Neem Oil Body Butter Recipe with Arnica Infused Coconut Oil
This plant based natural neem oil body butter recipe is handmade with arnica infused coconut oil and neem oil to help ease the pain of minor wounds, minimize the appearance of scarring and promote healing. Made with only the finest natural ingredients, this neem oil body butter is sure to become a staple in your bathroom medicine cabinet.
As both arnica and neem oil have analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, I thought they were the perfect fit for this natural body butter recipe. In addition to having pain relieving properties, arnica and neem oil are often used in natural skin care products for a variety of reasons.
Neem oil has been used historically in both medicinal and cosmetic applications for hundreds of years. In addition to its anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, it also has antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties. Neem oil is most commonly used topically to fight rheumatism, eczema, ringworm, athlete’s foot, cold sores, psoriasis, warts, chronic syphilitic sores, infected burn wounds, and slow-healing skin ulcers. It has also been shown to help control various skin infections including scabies and candida.
While the smell of natural neem oil is off putting straight out of the bottle, neem oil does also offer remarkable moisturizing and regenerative properties and is rich in vitamin E and essential fatty acids. Luckily, the nutty garlic like aroma of this prized oil is easily masked with a blend of natural essential oils.
Arnica is a wild flowering plant in the same family as the sunflower. Native to both the western United States and Central Europe, this plant blooms from mid summer into fall. It’s medicinal yellow flowers are typically collected at the end of summer and dried for use in tinctures and infusions.
It’s been shown that arnica can help to relieve pain caused by sprains, bruises and other injuries. However, it is important to note that arnica should not be used on open wounds or broken skin. Additionally, those with allergies to members of the Asteraceae family should exercise caution when using arnica as they experience an allergic reaction.
Natural Neem Oil Body Butter Recipe
Ingredients:
.05 oz. cocoa butter
1.6 oz. shea butter
.6 oz. arnica infused fractionated coconut oil
.4 oz. neem oil
18 drops lavender essential oil
10 drops tea tree oil
1 mL vitamin E oil, optional
Instructions:
Before you get started you’ll need to first make your arnica infused fractionated coconut oil. I infused mine in fractionated coconut oil in order to keep the final product from feeling greasy when applied.
In order to create an herbal oil infusion, simply fill the bottom half of a mason jar with arnica flowers and cover with fractionated coconut oil. Seal and place in a sunny window, turning occasionally for several weeks. (Alternately, you can speed up the process by gently heating the fractionated coconut oil and arnica flowers in a double boiler for several hours on the stove over low to medium-low heat.) Strain with cheesecloth before use.
If you don’t want to go through the trouble of making an herbal oil infusion, you can simply substitute the arnica infused fractionated coconut oil with arnica herbal oil.
Once you’ve made your arnica infused fractionated coconut oil, you’ll ready to make my neem oil body butter recipe.
Begin by using a digital scale weigh out the cocoa and shea butter. Combine in a glass Pyrex measuring cup or scientific glass beaker. Heat either in a double boiler or at 40% power in the microwave until melted.
Next, weigh out the arnica infused fractionated coconut oil and the neem oil. Pour the oils into the melted butters mixing well to combine.
Now use a graduated transfer pipette to measure out and add the vitamin E oil as well as to add the drops of both essential oils. Stir well, then pour into your desired container and allow to solidify.
It’s important to note that this is a soft body butter. As such it may take 24-48 hours to reach its final consistency. You can put this in the refrigerator for several hours to overnight to speed up the process.
The final product should be stored in a temperature controlled environment. Otherwise, if you live in a particularly warm climate, you may find it helpful to add a small amount of emulsifying wax or beeswax to your neem oil body butter in order for it stay solid.
To use your neem oil body butter, simply apply to affected area as needed to soothe and calm pain and irritation due to a minor wound, injury, bruise, sprain or skin condition.
If you like my neem oil body butter recipe, then you may also like my honeybush tea & pumpkin seed salve recipe. This homemade salve recipe for eczema is made using all natural ingredients including honeybush tea infused pumpkin seed oil. Prized in skin care for it’s ability to soothe skin irritation, honeybush tea is a wonderful pantry staple for whole body health both inside and out! You can discover my honeybush tea & pumpkin seed salve recipe here.
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2 Comments
Katja
May 15, 2018 at 10:16 am
I just recently wrote a post on neem oil skin benefits, so this post is a great find! Thank you, now I know what to do with my neem oil bottle and put all of those neem oil benefits to a good use 😀
Rebecca D. Dillon
May 15, 2018 at 11:27 am
You’re welcome! I really love neem oil since I’ve been able to get past the smell. I have additional recipes that call for neem oil here if you’re interested.
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