Suter F, et al. (2016). Heptapeptide-loadedsolid lipid nanoparticles for cosmetic anti-aging applications [Abstract]. DOI: Sterilize all your equipment with boiling water or run them through the dishwasher. You need to sterilize the lotion container you’ll be using too.

Shea butter is a fat that is taken from the nut of the shea (karite) tree. The seed is located in the east and west Africa. The butter is produced by taking the fatty kernels and squeezing them into a powder prior to massaging water. Once chilled, it hardens and turns to a solid. Shea butter is full of fatty acids, vitamins, and antioxidants, making it great for soothing and hydration skin. When it comes to keeping your skin moisturized and soft, there are few more reliable ingredients than shea butter. Trendy ingredients may come and go, but shea butter has remained a skin care mainstay over the years for a reason. But because it is such a popular ingredient, it can be hard to figure out the best shea butter lotion to use to really benefit from its nourishing abilities. That said, whether you're looking for a face cream or foot lotion, you can't go wrong with any of the five top-notch moisturizers on this list that use shea butter as their star ingredient. You can use shea butter throughout the year. In the summer months, use shea butter to restore hydration and calm your skin after a hot day in the sun. During winters, your skin tends to be dry and flakey. Again, shea butter works by restoring hydration and soothes irritated skin. 2. To Soothe Chapped Lips Eczema is a common skin condition that causes itchy, red rashes. It also makes you prone to skin infections. When you have eczema, part of the problem is that you don’t have enough fatty acids in your skin. Your skin barrier isn’t as effective at warding off irritants and germs.But manufacturers combine it with other ingredients to reach levels of SPF 15 or higher. Plus, you get all the soothing, moisturizing and anti-aging benefits of shea butter. 6. Doesn’t cause allergic reactions Beeswax helps seal everything in. Just like it’s a great coating for making DIYcling wrap, it’s great for sealing in your skin to prevent evaporation of moisture. By doing so, the deeper layers of your skin can replenish their moisturemore easily. Pumpable lotion prevents contamination since you don't dip your fingers in the lotion. Water is added to make lotion pumpable. Which means more preservatives to keep it fresh. Plus you’re paying for a watered down product. Good thing its easy to use since you'll have to apply it over and over again to get the desired moisturizing effect.

Add preservatives and essential oils, if using, and allow the food processor to run for another minute or so. I use a different recipe to make a body butter. With that recipe, while it’s liquid and before it goes in the fridge, I shake it vigorously for about a minute. I recommend using distilled water for the water portion. Again, this is just so that everything is as pure as possible, with nothing unwanted getting into the finished lotion. Both shea and cocoa butter are moisturizers — emollients that keep water from evaporating from your skin. But shea butter has more fatty acids, vitamin E and, unlike cocoa butter, contains vitamin A.

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For example, there’s less or no cinnamic acid, an anti-inflammatory substance, in processed shea butter. Raw shea butter is usually yellow or beige, while refined shea butter is white. Shea butter versus cocoa butter I loved all of my homemade lotions as they left my skin so soft and moisturized, but they were a bit oily. Adding in the arrowroot powder will help with that! Before whipping the lotion to make it light and fluffy, try adding a small amount of arrowroot powder to make the perfect homemade lotion. The first time I put the melted mixture in the freezer to cool and used a fork to whip it. It never became white (like in your video) but seemed soft enough. Within a few hours, it was hard again and impossible to use. Do note that unrefined shea butteris a bit grainy, but it becomes smooth soon as it’s applied to the skin. Shea butter benefits the skin in several ways. Here’s how it boosts skin health: 1. Relieves dry skin