Hydrosol
3g Aloe Vera Juice
0.2g Glycerine
0.2g Xanthan Gum
0.04g Potassium Sorbate
0.06g Sodium Benzoate
Container

Instructions

Weigh and mix together the chamomile hydrosol, potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate
Stir until dissolved
In a separate container, mix the glycerine and xanthan gum until uniform with a spatula/end of spoon
Mix the hydrosol mixture with the glycerine mixture until combined
Cover and heat this mixture to 70 degrees Celcius. I use a double boiler and a silicone cover
Keep it at this temperature for 20 minutes so the xanthan gum fully hydrates
Remove from heat
Blend for 30 seconds with a stick blender
Cool to 40 degrees while stirring
Add the aloe vera juice and stir
Test the pH to make sure it falls between 4-5.5
Pour into the container
Enjoy!

Notes

While it's not mandatory to check the pH of your new DIY aloe vera eye gel, it's the only way to be sure that your gel is the right pH so that the preservative will work.

The amounts in this recipe are small to create a tester eye gel. It can be easier to double or triple the ingredients to make a larger amount.

I recommend you store your homemade eye gel in the fridge to keep it nice and cool.