My Brief History with Natural Oils and Butters

I mentioned doing a post on natural body butters and the possibility of making the skin darker in a previous post. This is coming about abut three months later because I have been experimenting more on these butters and trying to observe its effects on my skin.

****Please Note: I don't use any of the mentioned oils or butters on my face. They are strictly for my body only. I will do a post soon on my recommended facial oils.****

I used extra virgin olive oil for about three months during the autumn/winter in the United Kingdom. It was alright; I found it a bit heavy though because the weather made the oil have a thicker consistency. I am a bit heavy handed, so I tend to take more than required and end up having greasy skin (although I don’t mind that because I love the oily glow look). However, I didn't like the fact that it didn't absorb well into my skin, It felt like it was always sitting on top. So, I got bored of using it and switched to grapeseed oil. Olive oil didn't change my skin tone.

Grapeseed oil is alright, it was perfect for the UK winter weather for me. It absorbed perfectly, it was very light and still gave me a good glow. My skin tone remained the same. I will rate it a good 9/10. I stopped using it when I moved back to my country and found the organic/pure grade of this oil, not easily accessible.

Coconut oil is another miraculous oil to try. Its smell, light weight nature, easy spread-ability and absorb-ability on the skin, gives this oil a great advantage. In colder climates, coconut oil tends to solidify and look like a heavy butter but in hotter climates (like where I reside) it is very runny and liquid. My only drawback with this wonder oil is that I don’t find it enough for my skin. By midday, my skin doesn't feel moisturized enough. My skin is accustomed to heavier moisture creams/sealants, so I am guessing its finding coconut oil not sufficient.

Shea Butter, my first and last love, I am always back and forth with this butter. When I am in between oils and creams or when other oils and creams fail to meet my skin’s need, Shea butter has remained true to me. I am the disloyal one in this relationship. Full of amazing properties like sun-blocking (provides natural ultraviolet sun protection up to about SPF 6), hydrating, improves skin elasticity, mildly prevents stretch-marks and contains amazing Vitamin E and A. It gives me a very healthy glow and my skin always feels succulent. I make it into an amazing whipped cream, for easy spread-ability and add other light oils to it. So far so good, it hasn't made my skin darker. Although, I will recommend getting the purest/raw Shea butter because in the past, adulterated ones have not only made me darker but gave me rashes and other allergies.

Cocoa Butter, the other love. I have fallen so much in love with cocoa butter that I have been forced to let it co-habit with my Shea Butter. In fact to be honest, for every 20g of cocoa butter I use, I use 5g of Shea butter. I haven’t found a soul that can resist the yummiest of this butter. Its chocolaty smell doesn't help either. Cocoa butter is great for stretch mark prevention and treatment. It is also recommended for the treatment of skin conditions like eczema and dermatitis. It helps retain the needed moisture to the skin. Its usage will be a long run staple for me. I will rate my cocoa butter whipped mix cream at 10/10. This is because of its yummy smell, moisturizing properties, easy absorbency and gives me a nice glow.

I also just got a free tub of Mango Butter; I can’t wait to try that very soon too.