Stephanie Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 and now I have questions. There's oil on top, it seems like it's a bit grainy and the aloe gel (but liquid in the bottle) seems to have settled on the bottom of the jar. I followed this recipe (Thank you Spellkast!) but cut it in half:4 oz. unrefined shea, 2 oz. cocoa butter, 1 oz. olive butter and 1 oz. mango butter. Melt these all in the microwave and mix in 2 oz. sweet almond oil and 2 oz. safflower oil. Add a T of Vit. E and about a T of aloe juice. I added about 1/2 T of Carribean Coconut FO.I mixed it all together with a spoon, poured it in a jar, stuck it in the fridge to cool and that's it. Any advice? TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Lilac Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 I haven't made belly balm before but I would re melt it and mix it with a hand held mixer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ignitethesenses Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 Not sure what aloe product you're using, but it its water based you'll need an emulsifier to get the oils/butters to mix with the aloe. I've also seen "aloe oil" (aloe leaves macerated in soybean oil)...not sure what you've got... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephanie Posted December 31, 2005 Author Share Posted December 31, 2005 It is an aloe gel, not the aloe oil, which it seems is what I should have used for the balm. So I'm definitely going to need to add a preservative to it. I ordered it from From Nature With Love, but couldn't find if it is water based. I'll look further on their site. Thanks for the help!BTW, can I use beeswax as the emulsifier? And if so, how much for this recipe? Thanks, and sorry for the really basic questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Lilac Posted December 31, 2005 Share Posted December 31, 2005 Good point Jodi about needing an emulsifier ( I over looked that).Bee's wax is a good thickener, some say it's an unpredictable emulsifier though . When I use bee's wax I use 25% ratio to my oils I am using.E wax ( emulsifying wax) Binds the waters and oils together ( I prefer a vegetable e wax) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spellkast Posted January 1, 2006 Share Posted January 1, 2006 I actually did use E-wax in mine BUT, my friend insisted she didn't use any in hers, and it didn't seperate. I think she MAY have used aloe powder as opposed to juice, but not a lot of people tend to have that on hand, ya know? I don't know about the graininess, but I DEFINITELY recommend whipping it with a mixer as opposed to a spoon...it kinda "fluffs" up the balm...what I did was melt it all down, mix the ingredients for a bit, stick it in the freezer for a few minutes until it got somewhat hard and then whipped the heck out of it. It was still a semi-solid mixture, but after sitting a couple of days, it hardened up. And if you're making this for your sister, you really don't need a preservative...especially since I imagine she'll use it all before she has the baby. Just let her know not to put any water in it. Try the mixer- lemme know how it turns out!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ignitethesenses Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 If she used the Aloe Vera Gel 1:1 (the liquidy "gel") from FNWL, she will need to preserve it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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