What Is Body Frosting? Ultimate Guide to Benefits, Uses and Recipes

What Is Body Frosting?

Body frosting is a whipped body butter that glides onto skin, leaving it soft, smooth, and glowing. It has a lightweight, creamy texture similar to frosting that melts into your skin without feeling heavy or greasy. Body frostings are enriched with skin-nourishing ingredients like plant-based oils, butters, and waxes that hydrate, protect, and replenish skin.

Key Benefits of Using Body Frosting

There are many benefits to using a body frosting on your skin:

• Deeply moisturizes - Ingredients like shea butter, cocoa butter, and plant oils provide intense hydration to replenish dry skin.
• Softens skin - The whipped, creamy texture leaves skin feeling incredibly soft and smooth.
• Brightens complexion - Some body frostings contain skin-brightening ingredients like vitamin C to improve skin tone and illuminate dull skin.
• Soothes irritation - Nourishing plant oils like aloe vera and jojoba oil calm and soothe irritated skin.
• Protects skin - Antioxidants from botanical extracts help defend skin from environmental damage.
• Enhances glow - Light-reflecting pearls and minerals impart a gorgeous, lit-from-within glow.

How to Use Body Frosting

Using a body frosting is simple! Follow these tips:

1. Apply after showering or bathing when skin is clean and slightly damp. This helps the product absorb better.
2. Scoop a small amount of body frosting onto your hands, arms, legs or anywhere that needs moisture.
3. Gently massage the body frosting into your skin using upward, circular motions until it has fully absorbed. Don't rub too vigorously.
4. Pay special attention to dry areas like knees, elbows and heels.
5. If desired, layer a SMALL amount of additional product on extra dry spots for intense moisture.
6. For best results, use your body frosting daily after bathing and before bed.

Ingredients to Look For

When shopping for a nourishing body frosting, look for these skin-loving ingredients:

Plant-Based Oils

Plant oils like coconut oil, olive oil, almond oil, argan oil and more provide essential fatty acids and vitamins to moisturize skin. Look for organic, unrefined oils.

Butters

Rich butters like shea, cocoa and mango add creamy texture. Shea butter excellently softens, smoothes and protects skin thanks to vitamins A and E.

Beeswax

Beeswax acts as an emulsifier and thickening agent to create the frosting-like texture. It also forms a protective barrier on skin to lock in moisture and shield from irritants.

Humectants

Humectants like glycerin, honey and hyaluronic acid draw moisture from the environment into skin to optimize hydration levels.

Antioxidants

Antioxidants such as vitamin E, green tea and resveratrol counteract skin-aging free radicals and soothe inflammation or irritation.

DIY Body Frosting Recipe

Want to whip up your own lush body frosting at home? Try this easy DIY recipe:

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 cup mango butter
• 1⁄2 cup coconut oil
• 1⁄4 cup cocoa butter
• 2 tbsp jojoba oil
• 2 tbsp vitamin E oil
• 10 drops essential oil (optional)

Method

1. Using a double boiler, melt the mango butter, coconut oil and cocoa butter until liquified.
2. Remove from heat and let cool slightly before whisking in the jojoba oil, vitamin E oil and essential oils if using.
3. Place bowl in refrigerator for 30-60 minutes, whisking every 15 minutes, until frosting reaches fluffy texture.
4. Scoop into a jar and smooth the top. Allow to set in fridge for 2 hours before using.
5. Store excess in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Tips for Using Body Frosting

Follow these tips to get the most out of your body frosting:

• Exfoliate first - Remove dead skin with a body scrub so your frosting absorbs better.
• Use sparingly - A little goes a long way since it's highly concentrated. Too much leaves a greasy feel.
• Apply to damp skin - Water helps the humectants pull moisture into your skin.
• Focus on dry spots - Heels, knees, elbows and hands soak up butters best.
• Reapply as needed - Carry a travel-size jar for touch-ups when skin feels tight or dry.
• Layer on seasonally - Use lighter gels in summer and richer frostings in winter.

Whipped Body Frosting vs. Body Butter

Body frosting and body butter may sound quite similar but they have some distinct differences:

Texture

Body frostings have a featherlight, fluffy, mousse-like texture while body butters are denser and more balm-like.

Ingredients

Frostings tend to have more oils and less wax than butters. This makes them melt into skin faster despite the whipped texture.

Benefits

The ultra-smooth frosting texture may feel more elegant gliding over skin. But the richer body butters provide more intensive moisturizing power.

Uses

Frostings are ideal for normal to dry skin that needs everyday nourishment. Butters excel at extremely parched skin from conditions like eczema.

Ultimately, body frostings and butters both wonderfully hydrate skin - it just depends on your preferences and skincare needs!

FAQs

What's the difference between body frosting and body butter?

Body frostings have a lighter, whipped, mousse-like texture that melts into skin faster compared to the denser, balmier texture of body butters. Frostings tend to contain more oils while butters have more wax. Both provide excellent hydration but body butters are richer for extremely dry skin.

Can I make my own body frosting at home?

Yes, it's easy to DIY body frosting! Simply melt carrier oils and butters like coconut oil, shea butter and cocoa butter with emollient oils before cooling and whipping. Add skin-nourishing ingredients like vitamin E or essential oils too. Store your homemade frosting in an airtight container.

When should I apply body frosting?

Apply body frosting after showering or bathing while your skin is still damp to seal in hydration. Smooth gently onto any areas that feel dry daily, especially high-use spots like hands, knees and elbows. You can also use as needed throughout the day if skin starts to feel tight.

Does body frosting suit all skin types?

Most body frostings are suitable for all skin types, even sensitive skin, because they use gentle ingredients like plant oils and butters. Opt for a lighter gel-frosting in oilier summer months while nourishing ointment frostings excel for dry winter skin. Do a patch test if concerned about allergies.