Have you ever dealt with grainy shea butter? I was horrified when I first started using shea butter. I didn't understand why it would end up with grit that felt almost like sand. After doing some research I found out that shea butter that is melted and cooled too slowly, would end up with the grainy texture. As the warmer weather creeps up, shea butter will melt down, and depending on how warm it is, will stay in liquid form. However, when it cools back down, it will often result in grainy texture. This results in the stearic acid separating from the other fats, resulting in the grainy texture.
The easiest way to fix this is by placing the shea butter in a heat proof container, and using a heat source such as a microwave or double boiler method to melt it completely.
After it is melted, stick it in the freezer and check on it periodically until it has resolidified. Then allow it to cool back down to room temperature. If your room temperature still causes it to melt, store in the fridge or simply melt it down right before each use. You want to be careful not to over heat the butter as it can lower the quality and cause any scent to vaporize.
While shea butter can be a little bit annoying to maintain during warmer weather, the small hinderance is minuscule to the amount of conditioning and softness it gives your skin.
Marquita Bell is soaper-in-chief and the owner of The BodyBuffet where foodie meets beauty. Based out of Philadelphia, The Body Buffet aims to cultivate beauty inside and out from foodie adventures, self-care tips, and via handmade artisan soap, shampoo bars, facial bars, laundry soap and more. They use local ingredients when possible and have aimed to make conditioning skin-loving, hair-loving, clothes-loving soap since 2009.
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