Im proud to work with many types of specialty butters – but i have two favorites: Kokum and Mango butter.
Now, that’s not to say i don’t use other types of butters on occasion. There are times when avocado butter, cocoa butter or shea butter might be a better fit for the soap or the recipe we’re working with that day.
But, my most favorite butter to make lotions, body butters, balms and artisan soaps from is Kokum Butter. Here’s why:
Kokum butter benefits.
Some of the traditionally known benefits of Kokum butter are as follows:
- Helps prevents drying of the skin
- Helps heal ulcers, heal fissures of the lips, hands and soles of feet
- Helps regenerates skin cells & reduces degeneration of skin cells
- Non-pore clogging (non-comodegenic)
- Contains 80% stearic-oleic-stearic triglycerides
- Contains antioxidant properties
- Helps stabilize emulsions
- High oxidative stability
- Softens the skin and restores skin flexibility
Kokum butter needs no introduction when it comes to its immense uses in beauty and skin care. It is widely used in creams, lotions, soaps and body butters and other toiletries. Seeing its numerous beneficial properties, I tried making a DIY body butter using just two ingredients – coconut oil and kokum butter. This DIY is the best Kokum body butter ever. Whats more? Its the easiest and the simplest body butter to make as it uses only 2 ingredients.
Amazing Kokum Body Butter
Kokum butter is a white colored butter which is a good substitute of cocoa butter. It stays solid and hard at room temperature just like cocoa butter but melts immediately when comes in contact with the skin. It is more moisturizing in nature than most butters available. It contains 80% stearic-oleic-stearic triglycerides that makes it extremely good for skin. Its anti oxidant properties help in regeneration of skin and its ultra emollient properties help in reducing dryness of the skin.
Coconut oil as we know is one of the best things one can use on her skin. I have already written a lot about coconut oil when I made DIY Whipped Coconut Cream. Coconut oil contains Lauric acid that is known for its anti bacterial, anti fungal and anti inflammatory properties. It also contains phytonutrients and polyphenols that are great anti oxidants and support regeneration of skin cells.
How To Make The Best DIY Kokum Body Butter
It is an extremely simple and easy body butter to make that contains only two ingredients or three at the maximum (if you add essential oils). Here are the instructions.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup unrefined kokum butter (buy from here – I bought my supplies from here)
1/4 cup unrefined coconut oil.
Few drops of any essential oil (optional)
Instructions:
- Melt kokum butter and coconut oil together in a bowl in a double boiler or microwave for a minute
- Let the mix sit and cool
- As the mix begins to solidify, whip it using an electronic blender
- Add few drops of any essential oil of your choice, but this is completely optional
- Your moisturizing kokum body butter is ready
If the mix doesn’t make a fluffy texture, keep it in refrigerator for sometime and whip again. Or else, it might be that it got cooled a little. In that case, place it in a pan in hot water or microwave for 20 seconds or so and whip again. It should attain its fluffy, creamy texture.
If you do not have kokum butter, you can substitute it with any other butter like shea butter, mango butter or cocoa butter. You can add few drops of Vit. E oil to the mix to increase its shelf life. You can also add few drops of any essential oil of your choice for the added benefits. The essential oils that work best for this mix are – rosemary, lavender, avocado or even rose oil for fragrance.
Diy Firming Eye Serum With Rose & Kokum Butter
I’m happy to say, that i have created another eye serum. This one is in a light cream form and instead of adding plain distilled water, I decided to kick it up a notch and add rose water. Let me tell you, this is the best smelling product ever! I’ve made several batches in my experimenting and have been slathering it all over me every night! My skin has never been so soft! I kept with my favorites, rosehip seed oil, sweet almond oil, vitamin E, lavender and frankincense essential oil but explored a few new ingredients as well. I added Cypress essential oil for added tightening and added kokum butter for more nourishment and an anti aging boost!
Equipment Needed:
- Hand held blender
- Thermometer (having 2 helps with convenience)
- 2 glass pyrex bowls
- 1/2-2 ounce glass pump bottles
- Pipettes
- 2 medium sized pots
- Measuring Spoons (they double as stirs for me)
Diy Firming Eye Serum With Rose & Kokum Butter
OIL MIXTURE:
1 TBSP. Rosehip Seed Oil
1 TBSP. Sweet Almond Oil
1 TBSP. Kokum Butter (find it HERE)
1/2 TBSP. Emulsifying Wax
Water Mixture:
1/2 Cup Rose Water
1/16 tsp. Neodefend
After Oil & Water Mixture Have Cooled:
15 drops Lavender Essential Oil
10 drops Frankincense Essential Oil
5 drops Cypress Essential Oil
1 tsp. Vitamin E oil
DIRECTIONS:
- Kokum butter is hard. It can be omitted and you could add 2 tbsp. of another oil or rosehip or sweet almond if you like. If you choose to use kokum butter, you need to heat it up first. I put my kokum butter container in a sauce pan of water and turned the heat on low-medium. It took quite a long time to melt enough for me to use. I ended up transferring the rest of my butter into a glass jar for easy melting next time.
- Create 2 double boilers using 2 medium sized pots filled 1/2 way full with water. Place a glass pyrex bowl in each pot.
- In one pot add your oil ingredients: rosehip seed oil, sweet almond oil, kokum butter, and emulsifying wax.
- In the other pot add rose water and neodefend.
- Heat both mixtures until the oil mixture is completely melted.
- Now your mixtures will be too hot to mix together so you will need to cool each mixture down by removing them from the pot and monitoring your mixtures with a thermometer. This is the tricky part! Both mixtures need to be around 130-140 degrees Fahrenheit. You might have to place 1 or both pots back in the double boiler if you end up with too low a temp. Pay close attention!!
- Once your water and oil mixture are near the same temp., pour your water mixture into your oil mixture.
- Using a hand held blender, blend your mixtures for at least 1 minute.
- Keep returning to your lotion every 10 minutes or so to mix for 30-60 seconds each time.
- I continue to blend my lotion for at least an hour just to make sure it is totally mixed. **If you end up thinking you are done and the next day you find your lotion has separated you can always throw it back in a bowl and mix it more!
- Once your lotion has been mixed and cooled, add your essential oils and vitamin E and mix. (if you’ve already put away your hand held blender, mixing with a spoon is sufficient)
- Transfer to containers.
This recipe will make about 8 ounces, so share with friends!! The shelf life is around 3-6 mos. Because I use such a small amount of preservative, I’m counting on my essential oils to help preserve as well. Your cream will thicken up after 24 hours. After a week it will thicken up a bit more.
Your DIY is only as good as the quality of your ingredients. You don’t want to put in all this effort then come up with a crappy product because you skimped on ingredients. I have personally used each of these ingredients from Amazon. Very good quality out there
Hope you have enjoyed this recipe! It truly is so rewarding! You won’t believe how good this smells and feels!
Kokum Butter Cold Process Soap
I am excited to introduce kokum butter to the Bramble Berry line! If you’re unfamiliar with kokum butter, it’s a hard butter that is most comparable to cocoa butter. Kokum butter melts slightly above body temperature and is known for its light, non-greasy feel on the skin. In cold process soap, kokum butter adds firmness. Read more about kokum butter here.
For this recipe, I kept things simple to let the creamy texture of the soap stand out. It’s scented with eucalyptus essential oil for a refreshing scent. The smell is great during the cold winter months. Titanium dioxide is added to lighten the color, while ground pumpkin seeds add exfoliation. Because this recipe contains plenty of olive oil, a small water discount helps it pop out of the mold a bit quicker and prevents glycerin rivers.
SAFETY FIRST: Suit up for safe handling practices! That means goggles, gloves and long sleeves. Make sure kids, pets, and other distractions and tripping hazards are out of the house or don’t have access to your soaping space. Always soap in a well-ventilated area.
COLOR PREP: To ensure that the titanium dioxide blends smoothly into the soap batter, we recommend micronizing it before dispersing it in oil. Please note this is an optional tip but it does help with the titanium dioxide clumping in the soap. =) To micronize colorant, simply use a coffee grinder to blend the colorant to break up any clumps of color and prevent streaks of white from showing in the final soap. We like to use a coffee grinder that has a removable, stainless steel mixing area for easy cleaning. Disperse 1 teaspoon of titanium dioxide into 1 tablespoon of lightweight liquid oil, like sweet almond oil or sunflower oil. Use the mini mixer to help break up any clumps.
Ingredients
- 10″ Silicone Loaf Mold
- 0.7 oz. Castor Oil (2%)
- 8.5 oz. Coconut Oil (25%)
- 1.7 oz. Kokum Butter (5%)
- 23.1 oz. Olive Oil (68%)
- 4.7 oz. Sodium Hydroxide Lye
- 10.3 oz. Distilled Water (8% water discount)
- 2 oz. Eucalyptus Essential Oil
- Titanium Dioxide
- 3 Tbsp. Ground Pumpkin Seeds
- FRAGRANCE PREP: Measure 2 ounces of Eucalyptus Essential Oil into a glass, essential oil safe container. Set aside.
- Slowly and carefully add the lye to the water and gently stir until the lye has fully dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool.
- Combine and fully melt the coconut oil, olive oil, castor oil, and kokum butter. Once the lye water and the oils have cooled to 130 degrees or below (and are ideally within 10 degrees of each other), add the lye water to the oils and stick blend until thin trace. If you’d like a harder bar of soap that releases faster from the mold, you can add sodium lactate to the cooled lye water. Use 1 teaspoon of sodium lactate per pound of oils in the recipe. For this recipe, you’d add about 2 teaspoons sodium lactate.
- Once you have reached a thin trace, add all of the dispersed titanium dioxide and stick blend the colorant in.
- Add the 2 ounces of Eucalyptus Essential Oil into the batter and stick blend until completely combined.
- Continue stick blending until you reach a medium to thick trace. Add the ground pumpkin seeds and use a whisk to combine.
- Once completely combined, pour the soap into the mold and tap firmly on the counter to get rid of bubbles.
- Use a spoon to texture the top of the soap. I used a “wave” motion in the soap to create a peak on one side. Feel free to texture the soap however you like – there is no right or wrong way! If you find that the soap is not quite thick enough to hold its shape, let it sit in the mold for several minutes to firm up, then texture the top.
- Spritz the top of the soap with 99% isopropyl alcohol to help prevent soda ash. Leave at room temperature. Because kokum butter is a hard butter, you may want to keep eye on the soap. If it becomes warm and goes through gel phase, it can crack (I got a few). If this happens, stick the soap in the freezer to cool it down and prevent larger cracks. Allow the soap to sit in the mold for about 3 days (longer if you did not use sodium lactate). Unmold and cut into bars. Allow the bars to cure for 4-6 weeks. Because this soap contains a large amount of olive oil, I recommend curing the soap for the full 6 weeks. Enjoy!
If you are interested in creating you own Kokum butter skin care products, here are our three recommended kokum butters to jump start your creations. These are from different companies for you to choose from. You would have more info about how to make your own skin care products at home in this Free eBook.
Kukom Butter
- 100% KOKUM BUTTER – has a long history of healing properties. White, odorless, 100% Pure. Hard butter similar to cocoa butter, but without any scent.
- BENEFITS – It is the healthiest alternative to raw Body Butters used in treating Acne, Anti-Aging, Dry, Itchy Skin, Chapped Lips, Frostbite, Psoriasis, Rashes, Stretch Marks, Sunburn and more. kokum naturally nourishes the skin, regenerates skin cells and antioxidant.
- DIY PRODUTS – Ideal for Baby Care Products, Candle Making, Homemade Body Butters, Organic Skin Creams, Massage Lotions, Skin & Hair Moisturizing, Sunscreens and Soap Making.
Price : $12.99-$18.99
Where to find it : https://amzn.to/2VHNL01
May 16, 2019
May 11, 2019
Will recommend to friends and family
May 7, 2019
Kukom Butter
- Benefits: regenerates skin cells, antioxidant, light moisturizer, stabilizes emulsions
- White, odorless, 100% pure, hexane-free. Very hard butter similar to cocoa butter, but without any scent
- Great addition in soap making and skin care formulating
- Imported from India, filtered and packaged in the US in a sealed food-grade plastic pouch, inside a stand-up resealable pouch
- A free downloadable eBook of 20 DIY skin care recipes is included with your purchase
Price : $12.99-$19.89
Where to find it : https://amzn.to/2DOl1bO
Kokum Butter
- Body Butters used in treating Acne, Anti Aging, Dry, Itchy Skin, Chapped Lips, Frostbite, Psoriasis, Rashes, Stretch Marks, Sunburn and more.
- for topical body use or rich ingredient base for homemade ‘Do It Yourself’ body butter recipes. Ideal for Baby Care Products, Homemade Body Butters, Organic Skin Creams, Massage Lotions, Skin & Hair Moisturizing and Soap Making.
- the Great, of India planted 100,000 Mango Trees in eastern India during his reign. Not only considered an Imperial Fruit in India, the seed kernels are converted into Mango Butter, a major skin Emollient known in today’s cosmetic industry.
- Easy to measure and sealed twice in a high quality Kraft Foil bag to preserve maximum healing benefits. We continue to revolutionize contributions to the organic skincare industry with years of research and consumer friendly packaging solutions.
Price : $10.98
Where to find it : https://amzn.to/2VKNk52
