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4th and 5th: Yorkville Junior Women's Club 26th Annual Fall Craft and Vendor Show @Beecher Center, Game Farm Rd, Yorkville, IL.   11th and 12th: Jerk, Seafood and Vegan Fest. @Washington Park-55th and Cottage Rd. Chicago   19th: Black Business Fashion and Vendor Show. @South Shore Cultural Center, Chicago   25th: Butterfield Park District Fall Fest @21W730 Butterfield Rd. Lombard, IL. From 10am to 4pm.   26th: Chicago Vegan Test Kitchen. TBA  

How to Make Shea Butter from Shea Seeds? After 20 years in the soil (yes 20 years!!!), the shea tree produces its first fruit and reaches its full production capacity at the 45 years mark. The fruit has a sweet taste, which probably gives the butter its nutritional properties. The shea seeds can be obtained after the fruit is eaten. While there are several different processes to making shea butter from shea seeds, here is a simple, step-by-step process: Cracking & Pounding Crack the shell of the shea seed with your hand to obtain the shea nut. After you have...

How can shea butter help you!     by Xpressive Mocha on September 22 What is it? Shea butter is fat that’s extracted from the nuts of the shea tree. It’s solid at warm temperatures and has an off-white or ivory color. Shea trees are native to West Africa, and most shea butter still comes from that region. Shea butter has been used as a cosmetic ingredient for centuries. Its high concentration of vitamins and fatty acids whipped into a easy-to-spread consistency makes it a great product for smoothing, soothing, and conditioning your skin. Lets take a look through many of the benefits....

The scientific name is Vitellaria Paradoxa (formerly Butyrospermum parkii) comes from the Kartie tree, also called the Shea tree. It can only be found in Africa. Over 2800 miles, the Shea tree expands from Eastern Ethiopia across to Senegal of the West. Shea butter comes from the Shea kernel or seed (some state "nut") that are boiled. Once the oil floats to the surface, it is skimmed off. Shea kernels are cooled and crushed to extract, to what we know as, Shea butter.   Some health benefits of Shea butter.  Shea butter helps increase circulation to the skin. Delays the aging...