First body butter Need Help!

[clairesulk]

Ok So ive Never made a body butter before,

And i have no idea how much of what to put in. Ive looked heaps online, but theres not many sites from australia that help at all.

Anyway, this is the stuff i want to have in it.
jojoba oil
shea butter
sweet almond oil
Hydrolyzed Silk (if i can find it)
Aloe Vera

How exactly do people work out how much of what to put into there body butter?

and what is a good preservative i can use? one that is safe and stuff.

Any help would be Great!

 

[soapbuddy]

The safest body butter is just butter and oils. As soon as you add any water soluble ingredients like Hydrolyzed Silk or Aloe Vera, you will have problems, as water and oils don't mix. You would also need a preservative.
Try 70% butter to 30% liquid oils.

 

[Hazel]

It's really personal preference on the percentages you would use for your body butter. I've read where some people use 60% butter to 40% liquid oils. I've used 75% butter to 25% oil which makes for a heavier, stiffer body butter (but it was still nice).

I don't think the aloe vera gel is going to mix in with the butters. I don't think it will stay together without an emulsifier since aloe is basically water. Plus you'll need a preservative.

You could try 60% shea, 20% jojoba and 20% sweet almond. There's been discussions about body butters. Try searching or perhaps there's a recipe under the Recipes and Tutorials section.

I just saw soapbuddy already answered. I was too slow. 70% to 30% sounds good.

 

[clairesulk]

so if i dont put water stuff in it, how long will it last for?

 

[carebear]

SORRT - mis read. It's if you use water, then without a preservative, I'd say 3 days max.

without, I'd say 6-12 months if all things are good.

 

[soapbuddy]

so if i dont put water stuff in it, how long will it last for?

Without water, it was last as long as the shortest expiration date for the oils (or butters).
Jojoba oil is technically a wax. It has a very long shelf life.
Shea butter is good for one year.
Sweet almond oil has a shelf life of 6 months to one year.
So if you use these ingredients without any water, use the shortest shelf life, which is 6 months.
The drawback to the shelf life is there is no way to know how long the oils sat on the vendor's shelf. So the actual shelf life might be shorter.

 

[clairesulk]

so if i was to make one using those 3 things, what would be a good preservative to use? if i was to use one.

Im only wondering cos i have a few people who want me to make it for them, an i dont want to make it if its only going to last a few days or weeks.

 

[soapbuddy]

so if i was to make one using those 3 things, what would be a good preservative to use? if i was to use one.

Im only wondering cos i have a few people who want me to make it for them, an i dont want to make it if its only going to last a few days or weeks.

If you are only using oils/butters, then you don't need a preservative. The preservative would not give you a longer shelf life.

 

[Hazel]

You can also add in Vitamin E which will help prevent rancidity of the oils and butters. Liquipar might be a good preservative to use since it will be all oils. This is just my opinion but once you give it away you don't know how people will use it. It's possible someone might use wet hands to scoop out some butter. There's also a possibility of water getting splashed into the jar. Better safe than sorry.

 

[carebear]

again, my bad - I mis read. If you use water ou need a preservative. without you water are good for 6 months to a year. I'd say 6 months to be safe.


You are not talking selling, right? Just gifting?

 

[clairesulk]

Nope, just for friends and family.