Vanilla Body Butter
When it comes to using skin products–whether it is sunscreen, lotion, body butter, or chapstick–I always ask myself: is this something that I could eat? I know that sounds crazy, but our skin is our largest organ and drenching it in a bunch of chemicals just doesn’t seem right.
This is why I love Fat Face Skincare, Primally Pure, and Primal Life Organics. These companies make the best real food, skin care products. They only use ingredients that function as nourishment to the body and I dig that. I may not eat shea or mango butter by the spoonfuls, but applying them to my skin provides me with topical nutrients that have a ton of healing properties. And one product that’s rich in vitamins that I’m constantly running out of is body butter. Making it myself is the only way I can ensure that it’s on tap at all times.
Below, I show you how to make your own body butter using cocoa butter, coconut oil, mango butter, and kukui nut oil. Cocoa butter is one of my favorite body moisturizers and I’m constantly searching out blends that contain it. I found the perfect one while traveling through Bali this year, but once it got out of the tropical heat, it turned into a rock (cocoa butter is hard at room temperature). I have to microwave it every time I use it, which can be a pain. And a big reason why I came up with the blend below. I include cocoa butter in the mix, but dilute it enough so it still spreads easily. It’s a silky, thick butter that heals year round. Perfect for sun kissed skin and the dry, itchy elbows of winter.
If you’re a DIY’er like me, you’ll have fun searching for all the different oils, butters, and essential oils that you can combine for your own staple beauty products. I spent about $100 at Mountain Rose Herbs. But–and this is best part–I’ll be able to make around 5-7 batches of body butter using the ingredients I purchased. This puts my total cost of each body butter around $15-$20 a piece, which is a huge savings! And in the future I’ll probably end up buying larger quantities, so I can get my cost per jar down even more.
Here’s what I ended up buying from Mountain Rose Herbs for this recipe:
1 lb Cocoa Butter Wafers
1 lb Shea Butter
1 lb Mango Butter
32 oz Coconut Oil
8 oz Kukui Nut Oil
1/8 oz Vanilla Absolute (solvent extracted)
Vanilla Cocoa Body Butter
One of the first things you need to know about making body butter is that you need a good ratio of solids to liquid oils. The ratio I used for the recipe below is 75-percent solids and 25-percent liquid oils. Stated differently, three solids to one oil. In the recipe below, I use cocoa butter, mango butter, and coconut oil as my solids, and kukui nut oil for my liquid oil. The consistency is like whipped butter and it smells amazing.
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Cocoa Butter (solid)
- 1/2 Cup Mango Butter (solid
- 1/2 Cup Coconut Oil (solid)
- 1/2 Cup Kukui Nut Oil (liquid)
- 15 Drops Vanilla Absolute
Instructions
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Set up a double boiler and turn heat to medium-low. Add 1/2 cup of cocoa butter, mango butter, coconut oil, and kukui nut oil.
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Stir frequently and remove from heat once everything has melted.
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Place mixture in the refrigerator until it thickens and changes color (roughly one to two hours).
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Add 15-20 drops of vanilla absolute. Whip mixture with a hand mixer, until you get the airy consistency you want. *Make sure your mixture is all the way cooled before whipping.
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Store your butter in an air tight container. It should last at room temperature for a few months.
Recipe Notes
For the best results, I recommend using this lotion right after a shower. Of course you can use it throughout the day too, but applying it while still wet, allows the cream to really work its magic and soak into the skin. Right when you get out of the shower, apply body butter, focusing on the drier, trouble spots (elbows, knees, and feet). Then, hang out in your birthday suit for a couple minutes as it continues to soak in. I like to put a robe on at this point and continue with my hair and makeup. The body butter should be soaked in after a few minutes. If not, use a towel to pat dry or rub in any extra lotion. This technique will leave your skin extra hydrated.
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Hello. I googled mixing shea butter with kukui nut oil and your blog came up. I like the recipe you’ve used and I have a question. I want to add Tea Tree Oil to my moisturizer. I’m 64 years old and still have an acne problem unless I use tea tree oil. I like the idea of shea butter, coconut oil, and cocoa butter and kuikui nut oil. I’m wondering if you’ve tried that with tea tree oil. Mostly, I’m wondering about the combination of scents. I want moist skin, but I don’t want people to leave the room when I walk in because my moisturizer smells funny. Thanks.
Hi! I too have sensitive skin and have found relief with tea tree oil. I often add it to my body butters and lip balms. Typically I blend the tea tree oil with lavender and/or peppermint. All are great for skin health. If you apply the moisturizer when your body is still damp from the shower, then towel dab dry, you should find the scent more mellow and it will blend into the skin better. Also, if you wanted a moisturizer that’s not as heavy, try mixing a few drops of tea tree oil into a 16 oz bottle of almond oil (I order mine from Amazon) and use the same application process post shower. Almond oil is a lighter oil (both in scent and viscosity), soaks into the skin nicely, and is great for sensitive skin. Plus, body oils can be a quicker, less greasy way to stay moisturized. Hope this helps and you find that perfect recipe for your skin 🙂