Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter DIY Recipe
Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter DIY Recipe
Some body butters feel soft, creamy, and a little elegant.
Creamy florals. Smooth sandalwood. Warm skin. The kind of scent that feels pretty, polished, and close to the body without being loud.
That is the mood behind Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood.
This DIY body butter recipe is for anyone who loves soft floral body-care scents with a smooth woody finish. It is made for dry areas, after-shower routines, and skin-softening days when you want something creamy, warm, and softly feminine.
What You’re Making
You are making Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter, a whipped body butter inspired by creamy ylang ylang, smooth sandalwood, warm skin, and soft after-shower body care.
This formula is weighed to about 6 oz by weight and will usually fill about one 8 oz jar by volume after whipping, depending on how much air is whipped into the butter.
Details
Prep time: 20 to 30 minutes
Chill time: 20 to 30 minutes
Makes: About one 8 oz jar by volume
Skill level: Beginner to intermediate
Method: Whipped anhydrous body butter
Scent style: Creamy, floral, woody, soft, smooth
Best for: Body butter, dry skin areas, after-shower routines, floral scent layering, soft skin routines, and warm body care
What You’ll Need
Digital scale
Heat-safe bowl
Small saucepan for double boiler
Mixing bowl
Spoon or spatula
Hand mixer or stand mixer
8 oz jar with lid
Disposable gloves, optional but helpful
Label or marker
Clean towel for workspace
Ingredients
For one 8 oz jar by volume, use:
2 oz shea butter
1.5 oz mango butter
0.75 oz solid coconut oil
1 oz fractionated coconut oil
0.60 oz jojoba oil, sunflower oil, sweet almond oil, or grapeseed oil
0.20 oz arrowroot powder or tapioca starch, optional, for a softer dry-touch feel
0.05 oz vitamin E oil, optional
0.05 to 0.08 oz skin-safe Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil or scent blend, measured by weight
Make Sure
Use a skin-safe Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil approved for leave-on body products.
Do not use candle fragrance oil unless the supplier clearly says it is safe for leave-on body care.
Do not use diffuser oil.
Do not use incense oil.
Do not use soap fragrance oil unless the supplier also approves it for leave-on body products.
This is a leave-on product, so the fragrance must stay within the supplier’s leave-on usage rate.
Body butters and body creams are usually checked under the leave-on body product category on IFRA sheets, commonly Category 5A for body lotion/body cream style products. (Soap Guild)
Ylang ylang essential oil is strong and can take over a blend quickly.
Ylang ylang essential oil may bother sensitive skin if too much is used.
Keep ylang ylang low, soft, and well diluted.
If using ylang ylang essential oil in this recipe, keep the ylang ylang portion at or below 0.03 oz for a comfortable beginner-friendly amount.
Sandalwood scent may come from sandalwood essential oil, sandalwood fragrance oil, sandalwood accord, sandalwood dilution, or a supplier-approved cosmetic scent blend.
Real sandalwood essential oil can be expensive, so check that the product is truly made for skin and not just for candles, incense, or diffusers.
Sandalwood fragrance oils and sandalwood accords must still be approved for leave-on body care.
If you blend ylang ylang and sandalwood separately, the total scent amount should still stay between 0.05 and 0.08 oz for this recipe unless your supplier allows more.
Always follow the lowest supplier usage rate when blending fragrance oils, essential oils, or aroma materials together.
This recipe is an anhydrous body butter, meaning it does not contain water.
Do not add water, aloe vera, hydrosols, tea, milk, honey, glycerin, or water-based ingredients to this recipe.
Because there is no water in this formula, it does not need a preservative if made and stored correctly.
Keep water out of the jar during use.
Use clean, dry hands or a clean spoon when scooping.
Body butter can feel rich, so a small amount is enough.
Do not use this body butter on your face, intimate areas, broken skin, irritated skin, sunburned skin, or freshly shaved skin.
Instructions
Start with a clean, dry workspace and clean tools.
Make sure your jar is clean and completely dry.
Add the shea butter, mango butter, and solid coconut oil to a heat-safe bowl.
Place the bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water to create a double boiler.
Melt the butters and coconut oil gently.
Stir slowly until everything is fully melted.
Remove the bowl from heat.
Add the fractionated coconut oil.
Add the jojoba oil, sunflower oil, sweet almond oil, or grapeseed oil.
Add the vitamin E oil if you are using it.
Stir until the oils are fully blended.
Let the mixture cool for a few minutes.
Place the bowl in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes.
Chill until the mixture looks thick, cloudy, and partly firm around the edges, but not rock hard.
Remove the bowl from the refrigerator.
Whip the mixture with a hand mixer until it becomes creamy, lighter, and fluffy.
Add the Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil or scent blend.
Add the arrowroot powder or tapioca starch if you are using it.
Whip again until the body butter looks smooth and fully blended.
Check the texture.
If the body butter feels too soft, chill it for 5 to 10 more minutes and whip again.
If the body butter feels too firm, let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes and whip again.
Spoon the whipped body butter into your clean, dry jar.
Tap the jar gently to settle the butter, but do not pack it down too tightly.
Wipe the rim clean.
Add the lid.
Label it Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter and add the date you made it.
How to Use It
Use Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter on clean, dry skin.
Apply a small amount to arms, legs, elbows, knees, feet, and dry areas.
Use after a shower when skin is dry but still slightly warm.
Massage gently until the butter melts into the skin.
Start with a small scoop because this is a rich body butter.
Reapply as needed if your skin tolerates it well.
Avoid using right before putting on delicate clothing because oils can transfer.
Do not use on irritated skin.
Do not use right after shaving if your skin is sensitive.
Parlor Scent Lab Notes
Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood should smell creamy, floral, woody, warm, and smooth.
The ylang ylang gives the body butter a soft tropical floral note.
The sandalwood adds creamy wood, smoothness, and a polished skin-scent finish.
Together, they should smell like warm skin, soft florals, creamy wood, and rich body butter after a slow shower.
This scent should not smell too heady.
It should not smell too powdery.
It should not smell like incense.
It should feel soft, creamy, smooth, and close to the skin.
Shea butter gives the body butter richness.
Mango butter helps make the texture smoother and less heavy.
Solid coconut oil adds a creamy body-care feel, but too much can make the butter softer or more melt-prone.
Fractionated coconut oil helps the butter glide on more easily.
Jojoba, sunflower, sweet almond, or grapeseed oil help soften the skin feel.
Arrowroot powder or tapioca starch can make the butter feel less greasy, but too much can make it feel powdery.
Vitamin E oil is optional. It can help slow oil oxidation, but it is not a preservative.
If your home is warm, this body butter may soften or melt. For a firmer version next time, reduce the solid coconut oil slightly and increase the mango butter.
Keep the color soft. White, cream, pale yellow, warm ivory, or very light blush works best for the Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood look.
Do not add dried flowers, petals, sandalwood powder, sugar, food extracts, milk, honey, or kitchen ingredients to this recipe.
If your body butter smells strange, changes texture, develops spots, becomes watery, or looks contaminated, throw it away and make a fresh batch.
Storage and Safety
Store your body butter in a cool, dry place.
Keep the jar tightly closed between uses.
Keep water out of the jar.
Do not store it in the shower.
Do not leave it in a hot car, sunny window, or warm bathroom.
Body butter can melt in heat.
If it melts and firms back up, the texture may become flatter or grainy.
Use clean, dry hands or a clean spoon to scoop the body butter.
Use within 3 to 6 months for the freshest scent and best texture.
Always patch test before using a new scented body butter all over.
Avoid using on broken skin, irritated skin, sunburned skin, freshly shaved skin, or intimate areas.
Keep away from eyes and mouth.
If irritation, itching, redness, burning, headache, or discomfort happens, stop using it.
Keep out of reach of children and pets.
If you are pregnant, have sensitive skin, or are making this for someone with health concerns, check whether ylang ylang and sandalwood are appropriate before use.
If you are selling this body butter, your formula should be properly tested, labeled, and checked for cosmetic compliance in your area.
Scent Strength
For an unscented sensitive-skin version, use:
No fragrance oil
For a very soft Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood scent, use:
0.05 oz Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil
For the regular Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood version, use:
0.06 oz Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil
For a slightly stronger but still soft leave-on scent, use:
0.08 oz Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood fragrance oil
For a sandalwood-forward version, use:
0.02 oz ylang ylang fragrance oil or ylang ylang essential oil
0.04 oz sandalwood fragrance oil, sandalwood accord, or sandalwood essential oil
For a ylang ylang-forward version, use:
0.03 oz ylang ylang fragrance oil or ylang ylang essential oil
0.03 oz sandalwood fragrance oil, sandalwood accord, or sandalwood essential oil
For a softer creamy-wood version, use:
0.02 oz ylang ylang fragrance oil or ylang ylang essential oil
0.03 oz sandalwood fragrance oil, sandalwood accord, or sandalwood essential oil
Do not add extra fragrance oil or essential oil unless your supplier’s leave-on usage rate allows it.
If using ylang ylang essential oil, keep it low. More is not better in this blend.
Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood should stay soft, creamy, floral, woody, and close to the skin.
One Last Soft Scoop
Ylang Ylang + Sandalwood Body Butter is creamy, floral, and smooth on purpose.
It is soft skin after a shower, a little ylang ylang in the air, a smooth sandalwood finish on the vanity, and that rich body-butter feeling that makes dry skin feel polished and cared for.
A small scoop, a soft rub, and there she is.
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