While there is no 100% method of preventing stretch marks, adding moisturizers to your skin can help it to stretch more effectively. You can still get stretch marks if your skin is stretched beyond its natural capacity. But applying moisturizers, like belly butter, can aide in the stretching of your skin.
You may apply a moisturizer and still end up with stretch marks, and that’s ok! My opinion is that stretch marks are not a bad thing, they’re actually quite beautiful. They tell the story of the little life that you grew and sustained with your body. Whether you’re trying to avoid stretch marks or not, you still need to moisturize your skin on a regular basis. As your skin stretches, it can get itchy and uncomfortable. Using moisturizers daily can help alleviate the itch and allow your skin to stretch a bit easier.
Why do I prefer a natural belly butter?
You can easily spend hundreds on store bought, chemical filled lotions and moisturizers. But you can spend a fraction of that cost on ingredients to make your own. Making a homemade belly butter is super easy, and you’re able to better see what exactly is going into your body.
As someone who is very conscious about what they put in and on their body, it’s very important to me to know what is absorbing into my skin. Did you know that whatever is put on our skin absorbs into your bloodstream within about 60 seconds of contact? Especially when I’m growing a little baby inside, I try to be very careful to use clean products on my body.
Most of the ingredients in this belly butter are pure enough to eat. Which means they’re pure enough to go on the skin that’s covering my baby!
The ingredient list
This recipe is super simple and the ingredient list is pretty short!
You’ll need:
- Shea butter
- Olive oil
- Coconut oil
- Beeswax
- Arrowroot Powder
- Jojoba oil (optional)
- Vanilla
- You’re welcome to add whatever essential oils you’d like for scent purposes. My recipe, however, has none.
This recipe can be doubled or tripled, however, it does make enough to last about three to six months. That’s quite a bit! For sake of freshness, I usually only make one batch at a time.
Why these ingredients?
- Shea butter is an antioxidant-rich, moisturizing, buttery oil that promotes skin healing.
- Olive oil is a moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, and promotes healing wounds and skin regeneration.
- Coconut oil is very moisturizing. It also helps with wound healing, and is a natural antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial.
- Beeswax is a natural antibacterial, great for sensitive skin, and protects your skin from dry weather. It also doesn’t block your pores, which is a huge benefit. Especially if you have naturally acne prone skin.
- Jojoba oil (which is the only ingredient in this recipe that you shouldn’t ingest. It’s only for use on your skin as it can hurt your stomach) has a very high vitamin E content. Vitamin E is used in many face creams as it naturally promotes skin health. It’s a very healing, regenerative ingredient. It also naturally improves your skins’ elasticity and is incredibly moisturizing.
- Arrowroot powder. I use arrowroot powder in this recipe to make it less greasy. Arrowroot is a natural antifungal and antibacterial so it’s actually very good for the skin. It can be super drying to the skin when used alone so I don’t recommend using it regularly alone unless it’s mixed with other ingredients like it is here. in this recipe, it helps neutralize the heavy greasy affect that the olive oil can give.
- Vanilla is not just for making this body butter smell amazing. Vanilla also has many anti-inflammatory properties. Vanilla beans are also a natural antibacterial and antioxidant. Vanilla has been used to reduce skin infections, calm irritated skin, and heal wounds for thousands of years.
How to assemble the whipped belly butter
Melt 1/2 cup coconut oil, 1/2 cup Shea butter, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup beeswax, and 2 tablespoons jojoba oil in a glass bowl over a pot of boiling water. You can also use a double boiler if you have one. Once it’s completely melted and totally combined, place the mixture in a cold space for about 15 to 20 minutes. Once the mixture is firm, (not completely hard) test it by pushing your finger into it. If the imprint of your finger stays, it’s ready!
Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and 2 teaspoons of arrowroot powder.
Whip the butter with a handheld mixer (or a stand mixer works too) for 5 to 10 minutes. Once you reach the whipped consistency that you would like, turn off your mixer.
Use a spatula to scrape your belly butter into some type of glass jar. I prefer a jar with a wide mouth so I can get it out easily.
Apply to your belly as needed. I’ve used this once a day in the summer time and up to three times a day in the winter.
Store it in a sealed container in a cool, dry place.
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