How to Make DIY Body Butter that Absorbs Immediately! (2024)

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In this post I’m going to show you how to make a 3 ingredient natural body butter with all natural ingredients that is not only easy to make, but the finished product will actually penetrate your skin quickly! My whipped DIY body butter recipe will relieve your dry skin and be easy to use.

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Remedying dry skin can be a full time job-nobody’s got 30+ minutes to wait for their homemade body butter to absorb! I’m guessing we’ve all been there-waiting and waiting to put your pants on but your DIY moisturizer is just sitting on top of your skin? Whether you’vedabbled in making your own products with diy recipesor consider yourself a DIY beauty pro, I bet you’ve made a body butter or homemade lotion bars and found it oh so discouraging when you realize it is too greasy to be functional.

Why is My Homemade Body Butter so Greasy?

This is actually the second fast absorbing body butter recipe I’ve attempted. I got a bit ambitious with a different recipe and tried to tint it pink with hibiscus. Brilliant idea (if I do say so myself :)) but it didn’t work as well as I had hoped. I say I “attempted” because I added shea butter to make it extra nourishing and found that shea butter rendered the DIY a bit too greasy. While the originalDIY body butter recipeis somewhat fast absorbing-it’s not as fast as today’s new recipe!

You might be tempted to use ingredients like grapeseed oil, organic coconut oil, olive oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, jojoba oil, sweet almond oil etc. I don’t recommend any of these common ingredients because they will give your diy body butter a greasy feel. All the oils I mention have a very slow absorption rate.

BONUS:A little trick that will help relieve greasiness is addingarrowroot powder(or tapioca starch) to your body butter. It is a light powdery substance with no smell. Adding just a small amount can make a big difference when it comes to keeping that “greased pig” feeling at bay!

More Body & Face DIYs for Dry Skin

  • DIY Dry Skin Mask
  • Apricot Myrrh Stick
  • DIY Dry Skin Roll On
  • Dry Skin Moisturizer with Shea Butter
  • 3 Remedies for the Dry Skin Blues
  • coQ10 Sea Buckthorn Facial Oil

Is Homemade Body Butter Good for your Skin?

DIY Body Butter is a fantastic option for relieving dry skin. Making aDIY body lotioncontains about 50% of water. Plus, lotions take much more time to make and they require a preservative. ADIY body oilis a great option but you don’t get the benefit of a butter since a butter is solid.

A body butter is pretty easy to make, not diluted with water and thoroughly moisturizing. You can’t beat it when it comes to the amount of emollient moisture your skin will get from a body butter.

How Do I Make My Own Body Butter?

Making a body butter requires you to gently heat all your ingredients (minus delicate ingredients like essential oils and vitamin E) together. Once they are liquified, you can simply pour them into a glass container, allow to cool and then use! Some DIYers like to whip their body butter which makes it a bit softer, lighter and easier to use. This requires you to use a mixer, wait until the oils have cooled just a bit and than whip as you would if you were making a whipped cream. However, whipping is not necessary and can be skipped.

To get started, you must pick a carrier oil and preferably one that isknown for quick absorption. These light oils are amazing at moisturizing your skin and have become regulars in many of my other homemade beauty products.

Next, you must find a butter that is right for your needs. I find cocoa butter and shea butter much too greasy. Kokum butter might be a good choice but I can’t say for sure. For this recipe, since we are wanting a butter that absorbs quickly,Mango butteris the perfect choice. It is a butter that has all the emollient benefits of the other butters but absorbs so quick, you won’t believe it!

Homemade Body Butter Ingredients List:

Hazelnut Oilis great for oilier skin types and absorbs quickly.It is very gentle and would be great for sensitive skin types as well.It has amazing astringent properties and is hydrating and balancing!

Baobab Oilhas one of the fasted absorption rates of carrier oils. It is extremely high in antioxidants which makes it a great addition to a body oil. It’s also very high in vitamins A, C & E and essential fatty acids.

Mango Butterabsorbs into the skin “shockingly fast”.This is a plus since butters tend to be greasy. This different butter is also non-comedogenic so it is safe for oilier skin types since it won’t clog pores! It’s beneficial properties include vitamin A and C which we know are both beneficial when it comes to keeping the skin looking youthful.It also has been known to be helpful in repairing cracked skin from dryness. Mango butter is the main ingredient in this DIY body butter recipe.

Arrowroot Powderis optional. I wish I had had enough ingredients to make 2 butters-1 with arrowroot and 1 without. I made mine with arrowroot and can say that this body butter absorbs in less then a minute. However, common sense tells me that a butter without it would be more hydrating. Since I’ve chosen 2 very fast absorbing ingredients, I personally don’t think the arrowroot is necessary.

Essential oilsare optional. I did not add any to mine butlavenderessential oil is always a good idea!Chamomileis very calming and healing and smells great with lavender or on it’s own.Add your favorite essential oils and skip synthetic fragrances.

How Long Does Homemade Body Butter Last?

The shelf life of body butter, as long as it contains only oil based ingredients is around 6 months. There is no preservative required.

Oils and butters last quite a while. Typically, they last 6 months or more. The problem arises when you mix water based ingredients with oils. Bacteria forms in water rather quickly and can cause your DIY creation to go bad in days.

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What You’ll Need to Make DIY Body Butter:

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Homemade Fast Absorbing Body Butter

Yield: 1 cup

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Are you tired of making balms and butters only to have them set on your skin and not soak in? I have chosen specific ingredients that are known for their fast absorption rates. This DIY Body Butter recipe will give you a silky moisturizer that will nourish your skin without leaving you greasy!

Ingredients

  • 3 TBSP. Hazelnut Oil
  • 3 TBSP. Baobab Oil
  • 6 TBSP. Mango Butter
  • 1 TBSP. Arrowroot Powder *optional*
  • 10 drops Essential Oils *optional*

Instructions

    1. Fill a pot half way full with water and place on the stove top.
      Add your oil and butter in a glass pyrex measuring cup and place in the pot.
    2. Turn the stove top to medium heat.
    3. Allow the butter to melt than remove from the stove top.
    4. Depending on your mixer and the size of your measuring cup, you might need to pour your mixture into a larger mixing bowl. I don't because I use a stick mixer. I do have some splatters but I'd rather clean up splattering then deal with an extra bowl to clean. You can use a Kitchen Aid or a hand mixer if you chose.
    5. Allow your mixture to cool enough that it starts to harden. This takes about 10 minutes.
    6. Mix until butter starts to look like whipped cream.
    7. Add essential oils and mix again for about 1 1/2 minutes.
    8. Spoon into a glass container and enjoy!

Notes

In cooler temperatures your body butter will tend to harden quite a bit. In warmer temps, you will have a softer butter. The consistency matters none when it comes to how quickly it absorbs and how well it moisturizes. A hard butter can be hard to spread on the skin but it is a lot less messy.

Since we are not adding any water based products, this whipped body butter recipe does not need a preservative and has a shelf life of about 6 months.

Be careful to not expose your homemade body butter to direct sunlight .

Whipping a body butter can be tricky. You need to stay engaged until you have your final product. Depending on your mixer, you might be able to mix at different consistencies. My stick mixer isn't great at breaking through and whipping a hard balm so I have to monitor the softness and get it just right. For this reason, a stand mixer might work best for you.

There is no worry with ruining your body butter though. If you need to remelt you can. In fact, you might be able to skip the mixing all together and just have a balm. I don't believe skipping the mixing would leave your butter too hard to scoop.

This recipe makes a little less than 1 cup.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Facebook

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Where to Find Quality Ingredients:

The ingredients needed to make a fast absorbing body butter are unique and can be harder to find. I got all of my ingredients from Mountain Rose Herbs. They offer mostly organic, high quality ingredients including essential oils. They have many different sizes in each oil or butter so you don’t have to buy huge bottles that you’ll never finish. Each ingredient is linked for your convenience. I am an affiliate of Mountain Rose Herbs and will be a small commission if you buy through my links.

I linked Amazon Prime for glass jars but if you don’t need 1 day shipping, I really like getting my bottles from Specialty Bottle. Instead of buying 12 at a time, you can buy 1 at a time and they have a great variety of glass bottles and jars. The jar pictured is a flip top 6 ounce glass jar from Hobby Lobby.

I feel like I post several homemade lotions every year about this time. Where I live, we’ve had 1 or 2 warm days where I’ve had to pull out the dreaded shorts and holy hell are my legs white and dry. I’llget some color eventuallybut dry, ashy winter skin just won’t do and it’s time to play catch up hydrating my skin! I’m betting I’m not the only one who does this!

Making your own natural products not only lets you customize and control the ingredients you choose, it also allows you to keep synthetic personal care products far away from your skin. For more homemade skincare recipes, check out my body product recipe list.

I must mention that this whipped body butter recipe is fantastic for preventing stretch marks during pregnancy.

This simple whipped DIY body butter recipe is easy to make, absorbs crazy fast and will hydrate skin just in time for warmer weather!

xx, Jenni

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How to Make DIY Body Butter that Absorbs Immediately! (2024)

FAQs

How to make body butter absorb? ›

Adding 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, arrowroot powder, or tapioca starch will help the body butter feel less greasy. I also find applying it directly after showering and letting it sink into your skin for a few minutes helps it absorb and not feel greasy.

What butter absorbs fast for skin? ›

ABSORPTION RATES OF BUTTERS
  1. Kokum – Refined.
  2. Cocoa.
  3. Cocoa Organic.
  4. Cupuacu – Ultra Refined.
  5. Shea – Crude (Ghana)
  6. Shea – Crude (Ghana) Organic.
  7. Shea Organic – Refined (Ghana.
  8. Shea – Refined – Deodorized (Ghana)

What oils are fast absorbing for body butter? ›

Hazelnut Oil is great for oilier skin types and absorbs quickly. It is very gentle and would be great for sensitive skin types as well. It has amazing astringent properties and is hydrating and balancing! Baobab Oil has one of the fasted absorption rates of carrier oils.

Does Shea butter absorb fast? ›

Shea butter is similar to almond butter in that it's made from a nut—the African shea tree nut. But it's also unique because of its composition of natural fats. These allow the butter to absorb quickly into the skin, where it works to help with dryness and more.

How long does it take for body butter to absorb? ›

Typically, shea butter is a thick and heavy butter that takes longer to absorb into the skin compared to lighter creams and lotions. It can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes for the skin to fully absorb shea butter, but this can vary depending on the factors mentioned above.

How to make moisturizer absorb faster? ›

When you apply products to damp skin, the water on your skin's surface helps create a barrier that locks in moisture, allowing products to absorb more effectively. Applying your skincare products to damp skin can also prevent waste. On dry skin, products can evaporate before your skin has a chance to absorb them fully.

What butter penetrates skin? ›

Unrefined Shea Nut Butter, Butyrospermum parkii, penetrates deep, moisturizes and nourishes. It is excellent for dry, damaged, and maturing skin. In hair care, Shea Butter provides deep nourishment for the hair shaft and moisturizes dry, dull hair resulting in improved luster and manageability.

What makes the best body butter? ›

Hydrating Ingredients

“Body butters commonly include shea butter, cocoa butter, and coconut oil,” says Dr. Castilla. “These ingredients have great occlusive properties that lock moisture into the skin.” Another common ingredient is jojoba oil, she says, which has both emollient and humectant properties.

What keeps body butter from hardening? ›

We suggest using a dermatologically safe and organic oil such as coconut oil or almond oil. But the ultimate solution to keep whipped Shea butter from hardening is the use of Jojoba Oil. Jojoba oil offers significant skin advantages, but it also helps preserve whipped Shea butter and prevents it from hardening.

Which oil penetrates skin fastest? ›

The structure of oleic acid, the predominant fatty acid in olive oil, causes tiny holes in the skin barrier which help speed absorption. This is why olive oil penetrates deeper and faster into the skin the most oils.

What is the best emulsifier for body butter? ›

Ritamulse SCG (Emulsimulse, ECOMulse), BTMS-50, or Emulsifying Wax NF will work instead of Glyceryl Stearate (and) PEG-100 Stearate, though they won't feel as nice. BTMS-25 and Olivem 1000 will also work, though I find they thicken up faster and it is harder to make a smooth emulsified body butter with them.

Why does my homemade body butter get hard? ›

If your fat blend contains a high concentration of ingredients that are brittle at room temperature, like cocoa butter or waxes, that could be why your body butter is getting hard and crumbly when left to sit.

Why is my homemade body butter so greasy? ›

Different fats/butters/oils have different skin feels and absorb at different speeds. If your body butter is made entirely (or mostly) from heavy feeling, slow-to-absorb butters and oils (like shea butter or oat oil), that will make for a heavier, greasier end product.

When to add arrowroot powder to body butter? ›

Since this powder is oil soluble, you need to add this ingredient to your melted butters and oils, then cool them and whip them as per your recipe. Cornstarch or Cream of Tartar work similarly and can be used as a substitute for Arrowroot Powder.

How to make body butter stay fluffy? ›

Our solution to keep our whipped shea butter soft and fluffy is to add a little bit of jojoba oil to the whipped shea (less than 10% of the mixture). Some people also use coconut oil for the same effect but we prefer jojoba as it has it's own beneficial effects.

Why is my body butter not solidifying? ›

If it's so soft that it tends towards liquid, you won't be able to whip any air into it. If your body butter liquifies in the bottom of the bowl from the get-go, you need to increase the percentage of solid ingredients and reduce the percentage of liquid ingredients.

What helps body butter not melt? ›

Store your body butter in a cool, dry place.

To prevent your body butter from melting once it's in your home, store it in a cabinet or pantry that isn't too hot or humid.

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