How Do You Use Cocoa Butter? 5 Ways to Use Cocoa Butter On Your Skin
My first experience with cocoa butter was when I was about five years old. My Grandmother had a bottle of Palmer's Cocoa Butter lotion and gave me a small dab to rub into my hands.
The scent was intoxicating to me--chocolatey without being cloyingly sweet.
I've graduated from store-bought cocoa butter creams, that are typically short on cocoa butter, to the real stuff. And let me tell you, the real stuff is heavenly.
I want you to love it too! Are you ready to learn how to use cocoa butter to create healthier skin?
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What Is Cocoa Butter?
Cocoa butter is the rich butter harvested from the seed of the cacao tree. Pure, unrefined cocoa butter is creamy beige in color.While those cocoa butter lotions may include real cocoa butter, they aren't 100% cocoa butter.
Pure unrefined cocoa butter is easy to find at most health food stores. It's inexpensive too -- less than two dollars for a one ounce stick. Of course, you can get larger quantities of cocoa butter at online suppliers.
Cocoa butter is very hard and solid at room temperature. It's melting point is a lovely 98 degrees, body temperature. So, you can take a solid bit of pure cocoa butter, rub it onto your skin and it will melt into a luxurious oil.
Cocoa butter is a great moisturizer. It helps soften and smooth the skin.
It's also a skin protectant and works wonders on chapped skin and lips.
I've found that when I use cocoa butter regularly, my skin not only feels better but looks super healthy too.
Beyond all that, it smells just like chocolate. Chocolate that you can rub all over your skin! What's not to love about that?
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5 Easy Ways to Use Cocoa Butter On Your Skin
1. Simple Body Butter
Pure cocoa butter has a melting point of 98 degrees (body temperature!) This makes it super easy to use as is: rub pure cocoa butter over your skin until it melts, then massage the luxurious oil into your skin.2. All-Natural Lip Balm
You can use that same stick as a lip balm too. Cocoa butter on the lips is to die for! It feels so creamy smooth. And, yes, it does taste like chocolate.
Cocoa butter is completely edible, and is used in many everyday foods (like chocolate). So it's super safe for your lips.
Cocoa butter is an amazing ingredient in DIY lip balm recipes, like this Peppermint Cocoa lip balm recipe (just three simple ingredients, my friend!)
3. Emollient Cuticle Cream
Between the garden, stacking hay, brushing horses, and general country life, my hands take a beating. But after just a few days of rubbing cocoa butter into my ragged cuticles they look good as new.
Rub a small bit of cocoa butter into your nails and cuticles every night before bed, and anytime throughout the day you need a little extra.
4. Solid Perfume Bar Base
Cocoa butter makes a super decadent base for a 100% natural perfume bar.
Heat 1/4 ounce cocoa butter until just barely melted (you don't want it too hot). Add 10 drops essential oils of your choice.
Remember, the chocolate scent of the cocoa butter will come through too. Some delicious choices are peppermint essential oil (for chocolate mint perfume) or sweet orange essential oil (for chocolate orange perfume).
But don't be afraid to experiment with some outside the box scents. I've used sage, patchouli, and lavender and they all smelled fabulous.
Once you've added the essential oil, pour the mixture into a lip balm tube. Let set until solid. To use, rub the stick over your neck, behind the ears, or on the wrists for an subtle, all-natural scent.
5. Decadent Bath Melt Base
What is a bath melt, you ask? It's basically solid bath oil, and they're so easy to make.Gently heat 4 ounces cocoa butter in a small water bath. Mix in 50 drops, or about 1/2 teaspoon, essential oils of your choice. You can mix-and-match. For this application I like chamomile, clary sage, lavender, geranium, or a mix of all of these.
Pour the cocoa butter/EO mix into wells of a silicon mini ice cube tray. Let set 24 hours to solidify. Pop out of the ice cube tray and store bath melts in a jar with a lid.
To use, drop 1 bath melt into the tub, let it melt into the bathwater, and soak for at least 20 minutes. Your skin will be so smooth.
A Few Must-Knows Before You Use Cocoa Butter
There are countless other ways to use cocoa butter in your skin scare routine, but these five will get you started if you've never had the opportunity to use pure cocoa butter before.I don't recommend using cocoa butter on the face. It's slightly comedogenic (which means it can clog your pores).
Also, there's one glaring omission here -- nothing about stretch marks! That's because cocoa butter won't do anything for existing stretch marks (I'm sorry, I hate being the bearer of bad news.)
And the jury is still out on whether cocoa butter can prevent stretch marks. So, if you're pregnant I'd say why not? Even if it doesn't prevent them, cocoa butter can help prevent the itchy feeling (caused by the skin stretching) by keeping it moisturized and lubricated.
More Simple Ways to Create Healthier Skin, Naturally:
- Mochaccino Cocoa Butter DIY Body Scrub
- 10 Ways to Use Olive Oil on Your Skin
- The Skin Care Benefits of Goat's Milk
- The Secret to Pro-Quality Oatmeal Masks and Soap
Enroll in the FREE e-course and learn how to make your own 100% natural skin care from scratch.
