Category: Home remedies

All over the cosmetic world praises for shea butter are sung because of its fascinating moisturizing and healing ability. Moisturizing elements in shea butter which are identical to elements in sebum penetrates into skin and hydrates it from the inside. Along with face shea butter lotion can topically applicable on other parts of the body.

While vitamin A, E enhances fast healing, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in shea butter aids to treat acne, eczema, psoriasis, stretch marks and other skin diseases. It is non-comedogenic; mean it doesn’t block pores, thus making it favorable for oily skin. Beauty experts suggest raw or unrefined shea butter, as refined shea butter has less healing properties.

Also read: Shea butter for Stretch marks

Shea butter is ivory colored fat derived from nuts of karité tree. Unrefined form is a bit strong and may hard to apply it over skin. For easy use, it’s recommended to add essential oil or base oil and whip. There are numerous shea butter lotion recipes available over web and you can make your own recipe by blending your favorite oils.

How to Make Shea Butter Lotion

To make shea butter body lotion at home, you need shea butter, essential oil and an electric whipper. (Here we’re sharing most simple recipe keeping all our users.)

Things you’ll need

• Raw shea butter – 1 lb or 0.45 kg
• Essential oil (grape seed oil or virgin coconut oil) – 3 ounce (or 88.7 ml)
• Vitamin E oil – 1 ounce (or 29.5 ml)
• Fragrance oil and preservatives (optional)

Procedure to make shea butter lotion at home

• Put a bowl on heat (microwave) and pour all ingredients, includes essential oil or base oil (vitamin E oil) and shea butter.
• Don’t make ingredients heat, we just want to melt slightly for easy blending.
• Remove from heat and whip with electric whipper for about 1 minute.
• Now add distilled water to it make lotion. Again whip it for 3 minutes. Then let it cool.
• You’ll get a thick cream, add fragrance or preservatives (not recommended) optionally.
• Now it’s ready, before applying it over prewashed face or skin, whip it for easy application.

Note: Overheating ingredients makes them lose healing properties

Don’t miss : DIY Guide to make Shea Butter Face Mask

How to Make Shea Butter Soap

Because it rejuvenates skin, most people prefer shea butter soap; with this you can make your skin supple and inflammation free. It’s simple to make your own shea butter soap at home.

Things you’ll need

• Castile soap – 1
• Raw shea butter – 2 tbsp
• Almond oil – 1 tbsp
• Water and double boiler

Procedure

• Fill half of the double boiler with tap water and grate your castile soap in inner double boiler.
• Heat to melt the soap completely; now add almond oil and raw shea butter. Stir thoroughly.
• Now pour the mixture in small plastic box to dry for several hours.
• Obtained shea butter soap should be placed on dry rack for 3 weeks, turn regularly to avoid warping.
• Wrap it in a plastic cover to preserve it for future use.

Share your views about this shea butter lotion and soap recipes in comments.

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Shea butter is extracted from seeds of shea tree, native to Africa. It has shown significance moisturizing and healing properties when applied topically. Vitamin A and E in shea butter enhances cell growth, while its assorted antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties soothes skin.

American Shea Butter Institute states that moisturizing elements in shea butter and in sebum are identical. Thus this proves to be an emollient. And it also reveals that shea butter is non-comedogenic, mean it doesn’t clog pores.

So, shea butter cream is favorable to both dry and oily skin. Though you can get shea butter from local store, it’s simple to make whipped shea butter cream at home.

How to Make Whipped Shea Butter

Do you want to reap nutritional benefits of shea butter for your skin? Then try raw shea butter instead of refined chemical ingredient shea butter. As raw or unrefined shea butter is strong and sometimes hard to topically apply on skin, it’s recommended to whip it, by adding some essential oils. Obtained whipped shea butter will be smooth compared to previous one and yet packed with all nutrients.

Making whipped shea butter is a bit demanding so it takes trial & error methods to obtained well whipped butter, which you can directly apply on skin as a moisturizer. There are many different recipes of making whipped shea butter available online; few suggest melting shea butter and other prefer without melting. Though both recipes works, sometimes melting shea butter creates problems by turning to grainy. So we would like to follow recipes which don’t include melting of shea butter.

Things you’ll need

• Raw shea butter – 4 ounce
• Virgin olive oil (or any base oil) – 2 tbsp
• Lavender oil (or any essential oil) – 10-20 drops
• 2 Bowls and 1 electric whisker.

Procedure to make whipped shea butter

• Get raw or unrefined shea butter from local store and keep it in a room temperature. Put it in a bowl and mash using fork or spoon.
• Add virgin olive oil and mash for few more minutes.
• Now, using electric whisker whip shea butter mixture at high speed for about 5-8 minutes.
• Optionally add lavender oil to whipped cream. Transfer the whipped shea butter cream into a jar and place it in dry cool place.

That’s it! You’ve made raw whipped shea butter cream at home. You can topically apply on prewashed face.

Note: If you’ve acne prone skin or acne blemishes Shea butter cream can treat, click here to find out.

How to Make Shea Butter Cream

Even without whipping shea butter you can use it directly. But as mentioned earlier, unrefined shea butter may feel hard to apply over skin and it has strong odor. To easy topical application, beauty experts make shea butter cream. You make think why not bring a new shea butter cream form local store, yes you can but they lack healing properties as most of them are subjected to refining process.

What’s the secret ingredient to reap the benefits of shea butter?

Add few drops of essential oil and base oil to shea butter. Believe us! That’s it.

Remember to prefer only raw ingredients to garner nutritional benefits. As this homemade shea butter cream doesn’t have preservatives they may not last for longer time, so make only in small quantities.

Things you’ll need

• Raw shea butter – 1 tbsp
• Jojoba oil – 1 tbsp (or essential oil)
• Jasmine oil – 1 tbsp (or base oil)

Related post: How to make jojoba oil

Procedure to make shea butter cream at home

• Initially start with small quantities so that you may not go wrong. Place double boiler on heat. Fill half of bottom layer of boiler with water and place shea butter in top boiler.
• We’re melting shea butter so that it will be easy for us to blend essential oils. But note, not to heat for longer time as it loses healing properties.
• After removing boiler from heat, mix jojoba oil and jasmine oil to shea butter solution and using whisk whip the solution.
• Settle it to cool down and deport the cream into another jar to preserve.

Don’t miss: shea butter face mask recipe

You can apply shea butter whipped cream over prewashed face in circular motion.

Tips on Storing Shea Butter

As we didn’t add preservatives shea butter cream won’t last longer. Anyhow you can add preservatives if needed. Store in cool dry place. No need to refrigerate, room temperature is favorable. Whenever you use shea butter remember to wash your hands.

If you get unpleasant rancid odor then its a sign that your shea butter cream is rotten, throw it away.

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Do you remember your grandmother threatening you to give castor oil if you don’t eat food? Most of us have experienced this thick and odor oil. But unfortunately we limited its use as laxatives.

From centuries castor oil has been used to treat major health issues. But because of its odor (I guess) it didn’t receive much press attention.

Before delving into benefits of castor oil for skin let’s have a brief intro about castor oil.

Castor oil is extracted from seeds of castor oil plant (Ricinus communis). It is colorless to very pale yellow liquid with unpleasant smell. It’s a vegetable oil and native to Africa and India. Cosmetic industries as well as other industries use castor oil as main ingredient.

10 Amazing Benefits of Castor Oil for Skin

Ricinoleic acid is the main protein present in castor oil, which has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. To steal the benefits of castor oil opt for organic castor oil.

1. Castor Oil Remedy for Dry Skin

Our largest organ skin has capability to release natural moisture which refrains skin from drying out, but at times skin fails to do so. Applying external moisturizer helps skin a lot.

Mix equal quantities of castor oil and coconut oil in a bowl and apply it on your dry skin. Rinse it off after 30 minutes. Repeat the process.

Face Mask Remedy:

Mix 1tbsp of castor oil with egg yolk thoroughly, and then apply it on your face in circular motion. After leaving it for 20 minutes rinse it off. Apply perfumed moisturizer after this.

2. Castor Oil for Sunburn

This remedy is only for minor burns, major burns need doctor’s attention.

Anti-inflammatory properties present in castor oil helps soothe sunburns. Apply castor oil mixed with coconut oil in equal quantities on affected area and soon it will relieve pain.

3. Itchy Skin Remedy

Skin protects our body and natural moisture present on skin protects it from harmful bacteria. Because of dehydration your skin fails to release natural moisture, this triggers itching and bacteria starts invading resulting in chronic skin diseases.

Apply castor oil on dry itchy skin; soon you’ll see the result. You can also mix coconut oil with castor oil.

4. Castor Oil for Wrinkles and Fine Lines

Main protein which is responsible for skin’s elasticity is collagen. Decrease in collagen leads to wrinkles and frown lines. Castor oil when applied on skin gets absorbed and it stimulates production of collagen. It also hydrates skin from the outside. Thus makes your skin softer and smoother.

You just need to apply castor oil on wrinkles and fine lines for 15-20 minutes and then rinse it off. Repeat the process for best results.

Also read: How to get rid of forehead wrinkles

5. Castor Oil to Prevent Stretch Marks

Castor oil gets absorbed into skin fading stretch marks. For pregnant women castor oil is must recommended oil. Mix castor oil with coconut oil to apply on stretch marks.

6. Castor Oil for Acne

Ricinoleic acid present in castor oil makes it a super remedy for treating acne blemishes. Skin when secrets excess oil gets accumulated over skin pores with dead skin cells forming pimples/blemishes. Anti-inflammatory properties in castor oil soothe these blemishes and controls excess oil production.

Anyway, for severe acne we recommend consulting doctor.

Other treatments for Acne

• Doxycycline for Acne
• Shea Butter For Acne
• 10 ways to treat acne fast
• Hydrogen peroxide for acne

7. Castor Oil Fades Scars

Acids present in castor oil penetrate into tissues and stimulates its growth. Thus fades scars. Regular application is important.

Related post: 10 Home Remedies for Acne Scars

8. Removes Warts and Skin Tags

Warts are caused due to virus infection on outer layer of the skin. Whereas tags are formed when bunch of collagen and tissues gets trapped inside skin it forms skin tags.

Regular topical application of castor oil can remove warts and tags.

9. Castor Oil Works as a Great Moisturizer

If you’re looking for inexpensive and quick moisturizer then opt for castor oil. Fatty acids present in castor oil gets absorbed by skin easily, hydrating dry and itchy skin patches.

Few drops of castor oil are enough to bring your skin back to life.

10. Antimicrobial Properties

Acids present in castor oil has antimicrobial properties that helps to heal open wounds, ring worms, minor cuts and other fungal infections.

Few drops of topical application can do this work for you.

Did we forget to disclose any top benefits of castor oil for skin? Do share in comments.

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As you age your skin starts losing its elasticity, which develops wrinkles and flaws on the skin. Yes you can’t stop aging, but you can rejuvenate your skin to get back youthful skin.

Because of pollution and other chemical products our skin gets dry and dead cells gets accumulated on skin pores making it difficult for skin to breathe and secrete sebum which helps to fight bacteria. Thus resulting in dry itchy skin and with the absence of moisture (sebum) skin quickly loses its elasticity and wrinkles start appearing.

Below are few natural remedies with which you can bring back your skin to life.

Step – 1 Rejuvenate skin using cleanser

With all the dirt and dead cells accumulated over skin, first step involves clearing them up. This will help skin to secrete natural moisture. You can get cleanser from local store.

Or you can use Aloe Vera gel as cleanser, the most inexpensive yet effective remedy. Other natural cleansers include baking soda, jojoba oil, honey, lemon, Orange and raw milk.

Step – 2 Exfoliate your skin

Dead skin cells present on the body will be washed away by exfoliating and this process helps for good blood circulation. Baking soda, sugar, honey and oatmeal can be used as exfoliator.

Else you can get best exfoliate cream from local store.

Related post: Best natural exfoliants and DIY facial scrub recipes

Step – 3 Apply moisturizer

Main reason for all skin diseases is lack of moisture, skin when looses moisture bacteria acts skin, which triggers itching and frown lines. Though skin has its own natural moisturizer at times it fails to secrete, applying external moisturizer helps skin regain its youthfulness.

Shea butter, honey, aloe Vera gel and essential oils can be used as moisturizer.

Related post: Natural moisturizers for skin

Step – 4 Drink more water

Now it’s time to hydrate your skin form the insider. Drink at least 8 glasses of water. Water plays vital role in maintaining skin’s elasticity and suppleness.

Step – 5 Avoid stress

Not just your work your skin also gets affected by stress. Stress makes your skin dull, dry, prematurely aged skin, wrinkles appear and compromises immune function. Long time effects of stress may lead to chronic skin diseases like hives, psoriasis, eczema or rosacea.

You can meditate, go out for a long walk or try any other way which makes you feel peace.

Few more tips

• Check what you’re eating; prefer vitamins and proteins contained diet.
• If needed take vitamin supplements.
• Regular exercise helps your body and skin to function great.
• Avoid intoxicants.
• Avoid products with chemical ingredients.
• Pamper your skin while going out; take moisturizer in winter and sunscreen cream.