I had no idea how easy it was to make my own lip balm at home. I also have extremely sensitive skins, and so I love that I have the ability to customize my lip balm to include precisely what I want, and nothing I don’t (beeswax, I’m looking at you)! This recipe is free of animal products, but you could use beeswax if you wanted. Make a dozen tubes all at once, and you will be well-stocked for the foreseeable future. Or, be a doll and gift these puppies ⏤ your friends will love ya. Here’s how to make your own lip balm at home. Go on, you have literally no excuse not to.
What you need
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Candelilla wax
- Natural vegetable wax extracted from the Candelilla plant
- Rich in nutrients and prevents moisture loss
- You can substitute beeswax here if you don’t require this to be vegan lip balm
Coconut oil
- Highly moisturizing
- Rich in vitamin E, antioxidants and fatty acids, it works to reduce inflammation and protect from free radicals
- Has antibacterial, antiviral and antimicrobial properties
Melissa essential oil
- Comforts breakouts, sun exposure and other lip irritations
- Soothing and healing
- Also known as lemon balm, but is not a photosensitive essential oil
OnGuard essential oil
- Supports healthy immune and respiratory function
- Supports the body’s natural antioxidant defenses
- Energizing and uplifting aroma
Shea butter
- Highly moisturizing, contains vitamins A and E
- Calms irritated skin
- Provides anti-aging properties
- Reduces stretch marks, scars and cellulite
Lip balm tubes
- I put off buying these for so long because I didn’t want to be stuck with so many lip balm containers, but they make great gifts, so share the wealth!
- They are also re-usable, so don’t toss them when you’ve run out of lip balm, just make some more and refill!
Heat-safe air-tight container
- I’ve repurposed a glass jar for this, so use what you have
- I try to repurpose old bottles and jars whenever possible, since it’s a great way to be more eco-friendly
- It doesn’t have to be glass (think ceramic, metal or stainless steel) ⏤ but it has to be air-tight and heat-safe!
Plastic pipettes
- Great for transferring liquids and precise measuring
- Work well for pouring hot wax and not burning yourself in the process
- Note: You may need to use more than one for this task, since the wax melts quickly
How to make
- Fill a lidded pot halfway with water and place on medium-low heat
- While the water warms, grab your heat-safe air-tight container and get ready to add:
- 2 tbsps of Coconut oil, 2 tbsps of Candelilla wax followed by 2 tbsps (or 1 oz) of Shea butter
- Secure the lid
- Now place the heat-safe air-tight container into the pot of warmed water add the lid back on until the wax and butter have melted
- Check on it every so often, and give it a shake to encourage it to dissolve, and be careful since the contents will be hot!
- Mine took 10 minutes to completely melt
- Once it’s fully incorporated, carefully remove the top
- Add 7 drops each of OnGuard and Melissa essential oils
- Stir to combine
- Use a plastic pipette to add the melted mixture into the lip balm tubes
- Be sure to fill as close to the top as possible
- Repeat until all lip balm tubes are full
- Allow the tubes to cool completely
- You’ll know they’ve cooled when the mixture turns from transparent to opaque in color
- Add the caps to the lip balm tubes
- All done!
Ways to use
- This recipe makes enough to fill a little over 10 standard sized lip balm tubes
- These make great gifts! Or make enough to last you a lifetime, I won’t judge
Did you make this recipe?
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