Many natural moisturizers have a really greasy feeling, which I know sucks. I make body butters with shea and it’s just the nature of the beast, unfortunately. But which butters should you look out for? Here’s a break down:

Shea Butter - pretty versatile and used in most moisturizing concoctions. Known for it’s ability to give a great deep moisture into the skin. Look for UNREFINED shea rather than refined because it can lose its moisturizing potential. If you’re looking at raw shea then look for more yellow than white.

Cocoa Butter - everyone knows cocoa butter! Thought to reduce skin dryness and improve elasticity. This is a relatively hard butter. There are natural versions and deodorized versions. Natural will have a more chocolatey smell and is better for moisturizing. Deodorized is good for when you dont want to smell like chocolate.

Mango Butter - I haven’t used mango butter before so I’ll have to take the word of my supplier on this: Exhibits excellent moisturizing for lotions and good lubricity on skin. Readily at skin temperatures making it ideal for sticks and balms. Counters the drying effects of bar soaps and cleansers.

Shealoe butter - this is a combination of shea butter and aloe vera. It’s gotten incredible reviews and is considered less greasy than other butters. It does usually come with refined shea butter though, so be aware.

Coffee Butter - this is actually an extract butter which means its a hybrid of coffee bean oil and vegetable oil. I haven’t had the chance to use this yet but from what I know about coffee I can say that it could be interesting. Coffee is known to stimulate and reduce cellulite (so look for coffee scrubs!) and I’d be interested to see how it works in a butter.

So theres a quick rundown. Any other butters you want to know about? Post a comment!

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