Description
Standing Mixer or Handheld Mixer
Ingredients
- 1 cup of shea butter (I use Everyday Shea – unscentend)
- ½ cup of coconut oil
- ½ cup almond oil
- Essential oils (Frankincense, Lavender, Sandalwood, Myrrh)
Instructions
- Gently melt the shea butter and coconut oil over very low heat. Some say to use a double broiler, but I’ve had success just making sure that the heat is very low. I add the shea butter to the pot first and once it’s pretty melted, I add the coconut oil. The reason for this is because the shea butter takes longer to melt than the coconut oil.
- Remove from heat and stir in the almond oil.
- Transfer to a large mixing bowl and place in the refrigerator. You’ll need to chill the oils until they are solidified but still soft to the touch. You should be able to press your finger into the oil and it leaves an indentation.I wish I could say exactly how long it takes to get to this point, but it really depends on your refrigerator and how cold it is. It typically takes my refrigerator 1 ½ to 2 hours to get the right consistency. Check out the video to see exactly what to look for so you know when your body butter is ready to be whipped.
- Once it’s chilled, using a handheld mixer or KitchenAid, whip the mixture until it’s a thick and fluffy consistency – like smooth creamy butter. Transfer to a clean jar and seal.
- To use as a sunburn cream – add 1 drop each essential oil to the palm of one hand. Using your index finger, scoop a dallop of body butter into the same palm holding the essential oils. Combine by gently rubbing your palms together. Apply to the sunburned areas using more essential oil and body butter as needed. Apply 3 to 4 times during the day the first 2 to 3 days after a burn and then 1 to 2 times a day after that.
Notes
Some may wonder why we don’t add the essential oil to the homemade body butter as it’s being whipped. This is definitely an option.
However, I prefer to add the oils at each use when we’re aiming for a therapeutic result. The reason for this is that it’s hard to find amber or cobalt blue jars that are widemouth which is good for homemade body butter.
The color of the jars is important because essential oils are light sensitive and they lose potency over time when exposed to light. Secondly, for therapeutic benefits I typically prefer to use the oils straight out of the bottle to ensure that they are still as potent and effective as possible.
I also like the flexibility of leaving the body butter unscented. By doing that, I can add essential oils at each application based on the aroma that I want or the therapeutic benefit I’m going for.
It’s up to you though. Just make this homemade body butter recipe as soon as you can, because once you do you’ll wonder how ever lived without it!