Who knew that making body butter could be so easy?
For the past six months, I’ve been on the lookout for a natural lotion or body butter. Hubby has perpetually dry skin (Polynesian skin + Nebraska weather doesn’t mix too well), and with my growing bump, I’ve been moisturizing like never before to try to avoid getting too many stretch marks.
At first, we both used conventional lotions, but then I made the mistake of reading the ingredients list. Boy there are A LOT of chemicals in them that I can’t even pronounce!
According to the Environmental Working Group, “80 percent of all [personal care] products may be contaminated with one or more of the two dozen recognized cosmetic impurities that are linked to cancer and other health concerns.” Chemicals used in beauty products aren’t regulated very closely, and it is tough to find a product that is both safe and inexpensive.
So we used up the rest of the lotion, and didn’t buy any more. Then we tried using coconut oil, but it took forever for my skin to absorb it, and I constantly had to wash the stinky rancid coconut oil smell out of our clothes, and bedding. I love the smell of coconut oil, but try leaving it on a blanket for a few days, and that sweet smell turns into a terrible odor.
So I began my quest for a homemade body butter…
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When I finally spring for the good, natural stuff at the store, it was so pricey, and we used it up so quickly, that I knew I needed to look for an alternative.
I was so nervous about trying my hand at making a beauty product. I love baking, but mixing up lotion seemed tricky, time-consuming and greasy! I bought a bunch of the ingredients, but I didn’t begin experimenting for weeks.
Why I Chose These Ingredients
When I began my search for a homemade body butter recipe, my goals were:
- It had to be fairly inexpensive (I didn’t want to plunk down $20 for a four ounce bottle! No thank you!)
- It needed to be nourishing for the skin (both for hubby’s psoriasis and my preggo belly)
- It had to smell good.
I did my research, and settled on these three ingredients:
Raw Shea butter (this is my favorite): shea butter is a fatty substance that comes from the nuts of the Shea tree grown in West Africa. Shea butter is known to be high in both vitamins A and E(the two most widely known nutrients for repairing skin), contains anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor growth compounds, boosts collagen production, and is anti-aging. Raw shea butter is silky smooth, is soft and malleable at room temperature, and feels great on the skin!
Coconut oil (Tropical Traditions is the best!): I have long been a huge fan of coconut oil, used both in my cooking as well as my skin care. Coconut oil has a great deal of benefits for the skin as well. In Hubby’s Polynesian culture, they have been used coconut oil as a skin moisturizer for hundreds of years. Coconut oil is deeply penetrating, and moisturizes skin much more thoroughly than a lot of other oils, contains high concentrations of vitamin E, is naturally antibacterial, and smells amazing. 🙂
Lavender oil (love this stuff): besides just smelling delicious, lavender oil is reduces anxiety, heals burns and wounds, reduces acne, improves psoriasis and eczema, and is full of antioxidants.
Melt it. Chill it. Whip it. Use it!
I held on to the ingredients for weeks before I finally mixed it up. Hubby was suffering from dry skin, and he kept asking me when I was going to make it, but I kept putting it off, because it sounded so intimidating to make a homemade body butter! Little did I know, that it was so incredibly easy, and fun!
It is not only easy, but really price effective. My pound of Shea butter is going to go a long way, and I only used a few drops of the essential oil per jar of body butter. We can now slather on as much body butter as either of us will ever need without worrying about our pocketbook!
This whipped body butter is silky smooth, deeply penetrates, and is made with only three (count ’em! Three!) ingredients. That’s my type of minimalism.
- ¾ cup Raw Shea Butter
- ¼ cup Coconut Oil
- 5-10 drops essential oil of choice (I used lavender)
- In a double boiler or glass bowl, combine all ingredients except essential oils.
- Bring to medium heat and stir constantly until all ingredients are melted.
- Remove from heat.
- Put bowl in the freezer to harden, about 30 minutes.
- Once the mixture is semi-solid again (you should be able to press your finger into it, and it should be about the consistency of frosting), add your essential oil of choice.
- Then put it in a food processor or Kitchenmaid mixer and whip it up.
- Whip about 5 minutes, or until it is fluffy, white, and stiff.
- Spoon it into a clean jar or container. It will keep for 3 months.
- Enjoy!
I would like to use this recipe to make body butter for my baby shower favors. I would need to fill about 25-30 2-3oz jars.
Any idea of the measurements I’d need?
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Is it safe to use food coloring?
How much lotion does this recipe make? just one jar, or more?
Just one jar!
So, I just made it and I am wondering if I did something wrong. It doesn’t look like the picture. I have it at the consistency of frosting but it won’t go past that consistency AND the smell of shea butter is really strong that you can’t smell the essential oils at all. What did I do wrong and is it okay to use anyway??
I’m so sorry to hear that! Yes, you can go ahead and use it!
Thanks for the recipe! I’ve been looking for a simple recipe that incorporates coconut oil because I infuse it with CBD as an anti-inflammatory for my dad’s arthritis. I just finished making a large batch and it looks great! I’m wondering if you know what temperature it will start to melt at and if I should keep it in the fridge during the summer? Also wondering if it will keep longer in the fridge or maybe even freezer, have you tried that? Thanks again!
Hey Maia!
That’s so smart of you to add CBD oil for its anti-inflammatory benefits. Brilliant!
The melting point for Shea Butter is 113 degrees, and coconut oil is 78 degrees. If my house is pretty warm, I do stick it in the fridge to firm it up for sure!
If you made a big batch, I’d definitely keep it in the fridge (or maybe just some of it in the fridge if you aren’t going to use it right away). I’ve never frozen it before, but I bet it would work if it was in a freezer-safe container.
Let me know if you have any further questions!
Bethany
Wow, who knew it was so easy! Not this lady! Thanks Bethie!!
Your blog is so gorgeous! I love it! And this recipe looks so perfect. That texture looks like it would be amazing!
Aw, thank you Kristin! You are so sweet. 🙂 The body butter is so smooth, and creamy. It feels great!
I may have to attempt this, thanks for sharing a super simple recipe. Once I started noticing harmful chemicals in all my lotions and such, I just sorta stopped using lotion because of the overwhelm of making a safe one. Or the expense of buying a natural one.
The overwhelm is real. I kept putting off making this body butter, because it seemed so intimidating, but it is actually so easy! I am about ready to whip up another batch, because we used our first batch (about a cup worth of body butter) in a week. Ha ha!
I bet this smells AMAZING. I love using lavender products before I go to bed. They are so soothing. 🙂
It smells so lovely! Perfect for springtime. Lavender is one of my favorite scents as well.
This looks amazing! I am recently getting into buying lotions and makeup with natural ingredients. I am going to have to try this out!
Good for you, Elizabeth! Once I started reading labels, I quickly realized that I didn’t want to put those harsh chemicals on my skin. Especially since it only takes twenty-six seconds for something you put on your skin to absorb into your bloodstream. Eep!
Love this! I am very much the same way and have often opted to make my own. I have never had any weird smell issues come from using coconut oil. But I will have to watch out for that! I do agree that it can be greasy and hard to absorb on its own. I really wanted to try Shea butter, but I haven’t invested in it yet. My last batch of homemade whipped body butter that I use on my skin and Rebekah’s is just coconut oil with with some sweet almond oil. So far the only stretch marks I have are the ones that I got at the very end of my pregnancy with Rebekah! That may change though! In the past I have included lavender, but didn’t this time. I think I will make another batch and include it to help with anxiety and sleep. Plus, I don’t know if I could get him to use it but Mitch has had some severe irritated skin patches…(doctor gave him steroid cream ) maybe I can get him to try this!
I have heard really good things about almond oil, Nathana, and I’ve read that it absorbs super quickly. So if you mix it with coconut oil, does that help it all absorb faster? Saia has some steroid creams for his psoriasis, but they only work short term, and they thin your skin (which is a bit scary). We are trying to avoid using them, and just trying natural remedies. We did use them for awhile, but they never seemed to help him long-term. Hope you are doing well! Can’t wait to see pictures of those two little boys of yours. 🙂