Since my mom retired awhile ago, she has made it her new hobby to make all kinds of skincare products. She has made all kinds of soaps, shampoos, deodorants and body butters. I had not tried making any myself, mostly because I just take am given whatever she makes. Plus, I had a bad experience with some really horrible smelling beef tallow soap that I made once in my organic chemistry lab in University, and I didn't care to try making it again.
However, I did eventually decide to venture into the world of homemade skin care products because I loved this Simple Homemade Body Butter she made me so much. She first made it for me to use on Peanut when she had a bit of a rash on her back. We used it and it cleared up right away. Since then, I have been using it on her and myself, as a moisturizer and to treat rashes, stubborn dry skin patches, etc. It's been doing a great job at keeping stretch marks off my huge, pregnant belly (though maybe I'm just not prone to stretch marks, who knows). I also plan to use it on my new baby, as a general moisturizer, massage lotion and bum cream.
By far the hardest part about making this body butter is getting the ingredients. You generally can't just buy cocoa and shea butters at any old store, but a well stocked craft and/or natural foods store may carry them. Otherwise you'll have to get them online. I had a good experience buying mine from Brambleberry. You should be able to find jojoba oil in the natural foods aisle of a well-stocked store, and you can definitely buy coconut oil anywhere now. Seriously, your local gas station probably has it. Not that I'm saying that's a good thing. Anyway...
The rest of the process is very easy. All you have to do is put everything in a double boiler to get it all melted together. Once it's a liquid, you just let it harden slightly, then whip it up, which helps keep it soft and spreadable. Even the whipping step is optional. If you forget about it and it hardens completely, don't worry, you just have to scoop a little harder out of the container and let it melt a little in your hands before rubbing it into your skin. The smell of your finished body butter will vary depending on the quality of the ingredients you buy. Some cocoa butter, as well as coconut oil have vary strong smells to them of chocolate and coconut, respectively. This is how my mom's first batch turned out - it basically made you smell like a Bounty bar. Not a bad thing in my opinion. My ingredients were much less potent, so it has a more subtle smell. Also not a bad thing.
I have written the recipe below with the intention for you to scale the amounts to however big a batch you want. I just made up a small batch - ¼ cup of each ingredient to make about 1 cup total body butter. I have not had any problems with this body butter going rancid, or "bad", so you can easily make a larger batch. In fact, I think making a bunch and giving away small jars would make great gifts, either for Christmas or as gifts for baby or bridal showers. Enjoy your soft skin!
Simple Homemade Body Butter
Ingredients
- 1 part cocoa butter
- 1 part shea butter
- 1 part coconut oil
- 1 part olive jojoba or almond oil
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a double boiler or small glass bowl placed over a small saucepan of lightly simmering water. Stir until ingredients are melted together.
- Transfer oil mixture to another bowl and allow to cool slightly. Move bowl to refrigerator and cool until mixture begins to turn cloudy and starts to thicken.
- Whip mixture with a hand mixture until it lightens in color and becomes creamy (see note).
- Store in an airtight container or jar. Use sparingly on your skin as you would any moisturizer.
Notes
Nutrition Disclaimer: I try my best to make sure the nutrition information I provide is accurate to provide you with the best information possible. However, due to ingredient discrepancies and other factors, the above nutrition information should be considered an estimation only.
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