Shea butter face creams are a major step up from water-based moisturizers. This moisturizer from the best-selling book Plant-Powered Beauty works well year-round. I use it at night because my skin is always dry, but it's especially helpful during those cold and dry months when you need a deeply hydrating moisturizer. Your parched skin will gladly soak up all of the reparative oils.
Why We Love Shea Butter
When you start making homemade beauty recipes, you'll discover a whole host of moisturizing butters that are amazing for your skin. You can whip up body wash, lip balm, and lotion with cocoa butter, kokum butter, and my favorite, shea butter.
Unlike oils, these butters are solid at room temperature but easily melt with a little heat and absorb into the skin. It's kind of an amazing discovery after years of thin, watery lotions.
A few reasons why soothing shea butter often gets a starring role in beauty recipes:
—Is rich in vitamins A, D, and E, and moisturizing fatty acids
—Has potent antioxidant effects, which help protect the skin from sun damage [source]
—Stimulates the production of collagen, to ward off sagging, wrinkles, and fine lines
—Curbs inflammation [source] and soothes inflammatory skin conditions [source]
Don't be scared by shea butter's consistency. Yes, it's thick! But it melts into a creamy, oil-like cream that soaks into the skin without clogging pores or causing irritation. And although this lotion is on the oily side, I find that it sinks in quickly and locks in moisture for hours and hours.
Trust me, if my acne-prone skin loves it, yours probably will, too!
Essential Oil Synergy
This recipe includes an essential oil blend that specifically targets aging. Known as a synergy, it's a master essential oil blend created by aromatherapy pros Amy Galper and Christina Daigneault.
The term synergy refers to one of the most fascinating concepts within aromatherapy: the idea that certain oils interact and work together to create something greater than the sum of their parts. In a nutshell, combining oils makes the blend more potent than each oil would on its own.
In this case, oils such as frankincense, carrot seed, ylang ylang, and Roman chamomile create an antiaging blend that lessens the appearance of fine lines and improves the overall look and feel of skin.
It's pretty amazing!
But you're not limited to just these essential oils for your shea butter face moisturizer. If you don't have every oil required for this synergistic blend, then leave them out. Or substitute with some of the oils you do have to make your own skin-soothing blend.
DIY Shea Butter Face Moisturizer
Their book combines do-it-yourself natural beauty recipes with specifically targeted essential oil blends for cleansers, masks, scrubs, and face oils. I took an essential oil class with Amy, and she has a crazy amount of essential oil knowledge.
If you want to learn the ins and outs of adding essential oils to your face and body care, this book is the perfect place to start.
Shea Butter FAQ
Yes, everything in this recipe is safe for hair. I recommend using it sparingly, or it might make your hair feel greasy. But for the most part, it will nourish hair and make it feel healthy and moisturized.
Apply a little bit at night, starting at the ends and working your way up to the roots. Then, tie your hair in a bun and wash it off in the morning.
The recipe doesn't call for one. But mixing the synergy blend with a bit of carrier oil prior to blending with the shea butter couldn't hurt. Feel free to make your own adjustments to this recipe until you've got something you love.
While this blend won't go bad, per se, the oils will break down over time, and you might have problems with it going rancid. A preservative won't really help with that, but I do recommend storing it in the refrigerator to make it last longer.
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Shea Butter Face Moisturizer and Antiaging Essential Oil Synergy
Equipment
- glass or stainless steel bowl
- wooden stick or metal spoon
- small stainless steel whisk
- 2-ounce glass jar with a tight-fitting lid
Materials
Antiaging Essential Oil Synergy Ingredients
- 20 drops frankincense essential oil
- 15 drops carrot seed essential oil
- 20 drops ylang ylang essential oil
- 5 drops Roman chamomile essential oil
- 25 drops petitgrain essential oil
Shea Butter Face Cream Ingredients
- 2 heaping tablespoons shea butter
- 1 teaspoon apricot kernel oil
- 1 teaspoon jojoba oil
- 1 teaspoon argan oil
- 6 drops Antiaging Essential Oil Synergy
Instructions
Antiaging Essential Oil Synergy Instructions
- Combine the oils in a 5 mL bottle with an orifice reducer (if it takes you a while to use up your essential oil blends, then go ahead and store it in a dark, amber-colored bottle).
Shea Butter Face Cream Instructions
- In a glass or stainless steel bowl, mash the shea butter using the back of a spoon or a wooden stick until there are no lumps visible, and it is entirely smoothed out.
- Begin whisking the shea butter until it starts getting creamier.
- Slowly drizzle in the carrier oils as you continue to whisk the creamed shea butter until a silky, smooth consistency emerges.
- Add the synergy mixture right into the cream and stir together.
- Transfer the mixture to the glass jar, cap it, and store it away from heat. You can use the face cream for 1–2 months.
Notes
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Lin TK, et al. Anti-inflammatory and skin barrier repair effects of topical application of some plant oils. Int J Mol Sci. 2017.
Akihisa T, et al. Anti-inflammatory and chemopreventive effects of triterpene cinnamates and acetates from shea fat. J Oleo Sci. 2010.
More Moisturizing Recipes
Is your skin still not satisfied? You might want to try some of our other moisturizers and serums:
This post was medically reviewed by Dr. Jennifer Haley, a board-certified dermatologist with extensive experience in medical, cosmetic, and surgical dermatology. Learn more about Hello Glow’s medical reviewers here. As always, this is not personal medical advice, and we recommend that you talk with your doctor.
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