Body butter can be super greasy. This is great if you have super dry skin, but everyone else can find them a little too heavy. This is because body butters are formulated with lots of heavy moisturizers, such as cosmetic butters.
But you can offset this with a few tricks to create a whipped body butter recipe thats non-greasy. Selecting the right butters, oils and other ingredients can help minimize the greasy feeling of your body butter.
Introduction
You’ll also notice that this recipe is a ‘lemon’ body butter, but doesn’t actually include any lemon essential oil at all. This is because lemon EO can be problematic. Unless you can get your hands on distilled lemon EO, you’re exposing yourself to a nasty reaction.
Lemon essential oil is phototoxic, meaning it will cause a nasty, painful rash and irritation when it’s applied to the skin and then exposed to sunlight.
So, for this non-greasy body butter recipe, we’re using a combination of two essential oils that are 100% safe in the sun, but still smell a lot like lemon. But more on this soon!
What’s In This Non-Greasy Body Butter Recipe
Let’s take a look at the other ingredients to see what really makes it non greasy!
Butters
The butter we’ve selected for this formula is Mango. It’s one of the dryer butters, if that’s possible, but also has excellent moisturizing benefits. If you don’t believe us about the dryness, get some of it between your fingers and feel how different it is from shea butter.
One of the reasons you might be looking for a non-greasy body butter recipe is that ordinary body butters can be a little pore-clogging for the average person.
While this isn’t likely to be problematic for someone with dry skin, someone with oily skin might not be able to use body butter at all! Mango, however, doesn’t clog pores as much as other cosmetic butters. Making it fantastic for anyone with sensitive or acne-prone skin.
It’s also great for nourishing the skin, packed full of vitamins E and C, as well as an excellent ability to create a protective film on the surface of the skin. This traps in moisture, without you even noticing it’s there.
If you do need to substitute this butter, say because mango butter is a liquid where you’re living (due to a hotter climate), then consider kokum. It shares many of the non-greasy benefits of mango but is harder and less likely to melt. Cocoa butter is not a great substitute, as it’s a little too heavy for this recipe.
Oils
We’ve paired our cosmetic butter camellia seed oil. Without a little liquid oil, our body butter would be much too stiff and cause a lot of drag on the skin. So, a little of this and your product will glide on just fine.
But the best part is it’s deeply moisturizing, while also able to sink into the skin at lightning speeds. It helps to soothe, soften and tone up skin all at the same time. It’s a fantastic ingredient that goes a long way.
However, if you can’t get your hands on this, consider watermelon seed oil. It has similar properties and also absorbs very fast. That’s the key here for non-greasy body butter, selecting ingredients around your butters that sink into the skin super fast.
The Secret Ingredient
Now, time for the super secret ingredient, Isopropyl Myristate. Of course, it’s no real secret. This ingredient has been used in skincare for a very long time. However, you might not have come across it just yet.
Isopropyl Myristate is an ester that increases skin absorbency in a formula. This means that when this ingredient is used alongside lots of lovely rich oils and butters, it actually speeds up how fast they sink in.
The main cause of oily skin care products is the use of lots of ingredients that take a little while to sink in. But if that extra oil can readily be accepted by the skin, problem solved!
There aren’t great substitutes for this ingredient. However, you could substitute it for some squalane, which also increases the speed at which other oil-based ingredients sink it. However, it’s much more expensive and best used in your luxury skin care products.
Aromaceuticals
As previously stated, we’re not actually using any lemon in this recipe. Of course, you’re welcome to use whatever you like, and if you want to use lemon EO then go for it!
However, due to the problematic nature of lemon EO being phototoxic, we decided to skip it this time and use similar-smelling aromaceuticals.
These ended up being May Chang and Grapefruit essential oils. Together, they create a very ‘lemon-like’ aroma, if not a little sweeter. In fact, I found it smelled a lot like sherbet lemons, if you’ve ever had them before.
It’s a very uplifting and mind-focusing aroma, and one that I’m a little obsessed with at the moment!
If you do opt to replace this blend with regular lemon essential oil, try your best to get your hands on the distilled version. Phototoxic reactions can happen anywhere, even on days when it’s overcast. Keep yourself and those who use your products safe.
Notes
- While melting the mango isn’t 100% necessary, you might want to. Mango, like a lot of butters, is prone to graininess when it’s cold blended. Melting it first and then cooling it in the fridge will help mitigate this.
- The turmeric is totally optional and adds a yellow hint to your body butter. Don’t use too much or it’ll start looking a little orangey.
OK Let’s Make A Non-Greasy Body Butter
Non-Greasy Lemon Body Butter Recipe
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. If you buy via the links here I may earn a small affiliate commission at no cost to you, please read my affiliate disclosure.
Ingredients
- 148 g Mango Butter
- 28 g Camellia Seed Oil
- 20 g Isopropyl Myristate
- 2 g Vitamin E Oil
- 1.5 g May Chang Essential Oil
- 0.5 g Grapefruit Essential Oil
- 1 Cosmetic Jar 8oz
- Pinch Turmeric
Video
Instructions
- Place the butter into a heatproof beaker and gently melt the butter in the microwave using 20-second blasts.148 g Mango Butter
- Transfer the melted butter to a medium size mixing bowl.
- Quickly add your Camellia seed oil and Isopropyl Myristate to the melted Butter. Followed by the vitamin E. Give the whole thing a good stir so that it's thoroughly combined. Then place it in the Refrigerator to cool and thicken, giving it a quick stir from time to time.28 g Camellia Seed Oil, 2 g Vitamin E Oil, 20 g Isopropyl Myristate
- As the body butter cools, it will become thicker and creamy. You want it to be stiff, so be patient as this may take a few hours. When the butter has thickened and is looking fairly stiff and almost solid, remove it from the fridge. Give it a good stir to loosen it up a bit, before adding the essential oils, and turmeric (if using).1.5 g May Chang Essential Oil, 0.5 g Grapefruit Essential Oil, Pinch Turmeric
- Grab your electric whisk and set it to a low setting then start whipping the butter up. This shouldn't take much more than a few minutes, depending on the power of your eclectic whisk. If you need to you can up the setting on the whisk, but you don't want to create too much heat, as the butter may start to melt again. If the body butter is too soft or runny, pop it back into the fridge for a while, then try again.
- Once the butter is fluffy and creamy, transfer to a clean, suitable container, ready for use.1 Cosmetic Jar 8oz
Notes
Final Thoughts
Body butter is actually one of the best ways to start the day, but when you have to wait so long before you can put your jeans on it gets a little annoying. This is where this bad boy comes in, and it’s changed the way I see body butters.
If you compare this body butter with any of the others you’ve made in the past, you’ll be surprised by the difference. It even feels drier, if that’s at all possible. But we owe that mostly to the mango butter, which is a lot less greasy in general.
If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, then you’ll absolutely love the result of this body butter. So whip it up and let me know what you think. Any problems or questions we’re happy to answer them in the comments below. I also love to hear your crafting stories!
Do you need to add a preservative? Also can I substitute the Camellia seed oil for sunflower oil instead?
Hi Julia,
You don’t need to add a preservative, providing this is for personal use and you avoid any form of cross contamination with water (e.g. storing it bathroom or using the product right after the shower with wet fingers). Otherwise, I would add an oil soluble preservative, such as Optiphen plus.
I’m so excited to try the Lemon Body Butter. It’ll be great to have a non-greasy body butter to use! I’m going to get a group of friends from my Senior apartment complex, together, in our community room to make this.
Thank you
Hi Sharon,
That’s fantastic! Thanks for your kind words. I hope you all have fun, and don’t forget to let me know how you find your new body butter.