Shea Butter

[Niniane]

I picked some up yesterday, but I can't wait a week to do something with it! :notsure:

So what do y'all do with yours? :confused:

[Flaxen]

I'm beginning to like shea butter best of all! :soppy: I use it for prewash oiling. I warm up just a dab between my palms and apply it to my hair until my hair is heavy but not yet greasy. I do this the day before washing so it has 24 hours to soak in.

You can also make Fox's Shea Butter Conditioning Cream (SBCC). It's 1 part shea butter, 1 part commercial conditioner, and 1/2 part your favorite carrier oil. Mix the shea and oil together first, and then add the conditioner. Use a pea-sized amount as a leave-in on wet hair or as a softener on dry hair.

[summer-time]

My daughter uses shea and I just tried it myself, it smells so good :happy: . We get ours from sheamoisture.com. We use it with our leave in on wet hair.
It's like a solid in the jar and melts on the palm to an oil.

I'm going to try tonight on dry hair, a little oiling before bed. :)

[Hairstorm]

I just got some shea butter too. I put some on my face and it feels nice and soft.
Hair is next! :)

[wavebaby]

I have natural, unrefined shea butter, and it has a bit of a smell, but It makes my hair & skin so soft! anyone else use unrefined shea & notice a slight smell?

[Flaxen]

I have natural, unrefined shea butter, and it has a bit of a smell, but It makes my hair & skin so soft! anyone else use unrefined shea & notice a slight smell? Some might say that it's more than slight, LOL. I really like the natural odor, though. I think it gets smokey from being cooked over a fire, in the traditional manner.

[wonderlywroughte]

I use it on my ends, and as a moisturizer on extra dry spots on my face. Works like a dream. :innocent:

[Rain]

My skin loves shea butter. I use it straight on my lips. I use it straight or mix it with oil or aloe vera gel (or both) and use it on my cheeks or anywhere my skin is a bit dry. It never makes me break out. Shea butter is also really nice mixed with aloe vera gel on a fresh sunburn like the one my daughter just came home with. She is glowing red. Ack!

My hair loves the unrefined shea butter from afrikanrepublic.com but not so much the newer one I’m using (I forgot how to spell the URL). So when I have the kind my hair likes, I use a tiny bit as a pomade to smooth down frizz or I melt it and mix it into my SMT. I also melt a little bit and use it on my ends when combing out second-day hair.

[Flaxen]

Rain, is the other one Agbangakarite? I won't be out of Nature's Wild Child shea for a long time, but I like to think ahead to what one I should try next.:nosey:

[walkinglady]

I use shea butter for just about everything. In my hair, in a oil blend for my skin, on top of sunscreen for extra protection, and after sun care. I use unrefined shea, sometimes I add essential oils to it.

[Amber]

Suncat has just posted a lipbalm recipe that uses Shea Butter in the Alternative Health section of the forum :)

[Love My Cop]

I've been using unrefined Shea Butter for a while now, and I really like it. I dont care for the smell very much, but mixing it with a drop or two of Peppermint EO helps. I used it on my hair,and all my body. I also rub it on my finger nails. Good stuff !

[Rain]

Rain, is the other one Agbangakarite? I won't be out of Nature's Wild Child shea for a long time, but I like to think ahead to what one I should try next.:nosey:

That's the one!

[wavebaby]

Some might say that it's more than slight, LOL. I really like the natural odor, though. I think it gets smokey from being cooked over a fire, in the traditional manner.

I didn't know that, thanks! I might try adding some EO's, hadn't thought of that before.

[Phoenix_Red]

where can you find pure shea butter?

[Flaxen]

where can you find pure shea butter?Some websites:
Agbanga Karite (http://www.agbangakarite.com)
Nature's Wild Child (http://www.natureswildchild.com)
Mountain Rose Herbs (http://www.mountainroseherbs.com)
Afrikan Republic (http://www.afrikanrepublic.com)
Natural Indulgences (http://stores.ebay.com/Fair-Trade-Shea-Butter-and-More)

ETA: Two things to look for - You don't want golden shea butter. It...well, reeks. Also, make sure any shea you get has not been extracted with the solvent, hexane.

ETA: I had the types of shea confused. It is not the location from which the shea originates, but rather the type of shea that has the unpleasant smell. Sorry for the misdirection.:sorry:

[Phoenix_Red]

Some websites:
Agbanga Karite (http://www.agbangakarite.com)
Nature's Wild Child (http://www.natureswildchild.com)
Mountain Rose Herbs (http://www.mountainroseherbs.com)
Afrikan Republic (http://www.afrikanrepublic.com)
Natural Indulgences (http://stores.ebay.com/Fair-Trade-Shea-Butter-and-More)

Thank you! I just ordered some:grinhappy:

[curls2grow]

I use it on my ends and canopy. Has helped a lot with how dry my ends were and the state of frizziness that is my canopy this time of year.

[kimberlily]

I can't use shea in my hair - it makes it sticky, and hard to detangle. I use it in my deodorant though, and on my hands & feet. I also have a lip balm recipe that has shea in it, but I need to pick up some beeswax so I can make it.

Next time I need Shea (which will be soon, since I have very little left!) I will get it from http://www.sheabuttermarket.com. Check out the website and you'll see why ;) I've heard from a friend who buys it that it doesn't smell.

[daizyduke]

How does one use shea butter on the face? It doesn't melt as well as coconut oil. It's really thick and doesn't melt well with body heat. Do you use pure shea butter or is it mixed with something else? Thanks.

I guess I posted this in the wrong forum. I've been trying to use this on my face.

[OhioSKy]

I bought shea butter from Now Foods on Amazon for a reasonable price and I love it, but I question whether it is really shea. Its smells like honey and melts easily, and everything else Ive ever tried with shea didnt melt easily and had a vague stinky feet sort of smell :confused:
My skin and hair both love it and I love it the smell, so I guess it doesnt matter much.

[happylynngilmer]

I have used it plain on my face before, but lately I mix it with my Hyaluronic Acid serum. You're right, it doesnt melt quite like coconut oil, but for me it moisturizes better than coconut so I take the extra few seconds to rub it in.
Some people find that shea is too heavy for facial use, and I've heard that it breaks some people's skin out. I've never had this issue, but I have pretty dry skin in the winter, and combo in the summer.

ETA: I also use it in my hair religiously. My hair's fav leave-in is shea.

[cherryblossom]

it is amazing for my skin (all over) after an exfoliating shower or shaving, especially in winter. It find it way too heavy for my hair though so i only use it there when my hair feels really bad in winter (windy in the UK!)

[ms-nietzsche]

Quick question: how well does Shea work as a sunscreen? I currently use a spf 15 lotion and just ordered shea, but I don't know whether I should consider with the lotion or not. It's not very sunny where I am anyways...

[Distinguished]

Quick question: how well does Shea work as a sunscreen? I currently use a spf 15 lotion and just ordered shea, but I don't know whether I should consider with the lotion or not. It's not very sunny where I am anyways... I think shea butter is good AFTERSUN care but I personally wouldn't use it alone as a sunscreen, it's got some SPF properties, i guess but not enough to protect you. Hello, hi, longtime lurker btw, lol. Anywoo, I use shea butter everyday as part of my skin care regimen and my post acne treatment. I use it in combination with african black soap to keep my skin clear, but re-reading this thread makes it seem like you guys are buying refined shea butter and not the unrefined organic one. for one I've never known shea butter to smell like honey or smell good period! :happy: If anything real shea butter smells like cigarette smoke to me. It's got a very distinctive smell and some people like it others don't. Buy your REAL shea butter from here <url deleted - do not spam TBB> if you are in the east coast area but even if you are far they ship fast and cheap enough. Btw I use shea butter o my face, whole body actually including hair and feet and it did not break me out, it's not too greasy either, you have to know how much to use, because a little sure does go a long way.

I get cream colored shea butter but you can also get the golden one, Flaxen, golden shea butter is the real unrefined one and the unrefined ones have the benefits, the white refined ones that don't smell are chemically processed and have no benefits. Hope that helps.

[Jenna777]

I use shea butter to moisturize and work out stretch marks. It is the best thing for my skin and the most effective on dry and stretch mark areas! Glad to hear everyone else benefits from it too!