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Making homemade body butter is getting pretty popular these days, so I decided it was about time that I try making one of my own.

I love making homemade beauty products like this because I can control exactly what goes in them and customize them the way I want to. I also like the fact that the ingredients are so simple and that I can have a natural moisturizer with just two or three ingredients instead of the 15-20 that you usually see in store bought moisturizers. 

About the Ingredients

Coconut oil is an ingredient that shows up all of the time in DIY beauty products because it’s a very effective moisturizer and it also has anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties.

Tamanu oil is a lesser-known tropical oil that is great for helping to repair damaged skin and for giving the skin a more even tone and texture. Since it is more expensive than coconut oil and since it doesn’t absorb as well by itself, it’s a great oil to mix with the coconut oil. That way, you can make the pricier tamanu oil last longer and you can have a moisturizer that absorbs into your skin more quickly while still having the benefits of both oils.

Essential oils are a great way to customize your body butter recipe to make it your favorite natural scent and to make it smell like a fancy store bought body butter but without the artificial chemical fragrances. You can also choose essential oils with skin-soothing properties such as lavender or frankincense. (Note: Just like with real food, quality counts when it comes to essential oils too so it’s good to make sure your essential oils are pure and good quality.)

Why It’s Worth the Time to Make a Whipped Body Butter

For awhile, I tried using just plain coconut oil as a moisturizer. It worked great for a while, but then the cold weather came and I ended up with a rock-solid jar of coconut oil that was anything but spreadable.

I was getting really tired of trying to dig the rock-solid oil out with a spoon, so after finding this whipped coconut oil body butter recipe by The Nourished Life, I immediately took out my mixer and made a batch. Then when that was all gone, I decided to try making a version that used some of my tamanu oil too and added in some bergamot essential oil.

I ended up with a really smooth, citrus-scented body butter that stays soft and spreadable even on days like today when freezing cold outside.

Whipped Coconut and Tamanu Oil Body Butter Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 cup coconut oil*
• 1 1/2 tsp tamanu oil
• (Optional): A couple drops of your favorite essential oils for scent, like bergamot, lavender, etc. 

* The coconut oil I linked to above is the one that I like the best because it has a neutral smell and flavor, so it’s more multi-purpose, and I can use it for times when I don’t want something to taste or smell like coconut. If you want a coconut smell to your body butter, though, an unrefined virgin coconut oil would be a better choice.

Directions:

1. Combine the coconut oil, tamanu oil, and essential oils in a mixer. (I’ve only tried this recipe using a stand mixer, but a hand-held mixer probably would work also.)
2. Mix for about 5 minutes or until the oils are light and fluffy. I used a low speed, but the mixer I was using was very old, so for a newer mixer the settings might be different.
3. Store the finished body butter in a glass jar. I like using these little mini Mason jars. For most of the year, you can just leave this at room temperature, but for the summer months or if you live in a very warm climate, you might want to keep it in the fridge so the coconut oil doesn’t melt in the heat.

Important Note: If you decide to use bergamot essential oil or any of the other citrus oils like lemon or orange, you’ll need to make sure you avoid direct sun exposure for at least 12 hours afterward because these oils can make your skin more sensitive to the sun and more likely to burn. If you’re making this during the winter when it’s too cold to be out in the sun anyways, you probably won’t even have to worry about it, but if it’s summer and you use citrus essential oils, you wouldn’t want to use this right before going to the beach or spending the day outside.

For other homemade body butter and lotion variations, check out these recipes too:

Key Lime Whipped Coconut Oil Body Butter by The Nourished Life

6 Easy Homemade Body Butter Recipes by Homemade Mommy

Shea and Coconut Homemade Body Butter by Life from the Ground Up

Homemade Lotion with Shea Butter and Lavender by Oh Lardy

50 DIY Lotion Recipes from The Crunchy Moose

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The information in this post is not to be taken as medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease.