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Shea Butter vs Mango Butter Or "OMG, My Skin Itches, Fix It!", Part 2

I don't know how we got to the end of November already but here we are. The Midwest had a couple of really nice days around Thanksgiving Day so I can't complain but as of today, we are back to the cold windy weather we've been experiencing for the last couple of weeks. I don't envy those who have already had more snow than we have gotten in Nebraska (which hasn't been much at all). I should be embracing some inspiration to knit warm sweaters, make hearty stews and drink hot cocoa. Instead, I have found myself struggling to do much of anything that doesn't involve my couch, a blanket, fleece pj pants and my four-legged companions.

In my previous post, I made some body butter using shea butter as a base ingredient in this recipe. To follow up, I also made the same recipe using mango butter instead of shea butter with the intention of comparing the two.

After a couple of weeks of using both body butters, I have to say that it is a toss-up. The shea butter is thick yet soft enough to use easily. It melts quickly from the warmth of your hands, goes on smoothly and is very moisturizing. It does leave a little feeling of having just put moisturizer on the surface of your skin and seems to take about 10 minutes to soak in completely. But once it soaks in, the ever-so-slight greasy feeling disappears entirely. 


The mango butter is thicker and slightly more solid than the shea butter. It's actually solid enough that it's a little difficult to dig out of the jar. It also takes some effort to melt it completely before applying. However, once applied, it is heavenly! It soaks right into your skin, leaving behind no greasy feeling whatsoever but also making your skin completely and utterly soft. Quite honestly, I've never had a moisturizer that was this luscious! And the nice thing is that unlike commercial lotions, you don't have to apply it constantly. I've been finding that I can go a day without using the mango body butter and my skin is just fine (i.e., no extreme dryness or itching).


Just as I did when making the shea butter concoction, I halved the recipe when using the mango butter. Upon chilling and blending, it got solid very quickly. The volume of finished product was less than when I made the shea butter (as you can see below by the jar not being quite as full) and the mango butter mixture didn't go into the jar as neatly or easily. The final consistency is more like cold butter than the fluffy whipped frosting texture of the shea butter mixture.


I think when I am ready to make more, I will try doubling the amount of liquid ingredients to see if that will make it softer and more fluffy. Another option would be to omit the cocoa butter or possibly the corn starch. I may need to experiment a little bit to get it just right, but I think this is definitely my go-to recipe for body butter from now on regardless of whether I use shea butter, mango butter, or something else (like avocado butter (yummy)...which is also on my list to try soon).

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