Tammy Goodson of CurlyChicsUntil a few summers ago, I had not been introduced to the phenomenon known as shea butter. While I had been relaxer free for many years, I was an uninformed natural up until that point. Uninformed about product ingredients, uninformed about proper care, uninformed about the lifestyle in general. Once I stumbled upon the world of blogs and vlogs, I began to take a new interest in my fragile tresses which led me to shea butter. I kept reading about it but wasn’t quite sure what it was or how it would benefit my new journey of getting to know my natural hair all over again. Fast forward to today and I swear by its use and it has become a major staple in my product arsenal. I use it nearly every night and my hair thanks me for it.
What is it?
Shea butter is a unique blend of the emollients/fat extracted from the nut of African Shea trees
(Vitellaria Paradoxa, Shea Karite, Mangifolia). The only shea butter I have ever used and will continue to use is 100% African Shea Butter. It is raw and unrefined which is the purest form. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it right?
How I use it
Although I use it primarily to seal my ends after twisting or braiding, sometimes alone, sometimes in conjunction with coconut or olive oil, it can be used along the entire strand of hair. Since shea butter melts at body temperature and absorbs rapidly into the skin, I get a nice size on my fingers and then rub it between my thumb and index finger. I then apply it to the ends of my hair gently but thoroughly, ensuring supreme coverage. Applying it without introducing some sort of product friction will make for difficult disbursement and the product visibility.
Reasons I’m Hooked
1. Adds maximum shine and luster which is normally achieved through using a serum.
2. Provides moisture – its moisturizing properties are unmatched.
3. Inexpensive – definitely a bang for your buck product. You can purchase 32 oz for $13. Less than that depending on where you purchase.
4. Natural – generally speaking, it is hard to go wrong with something that is all natural.
5. No greasy residue.
6. Produces soft and fluffy results.
7. Does not weigh the hair down.
8. Healing properties – helps reduce dandruff and other scalp disorders, skin irritations.
9. Can mix with other ingredients (oils) and it will maintain its effectiveness.
10. Multi functional – it can be used as a lotion, face moisturizer, etc.
*If you have a known allergy to other tree nuts, you may experience a reaction to Shea butter.
Sharing hairstories and life experiences from a curl’s perspective. Find Tammy at her blog, Curlychics, on Twitter, and Facebook.
i love love love shea butter i use it on my hair and my face and it has my face soooo soft i got my sister my niece and other family members hooked on this too
You can get it on Amazon.com for that price
Team Shea Butter unite i love this stuff you can use it on your skin a lotion great stuff
Kemi, I went on a search & this was the closest thing I found:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003KDJ5KK/ref=s9_simh_gw_p194_d15_g194_i6?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1CQX6P2M73ZP37DW926H&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846
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Where can you buy this product from( on line??)
LOVE IT! So many uses. So versatile. When I finally realized how to use it on my hair, it changed my life!!!!
LOVEEEE ITTTT!!!!! and thanks to @naptural85 I have mastered making whipped shea butter and I add lavender oils for a little sass.But Im doing a protective style challenge with some curlfriends and I decided to do some two strand twist pulled up into a bun..I knew my hair was going to do what it wanted to.. when I was doing my honey pre-poo so instead of fighting with it.. I pulled out my whipped shea butter and bottle of water and started twisting… An hour later my crown of glory looked and smelled marvelous…
Been happy since the day I met shea butter… Hope we never part ways…
^This! I'd like to know where I can pick up some shea for that price as well!? Or can anyone else also chime in on where they buy their shea cheap? I was looking last week and I can't find anything under $7-8/Lb
I just started using shea butter & I love it. Where do you purchase 32 oz for $13, though?
i loooovw shea butter. its the only thing i still use since i went natural. i dont even buy lotion anymore; its so multi-useful!
I love shea butter i am pretty new to since last summer but i love it i use it as a face moisturizer, foot lotion after pedicures or even baths, lip balm, hand lotion. i also have been advertising it to my family members with excema and skin issues i have my sister hooked as well as my mother this is definately my new favorite product and it last for so long and never goes bad cant beat it the more i have it the more i use it for other things I LOVE SHEA BUTTER
I love shea butter, but hate the smell. I buy the scented ones and refined one. I have fine hair, day one is greasy. But days 3-7 are the business.
Yeah I love shea butter I started using it when my hair started breaking from relaxers and started transitioning out….i'm 8 months post and loving it…is it best to use it for mosituriser or as part of conditioning because sometimes I alternate?
Many thanks
www.blackcherrybeauty.blogspot.com
Naomi
I'm team shea butter. I mixed it with EVOO, ORS lock-n-twist gel and a hair/body oil. It did wonders for my twists, made them soft, shiny and provided a long-lasting hold. My mix was a little stiff but I didn't mind; it melted after a little palm rub and was easy to apply. Recently added some coconut oil to the mix and wow! Mix is now nice and creamy and melts as soon as I put it on my hand. I also use plain shea butter on my face, nails and hands. It's a little greasy at first but quickly absorbs and leaves my skin nice and smooth and adds a little glow.
Miss TeeTee
my hair and skin hate raw shea butter (on it's own)…just too heavy…grapeseed oil on the other hand….I know i'm the only one though lol…
It's like soul glow…. but for my hair and body! I cannot live without Shea butter! I mix all of my oils with it and it leaves my hair extremely soft!
Yes, my hair definitely loves Shea and Shea-based products.
My hair HATES it! It sits on my hair, makes it dull, dry, and greasy. Butters nor oils are for me.
Shea butter has soooo many uses. There are not too many things out there that you can use from head to toe literally. It is very inexpensive as well. So just about anyone can use it.
I just got a big tub of it from Amazon! LOL I really like it, so far my hair is well moisturized from it and I dont feel any weigh down from it as well. So this is a keeper!!!
I was one of the many to profess Team No Butters on a previous post. Shea butter tended to weigh my hair down. But I have been considering revisiting it because (1) I think I was using a not so great batch of shea butter, (2) I used too much most likely, and should have mixed it with an oil, such as coconut, to make it easier to work with, or even whip it, and (3) even if I don't like it on my hair, I could always use it on my very ashy-prone skin. Lol.
my hair hates shea butter and i've tried both raw, refined, nilotica and west african. it doesn't absorb and makes my hair hard and greasy.
I really tried to love 100% pure African Shea Butter BUT it weighs my fine hair down, makes it look dull, rather dries it out and makes my skin itch. It's been that way since my younger days back in the motherland. I even tried whipping it with oils and purchasing already made ones but that didn't help.
I love raw shea butter as a face and body moisturizer. I also love it as an ingredient in water-based leave-in conditioners/moisturizers.
I love Shea Butter!!! LOVE!!! I use it when I'm rocking a wash and go and to seal my ends when I twist my hair. Also, I used it when I got a new tattoo. Nothing soothed my skin the way shea butter did.
You pulled this story straight from a page in my life's book. Absolutely love shea. Wondering how well Shea works in the face.
If you have a latex allergy, think twice before using shea butter. Just wanted to add this in case someone is unaware.
Team shea butter!
Excellent article!
I use 100% African Shea Butter mixed with coconut oil and some aloe vera gel almost exclusively and my tresses LOVE it!! My hair is a moisture hog so no problem as far as it being too greasy. I buy it online by the pound for less than 20 bucks including S&H.
I can only use shea butter on my hair if it is mixed with other oils/butters. Otherwise, it weighs my hair down too much. I love it for my skin though.
I absolutely love it. So does my skin and hair. I use it almost exclusively for twist outs and the amount of shine and softness is always on point. I always say why didn't someone tell me about the Shea earlier? I get a lb of it and add a bunch of oils to it and blend away and I'm good to go. I even got my husband addicted to it.
I want to love shea butter, but it hasn't happened for me. I only really use it if I'm keeping it in braids or twists for a few days at a time.
I love shea butter! I haven't tried it on my hair yet.
My hair loves whipped shea butter. I use a little each night to seal my ends after spraying with a water/oil mix. Too much shea can lead to crunchy, greasy hair. So only a little is needed.
I love that is it all natural as well!
~caramelcurls
I use it on my face and I only use it on my hair when I am about to get braids because it is a little to greasy for me.
Unfortunately I'm not a fan of shea butter. It leaves my hair greasy and weighs it down too much. Even if I use just a little. It's kind of frustrating because I see how amazing it works on so many naturals. Sigh…..