carol k Posted June 27, 2006 Share Posted June 27, 2006 ok was at a craft show, temp upper 80's my whipped shea melted, now back to solid, but it fell and looks grainy. can i just remelt and rewhip?thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CareBear Posted June 27, 2006 Share Posted June 27, 2006 I would say try it. But if it remains grainy you might have to "temper" it. I think you melt it to 170 and hold it there for 20 minutes.What kind of shea did you use? Refined? And from where did you get it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carol k Posted June 27, 2006 Author Share Posted June 27, 2006 i used the shea from just scents, it doesn't say if its ultra refined or just refined, but as white as it is i think it's ultra refined. thanks for your help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hibiscus Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 When I first started with B&B, whipped shea butter was one of my first experiments and whenever the temps rise the butter falls. I had a few people test it and unless they kept it at room temp somewhere around 72-74 the butter would melt. I make it only for my personal use because shipping it will eventually become a problem. I do believe that you can make a simple body butter and whip the crap out of it and tweak here and there with fco, beeswax, cyclo, ect and come up with something very close to a pure whipped shea. If someone else knows how to make it totally pure and keep it from melting in high temps perhaps they will chime in. I do think you can melt it and allow it to set and whip it again..I don't have my notes with me...try it is the best way to find out:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristinesShower Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 I have heard that if you use the unrefined and it melts, it keeps its consistancy. I have a body butter that I got from a company that had unrefined shea in it and it melted and never lost that buttery consistancy even when it solidified again.If you can get past the smell, I think it may be worth a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carol k Posted June 29, 2006 Author Share Posted June 29, 2006 hey just melted it back down and rewhipped it and it's fine again. got somemore hot shows coming up do ya think it will look to stupid to have them sitting on an ice pack. man that could be a selling point would sure get people looking to see what in the hell's going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hibiscus Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 But what will they think when they get it home and it melts and turns grainy? I suppose you can always suggest to keep in a cool place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CareBear Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 I have the Agbanga unrefined. I wanted to consolidate the end into a smaller container so Imelted and poured it.Well when it finally hardened IT WAS GRAINY. The grains were not as hard as in the refined (those were positively sandy), but I was not pleased.I put it in a double boiler and held it at about 175-180 for the 20 minutes and then put it into a clean container. Let's see what happens.... (takes 2 days to harden here though cause I don't have the AC on yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meridith Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 Carol make sure to let us know how it does when it sets up. I have never been able to keep my shea butter whipped. I got frustrated and put this project on the back burner. But I would love to know how yours turns out. Did you just melt it or did you whip it too? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carol k Posted June 29, 2006 Author Share Posted June 29, 2006 yep, just remelted and whipped the crap out of it and it's fine again. i think i will add a sticker on my jar to keep in a cool place or it will melt and possibly brcome grainy. as for my unrefined shea that i melt and pour into smaller containers, the quicker i can get it cool the less time it has for the grains to form i stick it in the fridge or the freezer and i have not had any trouble with grainyness. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hibiscus Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 I put it in a double boiler and held it at about 175-180 for the 20 minutes and then put it into a clean container. Let's see what happens.... (takes 2 days to harden here though cause I don't have the AC on yet!I read that heating shea at high temps will destroy most or all of the vitamins and good stuff in it. Read that shortly after I started working with it. So, when I warm my other oils I add the shea and emu after they have all set..and then I beat the crap out of them!. Honestly I never used a thermometer until I started soaping. It's not hard to tell the difference between hot, warm and cold by touch:D I never have issues with grains and I've used agbanga shea and OBN. unrefined. don't bother with refined. I understand about the storage issue. i found some pretty large plastic canisters at the family dollar and used those after my supply got low. But to start I used old laundry buckets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CareBear Posted June 29, 2006 Share Posted June 29, 2006 THIS Carol just re-melted but didn't re-whip. I've melted Agbanga shea before, and to put it into pots to give to friends and there was no graininess. I don't know what happened to this particular batch. If it's still grainy after the tempering I'm gonna tear my hair out, and then use the full pound on myself - should only last me 10 years or so!HIB, I only did that to try to temper it to get the grains out. Normally I heat it as little as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coloresse Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 For personal use, I *love* whipped, unrefined shea. I never thought about it, but after reading this thread I played around with it a bit. It does seem to stay fluffy even after melting. I store it in the fridge. But I agree with IKS, that smoky/nutty scent is an acquired taste. At first I thought it was the strangest stuff! But after I'd used it a few times, it makes my skin feel so silky smooth that I don't care about the 'natural' eau de bonfire. I just add some EO which tempers that a bit.This is a good thread. Keep em coming! I need help working on a retailable whipped body butter/frosting. I keep seeing lots of stearate(s) in the samples I've purchased. Maybe that's another key? I am reading, researching and testing. Multibase was going to be my next experiment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coloresse Posted July 20, 2006 Share Posted July 20, 2006 .... If it's still grainy after the tempering I'm gonna tear my hair out, and then use the full pound on myself - should only last me 10 years or so!Hi Carol, I had to laugh out loud when I read this. A few years ago, I purchased my first unrefined shea in a co-op, not really knowing what the heck I would do with it. At only $5/pound, I bought two. After actually geting to "know" the stuff, I realized just how far an itty-bitty dab went. Then I looked at the huge slab of butter and thought HOLY COW, I will be slathering myself in shea for eons. Two pounds...sheesh! But hey, far be it for me to pass up a bargain. ROFL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gagal40 Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 I just made a small batch of whipped shea butter...I used Kimberly's receipe.Let me mention..this is first time I made this item...welll I couldn't even get it to a whipped...I quite with it, poured it in bottles...well after reading some of the replies re SWB..I decided to try again..I empted one bottle, whipped it, put it in the freezer and repeated until it became whipped. I put it in jars, now I'm going to see if it stays whipped...Mine is grainy also..but I put some on my arms and I noticed that when I rub it in good the grainyness goes away. Well just thouht I would pass it along."If first you don't succeed...try, try again!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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