just curious.has anyone used the cocoa butter sticks or shea butter etc.as a preshave .by stick i mean it is a tube with a push up bottom which exposes the stick which you rub on the skin as a spot moisturizer.usually found in the ethnic skin care sections.these sticks are available in a variety of formulations.
cocoa butter
- Thread starter urr-lord
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I do use shea butter as a pre-shave and it works well for me.
I buy the shea butter in 5 pound blocks off eBay, which is cheaper than buying it a stick at a time. I use it as a skin moisturizer for my whole body as well as the pre-shave. A block will last my whole family for a year.
As for the pre-shave, it also works really well if followed by a hot towel treatment. I have not noticed it interfering with the performance of the shaving brush.
I buy the shea butter in 5 pound blocks off eBay, which is cheaper than buying it a stick at a time. I use it as a skin moisturizer for my whole body as well as the pre-shave. A block will last my whole family for a year.
As for the pre-shave, it also works really well if followed by a hot towel treatment. I have not noticed it interfering with the performance of the shaving brush.
I love using cocoa butter as a skin conditioner, but I've never thought about using it as a pre-shave. Its consistency makes me think it would clog up the razor pretty badly, but I could be wrong.
Tim
Tim
You may be right for a DE. I an using a Feather AC straight, so I don't have clogging problems.
Using a hot towel treatment after applying the butter would soften it and make it more of a cocoa oil and prevent clogging in a DE.
Hmm. Interesting. Do you store shea butter at room temperature or does it need to be kept chilled? I might give that a try, especially since a pound of the stuff goes for 6 or 8 dollars.
I store it at room temperature without any problems. I have also stored it in a freezer with the same results.
It makes a good moisturizer if you put a small amount in a microwave at 50% power for 30 - 60 seconds to soften it up. Then you can add essential oils or a cologne scent and whip it with a fork. Let this sit at room temperature to re-harden and use as a body lotion and/ or pre-shave and / or post shave. Or you can use it as it comes.
There are 2 types generally sold. West African and East African. The East variety has less natural odor but it is more pricey and hard to come by. The east variety also absorbs better into the skin as a moisturizer (YMMV). Refined shea is cleaned up with chemicals but it also destroys the natural vitamins and healing properties. The odor of the west african variety is a natural odor that develops during naturally processing the shea and is not objectionable.
You can buy deodorized refined shea, but it contains harsh chemicals other than pure shea. This text from the site listed below explains why it is not the best choice:
Only pure, unrefined shea butter has the true healing and moisturizing properties of shea butter. Most shea butter available to the general public outside West Africa is white and odorless, in other words it has been "refined" to remove the natural scent and color of natural shea butter. In the process, the majority of the effective agents are also removed. In addition, refined shea butter has usually been extracted from the shea kernels with hexane or other petroleum solvents. The extracted oil is boiled to drive off the toxic solvents, and then refined, bleached, and deodorized, which involves heating it to over 400¡F and the use of harsh chemicals, such as sodium hydroxide. Shea butter extracted in this manner still contains some undesirable solvent residues, and its healing values are significantly reduced. Antioxidants or preservatives such as BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) or BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) may be added as well. The end result is an odorless, white butter that may be aesthetically appealing, but lacks the true moisturizing, healing, and nutritive properties of true traditional shea butter. In addition, refined shea butter is often hard and grainy, not smooth and creamy like pure, unrefined shea butter. All that can be said for refined shea butter is that it has an extended shelf life, a white, uniform color, and no odor.
Sources of chemical free shea butter other than eBay
Thanks for the links. I have a cousin-in-law who was born in togo (his parents worked over there as doctors), so I may go through that agbanga karite site. Beats the heck out of paying for hypo-allergenic unscented lotion with a bunch of weird chemicals in it.
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