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.
crystal wrote on January 19, 2014
You typically need to double the size of your container to allow for the increase in volume during whipping.
crystal wrote on January 19, 2014
If you don’t want to waste expensive bottles of essential oils to fragrance you body butter you can use candle fragrance oils instead. Make sure you purchase from a reputable company and that it says it’s safe for your skin. Google is you friend…just search “candle fragrance oils.”
Angela wrote on October 18, 2014
Crystal, I respectfully disagree with your recommendation of “candle fragrance oils” in place of higher quality essential oils. True Essential Oils are always recommended for skincare and body use. Candle oils, even of the best quality should be used strictly for candles and potpourri products. It is never a good idea to chance a possible bad reaction especially when these oils are very concentrated and usually quite reactive.
amalia wrote on January 19, 2014
Easy & beautifull recipe, made about half of your measure. Skin is wonderfull! About scent, i put just 3 drops ylang- ylang & 3 red mandarin essential oils, smells great! Use raw shea, coconut and sunflower seed oil. Maybe your essential oils is lower quality, 20 drops is too much for skin.
Jennifer wrote on January 19, 2014
Great recipe, thank you for sharing. I am a bath and body products crafter/ business owner and have been making a similar body butter for years now. This recipe would work just as well without melting the ingredients first as long as they are room temp. All you need to do is whip them together until you reach your desired consistency. For everyone who doesn’t like the smell of unrefined Shea butter simply use refined Shea. It has all of the same benifitial properties but without the smell. It is often not even processed using chemicals but rather refined and bleached naturally. Cheers, Jennifer
Mais K wrote on January 19, 2014
I had to melt and filter my raw shea butter. It took forever and I want to avoid that process! Do you think I could soften up the shea butter in the microwave enough to mix in my oils?
Ken wrote on January 16, 2014
Great article. One question: I see this contains 2 cups of raw materiel. How much volume do you get out of the finished product? 3 cups? 4? It looks like the volume increases significantly during the whipping process.
Cecilia wrote on January 16, 2014
Very exiting recipe, I can’t wait to try it.
I was wondering if anyone out there knows anything about adding vitamin complexes to stuff like this? Like Vitamin A and E?
Desiree wrote on January 10, 2014
I am so excited to make this!! Thank you, thank you for sharing. One question about the essential oils. Since they can be purchased in different strengths, did you use 100% strength or a ratio. I hope this makes sense. Thanks!
I’m certainly not an expert, so please correct me if I’m wrong! Responding to Jo’s comment suggesting the scent of the oils will vaporize (when not cool enough). I don’t believe vaporization would occur in strict, all natural, oil formulations such as this…. ??
Healthy day, all! -xo