Looking for a vegan friendly moisturizer DIY? This rose body butter recipe fits the bill! Made with only natural ingredients, this rose body butter nourishes skin without leaving it feeling greasy.

Inspired by Nourish Organic’s Rejuvenating Rose Butter, my rose body butter recipe contains refined shea butter and coconut oil, rosehip seed and sunflower oil, and natural rose kaolin clay. I also added a touch of frankincense essential oil for a light scent and for frankincense’s valuable astringent properties when used in skin care applications.

Because frankincense can help to protect skin cells, it’s useful in preventing acne blemishes, the appearance of large pores, and wrinkles. It’s also believed to help lift and tighten skin which can deter the signs of aging.

And, as if that wasn’t enough, my rose body butter recipe also absorbs quickly so you can get on with your day without leaving oily marks everywhere you go!

Which frankincense essential oil should I use?

There are four main types of frankincense. They are Boswellia Serrata, Boswellia Frereana, Boswellia Carteri and Boswellia Papyrifera. For this application, I’ll be discussing the differences between Boswellia Serrata, Boswellia Frereana, and Boswellia Carteri essential oils.

Frankincense (Boswellia Serrata) essential oil is the oldest documented Frankincense and is believed to have been used in both Ayurvedic medicine and as the frankincense mentioned in the Bible. It contains high amounts of alpha thujene, alpha pinene, and limonene which give it strong antiseptic, decongestant, and anti-inflammatory properties. It has a sweeter and more delicate fragrance than the other frankincense varieties with top terpenic-pine notes and costs less as it yields a higher amount of essential oil.

Frankincense (Boswellia Frereana) essential oil, which is grown at a higher altitude, contains high amounts pinene, thujene, and cymene. These natural constituents yield strong anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antispasmodic, and analgesic (pain relieving) properties making it especially suitable for inflammation caused by arthritis, swelling, and allergies. This type of frankincense has strong citrus-lemon top notes with an earthy, resinous heart.

And finally, Frankincense (Boswellia Carteri) essential oil is the most well known of all the frankincense varieties. It has the smooth, richa aroma that people are most familiar with when they think of frankincense. Frankincense (Boswellia Carteri) essential oil contains high concentrations of alpha pinene, and other monoterpenes making it useful both in skin care and aromatherapy applications. When used in skin care applications it can help to diminish the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and scars. When inhaled it is particularly beneficial at fighting the effects from acute colds and asthma.

I used Frankincense (Boswellia Serrata) essential oil for my rose body butter recipe, however, you can use whichever frankincense essential oil you prefer for this application.

Natural Rose Body Butter Recipe

© Rebecca D. Dillon

Ingredients:

3 oz. refined shea butter
.5 oz. refined coconut oil
.25 oz. rosehip seed oil
.25 oz. sunflower or sweet almond oil
.1 oz. arrowroot powder
.05 oz. rose kaolin clay
2 mL frankincense essential oil (of choice)
3-5 drops vitamin E oil

Instructions:

You will need a digital scale to weigh out the all of the ingredients for my rose body butter recipe except for the frankincense essential oil and the vitamin E oil. For the frankincense essential oil you’ll need to measure out the amount called for in the recipe with a graduated plastic transfer pipette.

Begin by weighing out the shea butter and coconut oil. Combine in a glass Pyrex measuring cup or similar and heat in the microwave at 50% power until melted. Alternately, you can also use a double boiler.

Now weigh out the arrowroot powder and whisk into the melted shea butter and coconut oil.

Next, weigh the rosehip seed and sunflower oils and stir into the body butter mixture.

Add a few drops of Vitamin E followed by the frankincense essential oil.

Finally, weigh out and add the rose kaolin clay.

Mix well, then set the body butter in the refrigerator briefly. As the clay will want to sink to the bottom, you’ll need to cool the body butter down in order to evenly distribute the clay.

Once the body butter starts to thicken, remove it from the refrigerator and remix until the clay stays evenly distributed throughout the body butter and no longer sinks to the bottom.

Pour the body butter evenly into two 2 oz. straight sided amber glass jars with black phenolic lined caps. (I got mine from SKS Bottle & Packaging here.)

Once your natural rose body butter has completely solidified, screw on the caps and label as desired for personal use or gifting. You can find free printable labels for my natural rose body butter recipe here. Simply print the PDF onto a full size sticker or label sheet and cut out the labels.

To use, simply massage a small amount of the body butter onto your skin as desired and wait for it to absorb completely. I personally love this on my hands!

Substitutions?

If you are allergic to coconut oil then you may substitute the coconut oil with babassu oil. Babassu oil is very similar to coconut oil with just a slightly higher melting point. (Learn more about babassu oil here.)

It is also important to note that my rose body butter recipe yields a very soft body butter. If you live in a particularly warm climate in which coconut oil will not stay solidified for you, then I suggest adding a small amount of emulsifying wax to this recipe. I’d start with around .25 oz.

If you actually want your rose body butter to smell like roses, substitute the frankincense essential oil with 1 mL of rose absolute.

Want to sell this product?

If you plan to sell your rose body butters, you’ll need to follow FDA guidelines for labeling your product. If you’re unsure about the rules and regulations regarding labeling cosmetics, I highly recommend the book, Soap and Cosmetic Labeling: How to Follow the Rules and Regs Explained in Plain English, by Marie Gale.

To discover more of my homemade bath and body recipes, be sure to follow my DIY Bath and Body board on Pinterest here. You can also find and follow me on G+, Tumblr, Facebook, Twitter, Blog Lovin’, and Instagram. Or sign up to receive new posts from Soap Deli News blog to your email via FeedBurner so you never miss a post.

Also, don’t forget. If you make homemade soaps or bath & body products I will be featuring your creations on Soap Deli News blog on my weekly wrap up posts! Simply add the hashtag #soapdelishowoff to your instagram and twitter posts for a chance to have your handmade products featured!