Shea Butter for Hair.

Raw butter and shea-based formulas

Two different things share this shelf. Raw shea butter is the unrefined nut butter itself, sold in a tub, solid at room temperature and smelling faintly nutty. Ghana's Best Pure Shea Butter in the 10oz tub and Kuza 100 percent Pure African Shea Butter Chunky at 283g both sit in that group.

Shea-based formulas are shampoos, conditioners, creams and gels with shea worked in alongside water and other ingredients. The Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter line, Cantu Shea Butter Moisturising Cream Shampoo at 400ml and the Double Sheen Shea Butter trio all belong here. They spread more easily and are far less likely to build up.

Reading the label

Unrefined means the butter has not been bleached or deodorised. It keeps more of its natural colour, anywhere from ivory to yellow, and it smells of nuts rather than of nothing. Refined shea is white, odourless and slightly less rich.

Chunky, as in the Kuza tub, simply means it has not been whipped, so it arrives in lumps you soften in your hands. Whipped shea is airier and spreads with less effort.

Using it without ending up greasy

Raw shea butter is a sealant rather than a moisturiser. On dry hair it forms a coating and nothing gets in. Order matters: water or a leave-in first, then oil if you use one, then shea butter on top. That is the C in a LOC routine doing its job.

A pea-sized amount, warmed between the palms until it turns clear, covers a whole section on medium-length hair. If your hands still feel coated when you have finished, you used too much. For a lighter option, Mazuri Shea Butter Naturals Leave In Oil Moisturiser at 355ml or Creme Of Nature Mango and Shea Butter Leave-In at 250ml give the softness without the wax.

Winter, summer and hard water

Shea comes into its own in winter. Indoor heating drops humidity to around 30 percent, hair loses water to the air, and a sealing butter slows that down. It is the one time of year when most people can use the raw tub without it feeling like too much.

Summer is trickier. At 75 to 90 percent humidity, a thick butter tends to leave hair limp rather than protected, so a finishing product such as Cantu Shea Butter Style Stay Frizz-Free Finisher at 5oz does more. Because shea is heavy, hard water across the south-east compounds build-up, so clarify monthly if the raw tub is a regular part of your routine.

Who it suits

Dense 4a to 4c hair and locs get the most from raw shea. Coarse strands take the weight, and the coating helps hold moisture through a full week.

Fine 2a to 3a hair usually does better with a shea-based cream or shampoo than with the raw butter. If you have tried raw shea and hated it, that is probably why, rather than anything being wrong with the butter.