Homemade Body Butter Recipe
I made my first batch of body butter today. I think my life has changed forever. Delightful, decadent and easy, I have wanted to try making it for a long time. I was convinced that it would be difficult and not work the way I wanted. Boy, was I wrong.
I love creamy body butters. Living in a climate that gets quite cold and dry in the winter, they are a must in my house. But two things have always bothered me. They can be quite expensive and also, full of ingredients that are less than desirable for your skin and health.
We often forget that our skin is the largest organ on our body and absorbs what we put on it. If you are using lotions and body butters with chemicals in them (fragrances, preservatives, color additives, etc.) be aware that your skin absorbs the chemicals, too. Not exactly desirable. I often just use almond oil on my skin after a shower but sometimes I want something a little more decadent. Body butters, made with pure oils and essential oils for fragrance are just the thing.
I called my friend Jen Vertanen, who writes the blog, “The Wholehearted Life”, knowing that she has spent years playing with recipes for home made soaps and lotions and asked her opinion on ingredients. She told me to use 75% solid to 25% liquid oil. Sounded easy enough.
I measured out shea butter (I use this shea butter: organic raw shea butter
I wanted to use rosemary as one of my scents. I didn’t have any rosemary essential oil so I added fresh rosemary as the oils were cooling. I also stirred in the almond oil at this point. Once the oil was cool, I strained out the rosemary, added peppermint (just a few drops, it is strong) and sweet orange essential oils and tried to whip the butter as instructed in other body recipes that I had researched. Nothing happened. I was about to give up and just let the oil harden when I had an idea.
I placed the oil mixture outside (it’s cold…it’s Minnesota) and let it partially set up. At that point, I tried whipping it again in the kitchen aid mixer and, success! A beautiful body butter, so simple to make, smelling delicious and with a texture that was like clouds of silk.
*Because of the popularity of this recipe on pinterest, I am getting many, many questions that are more suited for an expert. This is a raw food site, this was my first attempt at body butter, it worked better than I could have hoped for and if you make this recipe as stated, it will work great for you too!! I am sorry but I can’t answer the technical questions. Cheers!*
IF YOU ARE HAVING TROUBLE WITH YOUR BODY BUTTER WHIPPING: you probably rushed this step. It needs to be cooled significantly….like in the picture.
I have to admit, I am pretty excited at how easy it is to make. I used sweet orange, lemon and lavender in my second batch. Heavenly. You can just use the basic recipe and add your favorite essential oils. Just make sure they are skin friendly!
A few people have asked about jars. I use these: Weck Jars
TIPS: PLEASE READ!
- You can use what ever oils you wish, just make sure you keep the ratio 75% solid to 25% liquid. SO IF YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO ANY OF THE ABOVE LISTED OILS, JUST REPLACE THEM WITH AN OIL THAT YOU ARE NOT ALLERGIC TO. Just make sure you replace a solid for a solid and a liquid for a liquid.
- The chilling step is crucial. If you don’t chill it properly, it won’t whip or stay whipped. About 20 minutes in the freezer usually does the trick for this batch. Make sure you scrape down the sides before mixing.
- Since this recipe does not contain any water, it will not mold. You should keep in a cool place but it does not have to be refrigerated.
- I do not know the exact shelf life but I know it will keep at least a few months, plus.
- The body butter melts as it goes on and gets a little oily but absorbs beautifully, quickly and leaves your skin very soft.
- You can order the shea butter here: Raw Shea Butter
You can order the coconut oil here: Coconut Oil
You can order the almond oil here: Almond Oil
You can order the Weck Jars here: Weck Jars
Alternatively, coconut oil and almond oil are quite easy to locate at your local coop, Whole Foods or health food store.
- This recipe has been tested many times. If you don’t follow the recipe, you will not get the same results.
- Many people ask for exact amounts of essential oils. I start with at least 20 drops of what ever oil I want to use and just increase slowly until I am happy with how it smells. So…be free! Use your own creativity here.
Body Butter
MAKES 2 1/2 to 3 CUPS WHIPPED BUTTER
- 1 cup organic raw shea butter
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (solid)
- 1/2 cup almond oil (liquid)
- Melt shea butter and coconut oil in the top of a double boiler. Remove from heat and let cool for 30 minutes.
- Stir in almond oil and essential oils of your choosing.*
- Place oil mixture in freezer or outside to chill.
- Wait until oils start to partially solidify (see photo) then whip until a butter-like consistency is achieved.
- Place in clean, glass jar and enjoy! A little goes a long way.
*Not all essential oils are skin friendly or child friendly. Please do your research before adding.
Vicki wrote on October 21, 2012
I made this but DID NOT heat/ cool the ingredients. I simply cut up the Shea butter added coconut oil and almond oil and blended in a little food processor. It came out great. When I realized I omitted the heating step, at first i was going to melt it all down and redo it but I researched to see if I would have a better product if it’s been heated. I actually found that the Shea butter will lose a lot of it’s nutrients and the shelf life will be shortened if it’s heated above 170 degrees. It’s very simple if you omit the heating cooling steps. But if you want to melt to blend the oils be aware of how warm you are making it. Thank you Susan for sharing this you really inspired me to make my first batch!
Mindy wrote on October 11, 2012
Love this recipe. I am 6 months pregnant and wanted something completely natural to put on my belly (and the rest of me) to avoid the dreaded winter itch (and hopefully avoid some new stretch marks). I used the shea and coconut oil but instead of almond oil I used argan oil. I ended up not using any essential oils because I fell in love with the smell of the shea and coconut together. Thank you for sharing this with us!
BrooklynGirl wrote on October 10, 2012
I wanted to try this recipe, but I didn’t have coconut oil or almond oil. I have a ton of shea butter though so I dug around and found some mango butter and then I used olive oil. It worked just as well. After it cooled, I added some aloe vera gel and then some perfume oil just because and it whipped up nice and fluffy. I put mine in a old-fashioned canning jar. I scooped some of it off the beater and it on my skin and it just melted in. Perfect for winter, thanks!
Laurel wrote on October 10, 2012
It turned out beautifully just like you said! I love it. Smells great and the texture is better than anything I’ve ever used. Thanks for the recipe!
Tracey wrote on October 7, 2012
I found a similar recipe that calls for 2 tbsp. of cornstarch to be added last, along with your fragrance oil; the writer claimed that the addition of cornstarch will prevent greasiness in the finished product. Have to try it!
Aly wrote on October 7, 2012
I have found that when you melt shea butter over high heat it gets grainy. A nice way to avoid this is to heat the other oils and pour onto the shea to combine…. Thanks for the recipe!
kristin wrote on October 5, 2012
i am excited to try this, i had used a whipped butter recipe where the shea didn’t get melted but turned out grainy. a word of caution using citrus essential oils and they will cause extreme sunburning. any citris type oils should not be used in anything that will be left on the skin (lip balm, lotion, cream) and should be reserved for soaps and shampoos that get rinsed off! just a thought.
Susan wrote on October 2, 2012
Figure out what your ratios were solid to liquid, melt it down correct the ratios and remake it. This body butter does have a greasy feel when it first goes on but absorbs quickly.
VANESSA wrote on October 2, 2012
thanks for the prompt response 🙂
ok so i have another problem…i made the butter right, and i don’t why didnt double check but i basically made the ratio from butter to oil 1:1. it was 8 oz of shea butter (i think- it wasnt labeled) and the oils (olive and jojoba) made up the other . now it has a greasy feel to it….what do you suggest i do to make it creamier instead of greasy?