Your Best Shea Butter Mixture

Hi everyone, welcome to my hair care series!  I have very thick, tightly coiled 4c hair, and one of the things my hair has been loving is shea butter/oil mixtures.  I’ve been using it as the last step in my moisturizing regimen after washing or co-washing my hair to seal my strands, and it locks the moisture in perfectly.  The only thing I do to re-moisturize or refresh when I use my shea butter mixture, is lightly spray my hair with water in the evening, and I’m good to go.  I posted an Instagram picture of my shea butter mixture last week and got great feedback.  So, I thought I’d share some tips to help you make your best mixture.

The first time I made my mixture, I used pretty solid shea butter, added my oils, and used a hand mixer to blend everything together.  After about 20 minutes of blending, my butter was still fairly solid, my hand was tired, and I was over it. So, I just went with it as is – which was still great for my hair.  It was an amazing sealant.  I also used it as my styler when twisting or braiding.

This time around, I made some alterations to how I mixed my butter and oils, and LOVED the results.

Here are some things I recommend when making your mixture:

Tip #1: Use room temperature shea butter.
I think the mistake I made the first time around was using shea butter that was too cold. So, when you start to make your mix, use shea butter that is at least room temperature so it’s more pliable and easier to work with.

Tip #2: Consider using the double boiler method.
I found it very difficult to get a homogenous blend of my oils with my shea
butter when I went straight to the hand mixer to combine everything. So, consider using the double boiler method.   I don’t own a commercial double boiler, so I added all of my ingredients to a large glass bowl, and stacked it on top of pot with water in it. I placed the pot and bowl on the stove over low heat to allow the butter and oils to mix slowly. Low heat also allowed the butter and oils to retain all their nutrients. Stir your mixture every so often to ensure everything blends completely.  After allowing your mixture to cool and begin to solidify, blend it with a hand mixer for a creamy consistency. (April Bee from YouTube also uses this method here.)

Tip #3: Incorporate oils that your hair needs.
Now, there are 2 main types of oils that we naturals like to apply to our hair – carrier oils and essential oils.   Common carrier oils are coconut oil, olive oil, sweet almond oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil, and grapeseed oil. Some common essential oils are tea tree oil, lavender oil, peppermint oil, and rosemary oil. Carrier oils are derived from the seed, kernel, or nut of the plant and are used to ‘carry’ essential oils into the skin and hair.  Essential oils are derived from the leaves, bark, and roots of the plant which make them much more concentrated than a carrier oil. Essential oils should be paired with a carrier oil for application to the skin and hair so that irritation does not occur. Try different blends of oils on your hair to see what it likes best, and include those oils in your shea butter mixture.

Tip #4: Don’t be skimpy with the carrier oils.
Another thing that I think hindered a great mixture on the first try, was that I didn’t want to add too much oil thinking it would ruin the mixture. Well, shea butter is dense on its own.   The addition of oil helps to make it more pliable and easier to blend into a consistent mixture, so you’d really need to be adding A LOT of oil to ‘ruin’ the mix.  Don’t be afraid to be a little heavy handed here.  Try adding those carrier oils in tablespoons or ounces, rather than in teaspoons.  The added oils also give a very creamy consistency to your mix.

I hope you find these tips helpful in making your best shea butter mix yet!