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I just received a pound of raw shea butter from Agbanga Karite http://www.agbangakarite.com/. 

This is the unrefined, raw, fair trade shea butter made in Sokode,Togo in Africa that I ordered Christmas morning. (http://charmscribe.com/2008/12/25/sustainable-shea-butter/)  

The raw shea butter is creamy and solid in the container and melts easily in the warmth of your hands.  This shea butter has a light, natural, nutty scent that I like.  I’ve read that shea butter stinks, but I think maybe people are talking about a rancid product.  There are no preservatives other than the naturally occuring vitamin E so you have to keep it cool and use it quickly unless you add a preservative.  I paid $8.50 for it plus shipping which was $7.50 for a total of $16.00.

·        Protective Properties:

Unrefined, raw shea butter contains cinnamic acid which provides up to SPF 6 protection against UV rays.

·        Healing Properties:

Unrefined, raw shea butter has potent levels of vitamin A and vitamin E available. 

Here is a video on how to make whipped shea butter.  

My hands are drinking in the shea butter because I have been cleaning houses for the last couple days without gloves.  I have some green cleaning products that I purchased from Melaleuca, but my parents’ house is still stocked with some harsh cleansers. Check out Grist for information on indoor pollution and the toxic chemicals that we’ve been spraying and smearing all over our homes. http://www.grist.org/advice/possessions/2003/03/18/possessions-cleaning/index.html Grist also has green product suggestions.

I love the Melaleuca products, especially their thyme oil botanical disinfectant, but there is a lot you can do with simple ingredients like baking soda, vinegar, lemons and borax.  Baking soda scours and deodorize. White vinegar is acidic and can be used like an all purpose cleaner diluted with water.  ½ cup of vinegar can be added to the rinse cycle of your wash instead of fabric softener.

Changes I can make today:

Phosphates

Chlorine

Phtalates

Tags: african american skin care, African shea butter, black skin care, body, body butter, body butter recipes, bulk shea butter, dry skin, fair trade, green cleaning, natural ingredients, natural skin care, raw shea butter, shea butter, shea butter for hair, shea butter properties, shea nut butter

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 6th, 2009 at 10:05 am and is filed under Uncategorized, natural body care. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.