You know how sometimes you see a recipe and think… oh yeah, that sounds nice… but then never actually make it. Please don’t do that with this one.
This homemade whipped body butter is pure gold – and honestly – I think you’re going to love what it does for your skin!
A body butter is made by combining oils (liquid) with butters (solid). Example:
- oils (liquid): coconut oil, almond oil, safflower oil, avocado oil ( read my top 6 favorite oils)
- butters (solid) : shea butter, mango butter, cocoa butter
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I chose to work with coconut oil (as my liquid part) and cocoa butter (as my solid part)
Coconut Oil is a top favorite of mine. Always use a virgin cold-pressed oil, organic is best, to make sure that all the nutrients and beneficial properties are intact.
Coconut oil’s antioxidant properties protect the skin from free radical damage and because it’s so full of essential fatty acids, it also helps to build and strengthen skin-cell structures. This keeps the skin’s connective tissues strong and supple, which helps to prevent sagging and wrinkles. My skin loves it and I love that it’s easily absorbed.
Cocoa Butter comes from the cocoa bean. It has a distinct nutty, chocolate scent – so yes, you will smell… delicious! When I use it on my skin, my 5-year-old notices right away! Cocoa butter is a rich emollient, it leaves your skin buttery soft. It contains fatty acids which help to retain moisture and build elasticity and also has properties which can help ease dermatitis or rashes. And did I mention it smells like chocolate!
Just like your oils, you want to choose a raw, cold-pressed butter – free of chemicals that are used in bleaching and refining.
Let’s start making our Homemade Whipped Body Butter!
Cocoa Butter is solid, so you’ll need to melt it down in a bain-marie, a hot water bath. You want it to melt over steam, rather than direct heat.
Depending on where you live, and if it’s cold, your coconut oil may be hard…. melt them gently together until completely liquid.
Once the butter is melted, you’ll need to harden it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. TIP: make sure to cover the container in the freezer (with a lid or towel) so that no condensation drips into your butter!
Freeze it until it’s semi-solid – not too soft, not too hard. You should be able to press your finger in easily and make a dent. If it’s not whipping up, put it back in the freezer to harden a little more.
Now, I want to tell you something up front so that you’re not weirded out when you use it. This body butter is unusual in that it melts onto your skin the instant you apply it – like butter on a hot pan. Honestly, I found it to be a bit strange. The recipes that I had read don’t tell you this, so when I first used it, I thought it was greasy and that I wouldn’t like it.
But then, something magical happened – my skin soaked it all in – and instead of feeling greasy, it felt velvety soft! My skin is seriously thanking me and has promised to glow, if I use this everyday.
I’ve happily accepted.
Homemade Whipped Body Butter Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup cocoa butter
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
Instructions
- In a bain-marie, melt down your hard butters and oils until fully liquid
- Set in the freezer to harden, about 20 minutes.
- Once the mixture is solid again, but not too hard, whip it up using an electric whisk, a food processor with a whisk attachment, or your KitchenAid (lucky you!)If you need to, you can use a hand held whisk, and a lot of elbow grease! :)
- Whip about 5 minutes, or until you have created fluffy white clouds. Spoon it into a clean jar or container. It will keep for 3 months.
- Slather it on!
Notes
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I have made this handmade lotion with same process as I followed you can you tell me why its not like other lotion I mean to say as its bit semi solid. correct me if I am wrong here.
I did sweet almond oil and shea butter. I am really surprised at how the shea butter smells 😕 but I can always use a little bit fragranced lotion to mix in until I can get some essential oils but so far I like it.
Where do you purchase cocoa butter and what kind does everyone recommend?
Hi Chritine! You might find cocoa butter in a health food store, or the healthy section of the supermarket. Its often with raw cocoa powder, and superfood powders… The brand that I often see in supermarkets in Nativas Organics, you can also find them online or on Amazon.
lovely recipie, like it a lot, managed to make it as I didnt leave long enough in the freezer to cool, so had to add some cornstarch to help it thicken, seems to have done the trick – thank you
I hope you can help me. I’m new to all this and have a problem. I’m one of those people that dislikes chocolate and the batch I made works well but to me, it’s not at all pleasant. I can smell the cocoa butter, is there something else I can use? I used lavender oil to try and mask the cocoa butter smell and it didn’t work. I gave it all to friends and want to make some more for me, any ideas? thanks
I like chocolate, but do not choose to smell like it. They have organic deodorized or semi-deodorized cocoa butters out there that have very little to no smell. Just search online.
Hi Joan! I totally hear you, not everyone loves the idea of smelling like a chocolate bar! :) You can use refined cocoa, if you like the texture/feel of cocoa butter, but not the scent. Or, you can swap out the cocoa butter completely and use other butters like shea + mango butter. That said Shea can also have a strong scent… mango butter has a very neutral scent.
I like the sound of this recipe. I don’t like shea butter, so I’m going to try mango butter.
Thanks.
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Yeap,spot on! I use this for years. I make it using 50% raw cacao butter, 30% coconut oil,15% shea butter and the rest of 5% argan oil and essential oils for fragrance. It’s pure heaven…It has to be kept in a cool place,under 23-24 degrees Celsius, to preserve its soft and creamy texture.
I’ve made this and it whipped up beautifully, and then moments later, was hard again while scooping it into tin. Am I whipping it too long maybe? It’ll still work, but not as nicely :(
followed the recipe to a T and it whipped up perfectly but the next day it was hard. Did not put it in a cool place was in my bathroom in a glass jar covered.
Love this simple recipe! Most people forget to add in where you live!!! Also, if it gets hard it’s because of the Cocoa butter. you can try melting it back down just until melted as to not kill important beneficial factors and add some more oil to it. I like Jojoba or Sweet almond oil. Or try 50% cocoa butter and 50% oil. Hope this helps the next person!
Cocoa butter is a hard butter. That’s why I do not use it as a main body butter ingredient. I prefer Shea or mango butters and add a small amount of cocoa butter in as a secondary butter in addition to the liquid oils.
I made it but it melted after a few minute. Is there anything that I can do to keep it from liquefying in room temperature
How to softing shea butter for lotion.
If I don’t launder my clothes after using the body butter, after a couple weeks, the clothes smell like rancid oil. Do you ever use any kind of preservative? Any other suggestions?
Add some vitamin E oil.