Table of Contents Show
When seasons change, one needs to equip themselves with the perfect skincare for their body. In winter, dry skin is a problem relevant to most people, and in summer, rashes and irritated skin can become a nuisance.
To counter such issues, various skin products catering to different skin types are available in the market. You can find moisturizers, gels, creams and lotions with a variety of ingredients and fragrances.
However, do all of these products work for our skin efficiently? Do they contain harmful chemicals which can harm our skin further?
Read on to find out how to make body butter at home for glowing and healthy skin!
How to Make Body Butter at Home?
According to a study, many consumers aren’t aware of the ingredients used in such skin care products. One needs to examine them properly to understand if they might have an allergic or severe reaction.
If you still believe that you cannot trust such products, don’t give up on finding the perfect one for you. You can easily make them at home, with the most affordable ingredients.
For example, you can make your DIY sugar scrub instead of buying expensive products from the market. Aside from this, lotions, moisturizers and even body butter can be made organically at home.
Facts About Body Butter
1. What is Body Butter?
You have heard of lotions, moisturizers and even body wash, but what in the world is body butter?
Body butter is a nourishing skin moisturizer that is a better alternative to body moisturizers. Typically found in a glass jar than a bottle, body butter is thicker than lotions.
This is because it includes coconut oil, essential oils1, liquid oils, and the main ingredient, butter.
Although the consistency is thick, body butter is light and not at all greasy. It rejuvenates the skin better, especially on chilly winter days when your skin is more prone to dryness and dullness.
It also provides glow and hydrates the skin while soothing rough patches around the elbows, knees and palms. Due to its nourishing properties, it provides better hydration than other skin products.
If you’re wondering how to make body butter at home, it is simple and can be made quickly. But before that, let us see some benefits of body butter.
2. Some Notable Benefits of Body Butter:
1. Moisturize:
Ingredients are essential to check in our skincare products. A lot of our lotions and oils contain paraben, a preservative found in cosmetic and skincare products, it is harmful as paraben2 is directly linked to cancer.
The body butter is free of such preservatives as the ingredients in them are organic and natural. The oil present in it acts as a good moisturizer for our skin.
Thus, body butter lasts longer than any other product. It is because lotions contain water while body butter contains pure oil and butter.
2. Vitamins:
Containing vitamins A, E and F, shea butter is one of the most natural ingredients found in body and hair products. The natural vitamins and fatty acids found in the butter help provide healthy nourishment to the body.
Due to the different acids present in it, vitamins help produce the skin’s natural collagen. Other than shea butter, all other butter jars are loaded with omega-3 fats3 that help moisturize the skin.
3. Heals Skin:
People with cracked or dehydrated skin can benefit from body butter. Those suffering from psoriasis or eczema can apply body butter to the skin as it provides healthy nourishment.
4. Protection:
Pollution, hot sun and dry air can have various damaging effects on our skin. Body butter adds a barrier to our skin to protect us from free radicals around us.
3. Ingredients Found in Body Butter
The procedure of how to make body butter has many ingredients involved. These ingredients are important for our skin.
3.1) Butter:
1. Shea Butter
Extracted from the shea tree’s nuts and found in Native Africa, shea butter is a useful fat substance. It has all the essential oils, fatty acids4 and vitamins that help promote healthier skin.
Shea butter is perfect for all skin types, acts to lessen swelling and helps in cell growth, it reduces stretch marks, fine lines and wrinkles.
Shea butter is the oldest ingredient found in traditional beauty products and is still used today.
2. Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter is rich in fatty acids which helps provides nourishment and hydration for the skin. Cocoa butter protects the skin from UV Rays and improves blood flow.
This butter provides relief from rashes and other skin-related problems, also, cocoa beans found in the Cacao plant help extract cocoa butter.
3. Mango Butter
Mango Butter is popularly used in various body butter. It is extracted from the seeds of the mango fruit and uses the cold pressing method.
Due to Vitamin C and A’s presence, mango butter helps provide a glow to the skin and makes it appear youthful. It also helps in the healing of the skin and acts as a deep moisturizer
4. Kokum Butter
You will be surprised to know that kokum butter is also found in body butter. Extracted from the seeds of the kokum tree, it is usually found in India’s tropical regions.
Kokum butter is best combined with various essential oils to make the application smoother. Aside from using it in body butter, it can also be added to lip balms and body lotions.
The process of how to make body butter requires one of the above butter as an important ingredient.
3.2) Essential Oils:
Before we jump into making body butter, let us take a look at the oils used in it.
Essential oils are concentrated lubricants that are filtered from the aromatic parts of the plant. They further evaporate and leave behind strong fragrant scents.
These are some of the nourishing essential oils that can be used in a body butter:
1. Avocado Oil
Avocado oil provides softer, smoother and more elastic skin. It soothes and moisturizes your skin without being too greasy.
The oil has beta carotene5, fatty acids, and vitamins A, C and E, which heals damaged skin and wounds.
2. Sweet Almond Oil
This oil has vitamins A and E to help prevent acne and protect the skin from sun damage. It acts as a powerful moisturizer and treats dry skin conditions.
Cold-pressed almond oil proves to be much more beneficial for your skin.
3. Lavender Oil
Lavender oil is one of the famous essential oils used by many, it helps clean the surface of the skin, reduces redness and prevents acne. Lavender oil also reduces wrinkles and detoxifies the skin.
4. Coconut Oil
This oil is must-have in every Indian household; all for the right reasons. Coconut oil manages to heal wounds and fade fine lines. It moisturizes the skin, reduces scars, and clears the skin.
Coconut oil also acts as a barrier between the skin and the harmful UV rays. Vanilla, peppermint and orange essential oils are also available that smell heavenly and leave you with smooth skin.
Remember that you need to test the right essential oil for your skin before adding them to your body butter.
3. How to Make Body Butter at Home?
Making homemade body butter is not a tedious task, it is so simple and enjoyable, and you can make some for your friends and family. You can share the process of how to make body butter with them as well.
The ingredients for body butter can be found at your local market. They are inexpensive and last for a very long time, so you are assured of not wasting money.
How to make body butter at home? Below are some of the easiest ways you can create one quickly.
1. Homemade Whipped Body Butter
- How To Make Body Butter With Shea Butter?
Shea butter is commonly used in body butter. It acts as a strong base and suits almost every skin type.
Ingredients:
- All you require is 1/2 cup of shea butter.
- Any of your favourite liquid oil like 1/4 cup of sweet almond oil and 1/4 cup of coconut oil.
- Other essential oils for scent.
Remember, when mixing essential oils, you need to dilute them first. For the correct method, read the instructions written behind the package of the bottle.
- How To Make Regular Body Butter?
1. In a saucepan or a double boiler, add shea butter, coconut and sweet almond oil together. Melt the ingredients on medium heat.
2. Grab your favourite essential oils and add approximately 30 drops of them to the mixture. You can add more if you prefer a more pungent scent.
3. Mix everything well and after some time, transfer it to a mixing bowl.
4. Let the mixture chill in the fridge overnight to solidify and harden.
5. After it has been properly chilled and solidified, grab a hand beater and whip the mixture into silky butter.
4. Once the mixture softens, transfer the butter into a jar. Use preferably a mason jar, close the lid and you are done!
- How to Make Body Butter With Cocoa Butter?
Cocoa butter helps remove stretch marks and similar scars and is thus another favourite of many people. It also smells like chocolate and provides a pleasant fragrance.
Before you start with the procedure, make sure you melt the solid cocoa butter. You can either melt it in a microwave or over a hot bath.
Ingredients:
- You will need melted 1/3 cup of cocoa butter,
- 1/3 cup of coconut, almond or olive oil – depending on your preference and
- 20 – 30 drops of essential oils.
How to Make It?
1. Just like Shea butter, mix all the ingredients, including essential oils into a saucepan over medium heat.
2. After the mixture is thoroughly blended, transfer it into a bowl. Place it into the fridge to solidify it overnight. You can also place the mixture into the freezer for about an hour or until it hardens completely.
3. Remove the bowl and start whipping the mixture with a hand beater. The mixture should transform into smooth and silky butter.
4. Transfer the butter into a jar.
How to Make Body Butter With Cocoa Butter, Shea Butter and Mango Butter?
You can mix all three for extra nourishment, glowing and smooth skin. They are safe to use, and each proves to be beneficial for your skin.
Ingredients:
You will need the following –
- 1/2 cup of total butter including 1/4 cup of Shea Butter. Add 1/4 cup of cocoa butter and 1/4 cup of mango butter as well.
- 1/4 cup of oils such as jojoba, coconut and olive
You can also add 1&1/2 tsp of arrowroot powder and 20 – 30 drops of essential oils. However, these ingredients are optional, so it is not important to use them.
4. How Long does Home Made Body Butter Last
A homemade body butter’s shelf life can last up to 3 months if stored in a cool, dry place. It can last even longer than that, provided you place it in a dry spot. To be extra safe, you can also keep body butter in the fridge.
As body butter contains oil, it is susceptible to melting off in the heat. Try to keep the body butter at room temperature to avoid this.
5. When to use Body Butter?
Homemade body butter works best after you’ve stepped out of the shower and want to moisturize your skin. You can apply it all over your body, it is better to target extra dry areas such as knees or elbows.
You can also use body butter as a makeup remover as it removes even the most stubborn eyeliner! Just apply a little on the tissue and gently rub it away on the desired spot.
Closing Thoughts
All body kinds of butter don’t have the exact thickness and composition. To make your preferred body butter, examine the different butter and oils and remember to stick with the given measurements.
How to make body butter at home is not complicated. Now that you know how to make body butter at home, try making your moisturizer today and share your experience in the comments!
- Turek, Claudia, and Florian C. Stintzing. “Stability of essential oils: a review.” Comprehensive reviews in food science and food safety 12.1 (2013): 40-53. ↩︎
- Fransway, Anthony F., et al. “Paraben toxicology.” Dermatitis 30.1 (2019): 32-45. ↩︎
- Covington, Maggie B. “Omega-3 fatty acids.” American family physician 70.1 (2004): 133-140. ↩︎
- De Carvalho, Carla CCR, and Maria José Caramujo. “The various roles of fatty acids.” Molecules 23.10 (2018): 2583. ↩︎
- Mayne, Susan Taylor. “Beta‐carotene, carotenoids, and disease prevention in humans.” The FASEB Journal 10.7 (1996): 690-701. ↩︎
Last Updated on by laibaarif