Soft & Silky Shea and Cocoa Butter Bath Melts

Cocoa butter bath melts are made by melting cocoa butter with shea butter, stirring in a scent or botanical and setting the mix in a tray. This Baraka recipe makes three 1.7 fl oz (50 ml) melts. Baraka shea butter is unrefined and made by hand by the women of the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Wa, Ghana, as are Baraka's shea oil, African black soap, kombo butter and baobab oil.

Cocoa butter bath melts: how to make them

Melt 4.2 oz (120 g) of shea butter with 1.1 oz (30 g) of cocoa butter. Let the mix cool for 10 to 15 minutes, then stir in your scent and botanical, pour it into a tray and chill it until solid.

The two butters do different jobs. Shea butter is solid at room temperature and melts on contact with skin. Cocoa butter is hard and brittle at room temperature, harder than shea, and melts at close to body temperature. It is used where a firm, stable product is wanted, so it gives the melts their shape. Baraka Cocoa Butter is unrefined, unbleached and undeodorised, so it keeps the chocolate smell of the bean. The recipe uses four parts shea to one part cocoa by weight.

Ingredients

• 4.2 oz (120 g) Baraka Shea Butter
• 1.1 oz (30 g) Baraka Cocoa Butter
• Optional: 15 to 20 drops (about 0.75 to 1 g) of your favourite skin-safe essential oil or blend
• Optional: 3 tbsp (45 ml) of your favourite botanical or salt

Leave out the optional ingredients for very sensitive skin. Do not use bergamot or lemon essential oil in a leave-on recipe, because both are phototoxic. Use sweet orange at the same number of drops, or leave the essential oil out.

Directions

1. Using the double boiler method, melt the shea butter and cocoa butter together until no chunks remain.
2. Remove the butters from the heat and let them cool at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before adding any essential oil. This improves the butters' ability to hold the scent.
3. Add 3 tbsp (45 ml) of your botanical or salt and stir gently until combined. The cooling step keeps the salt from dissolving too much.
4. Pour the butters into a silicone tray, or a tray of your choice, in 1.7 fl oz (50 ml) sections.
5. Refrigerate the tray until the butters have thickened enough to hold a sprinkle on top, which takes around 15 minutes depending on your additions. Add a sprinkle of botanical or salt, then refrigerate again until solid.
6. Remove the melts from the tray. For best results, pat dry after your bath and massage the oils into your skin.

These make your skin and your bathtub extra smooth, so take care getting into and out of the tub.

Storage

Keep the melts in a closed container in a cool place, away from heat and direct sun. Cocoa butter melts close to body temperature, so a warm room will soften them.

Cocoa butter may develop a pale bloom on the surface after a change in temperature. This is a change in crystal structure, not spoilage, and it disappears on melting. Baraka Shea Butter on its own keeps 2+ years when stored properly, away from heat and direct sun.

Shea butter bath: how to use shea butter in the tub

The easiest way to take a shea butter bath is with a bath melt like the one above. Shea butter is solid at room temperature and melts on contact with skin, and it makes up 80% of this melt by weight.

Baraka Shea Butter is unrefined, strained and filtered only, with no refining, bleaching or deodorising. Its natural colour runs from ivory through cream to pale yellow and varies between batches, so your melts may differ slightly from one tray to the next. A mild nutty smell is normal and is not a fault. Shea butter is traditionally used on dry skin, lips, hands, feet and hair, which is why it suits a melt you massage in after the bath.

Butters for bath soaks: which to choose

For bath melts, shea butter and cocoa butter make a good pair. Shea is the softer butter and melts on contact with skin. Cocoa butter is harder and holds a shape. A mix of four parts shea to one part cocoa sets into a melt you can lift from a tray and still use easily.

If you use more cocoa butter, expect a firmer, more brittle melt. If you use more shea butter, expect a softer one.

Virgin coconut oil is another option for bath products. It is solid below about 75°F (24°C) and a clear liquid above it, so it moves between the two states with the temperature of the room. This is normal and does not affect quality. Baraka Virgin Coconut Oil is virgin grade, meaning unrefined, unbleached and undeodorised, and it keeps its fresh coconut aroma.

Quick answers

Cocoa butter bath melts

To make cocoa butter bath melts, melt 30 grams of Baraka Cocoa Butter with 120 grams of Baraka Shea Butter, stir in essential oil and a botanical or salt, then set the mix in a tray. The recipe makes three 50 ml melts. Cocoa butter is hard at room temperature, which helps the melts hold their shape, and it keeps its natural chocolate smell. More in INGREDIENTS

Shea butter bath

For a shea butter bath, make these bath melts with Baraka Shea Butter and Cocoa Butter, which hydrate and soften skin. Pat dry after the bath and massage the leftover oils into your skin. The melts also leave the tub slippery, so take care getting in and out. More in DIRECTIONS

Butters for bath soaks

Shea butter and cocoa butter work well together for bath soaks. This recipe uses 4.2 oz (120g) of Baraka Shea Butter to 1 oz (30g) of Baraka Cocoa Butter. Shea melts on contact with skin, and the harder cocoa butter helps the melts set firm. More in INGREDIENTS