Ah, shea butter cream – so silky and luxurious, sometimes you feel like licking it up instead of slathering it on your body or hair. If you like the beautiful texture of whipped shea butter, then be prepared to fall head over heels in love with this shea butter cream recipe! It’s got the right amount of oils to get it to be have a really smooth & soft texture. Add in a delicious scent like vanilla oil and it’s too die for! I can sing my praises for this amazing crème for ages so let’s just get on to the recipe straight away!
Homemade Easy & Silky Shea Butter Cream Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 oz (1 cup) unrefined shea butter (get it here)
- 1 tbsp coconut oil (get it here)
- 1 tsp olive oil (get it here)
- ½ tsp castor oil (get it here)
- 1 tbsp jojoba oil (get it here)
- ½ tsp vitamin E or 1 capsule (get it here)
Method
- Gently melt the shea butter and coconut oil in a double boiler or using a pot over a pot (your makeshift double boiler). On the lower pot, add ½ cup of water and the top pot, add the shea butter and coconut oil. Heat the pot over a medium low flame and keep stirring the ingredients to help them melt faster.
- Once melted, leave it to cool down to room temperature or place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes for it to solidify a bit for easy whipping (you can’t easily whip oils, especially hot oils using a hand mixer).
- When the shea coconut mixture has solidified for 15 minutes or at room temperature, get your hand mixer and start whipping it for a minute. Then add the rest of the ingredients and whip again until everything is well-incorporated and looks like a silky cream – something similar to the picture above.
- Your shea butter cream recipe has come to fruition! All you have to do now is add any fragrance such as essential oils or vanilla extract, if you want any and then store it in a clean container.
- To transfer the shea butter cream, simply scoop it using a spoon into a jar. Or, place it in a ziplock bag then snip off the edge of the bag and squeeze the cream into your container. I like method one better because it takes less time plus there’s no wastage. Method two is just for easy transferring, avoiding mess and making your cream look beautifully placed in the container.
Substitutions for the Oils in this Shea Butter Cream Recipe
I suggest not replacing the coconut & castor oils with any other oils because these two are crucial for the cream to turn out moisturizing and nourishing for the skin & hair, and since they are both penetrative, it won’t feel like the shea butter cream is just ‘sitting’ on your skin or hair. But for the jojoba and olive oils, you can substitute them with the following oils:
Substitution for Jojoba Oil
→ Sweet Almond Oil – Almond oil has a light consistency that’s perfect for skin that’s prone to breakouts and oily hair. It’s also an amazing hair oil for sealing split ends and reviving lack-luster hair!
→ Apricot Kernel Oil – Like it’s name suggests, apricot kernel oil is derived from apricot kernels. It also has a light consistency that easily glides onto the skin, keeping it soft and supple. It also promotes soft and moisturized hair.
→ Grapeseed Oil – Grapeseed oil also has a thin texture and it has no overpowering scent so it’s good for those who want to add a fragrance to their shea butter cream recipe. It also has good skin and hair hydrating properties and it’s a better choice for people with oily acne-prone skin.
Substitution for Olive Oil
→ Avocado Oil – Extracted directly from the fleshy fruit itself, avocado oil has long been used as a moisturizer for skin and hair. It has a thick texture which is great for lubricating dry flaky skin as well as thick, curly, coily and kinky hair which needs some good moisturization. Even though it’s thick, it still sinks in deep into the skin and hair strands, nourishing them from within.
→ Wheat Germ Oil – Extremely rich in vitamin E, wheat germ oil is very nourishing and healing for heat damaged hair and severe dry skin. Its emollient qualities soften rough and dehydrated skin and hair, making them both healthy and full of life again.
→ Sesame Oil – Although this one does have a strong smell (one that I don’t mind), it can work as an excellent substitution because of its heavy consistency. It also has a very high vitamin E content, making it very beneficial for hair that takes a beating during winter and skin that looks dull and old.
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