{Win a free homemade lip balm! Details at the end of the post!}
I have always been a lip gloss/lip balm addict. I can’t even begin to tell you how many different brands and flavors I’ve had throughout my adolescence. I used to collect Lip Smackers, and every year when I was younger, I would get a stocking full of different flavors for Christmas. I’ve used Chapstick, Burt’s Bees, Blistex, Avon/mark., Clinique, Cover Girl, Maybelline… I can go on and on! I always had rough, dry lips and so I had to carry two lip balms with me wherever I went {in case I lost one!}
Lately, I’ve been trying to cut down on my spending {as you know} and consider the environmental effects of my cosmetics in general. I mean, think about it – what do you do when you’re finished with your lip gloss or balm? Probably just throw out its container, right? I know I do. And, most of the time, I don’t even know what goes into the lip gloss that I’m putting on my lips. So, today I made my own lip balm in a tin container, which I can reuse when I run out. I called it “Sami Jo’s Mind-Your-Own-Beeswax Lip Balm!” :D
Yes, I realize it’s not a huge step towards cutting down my carbon footprint, but I feel that every little bit counts. I’m beginning a mission to create all of my own cosmetics, and this is my first step. Here’s how I did it:
Ingredients: {yields 1 oz of lip balm}
- 1 oz tin
- 2 tablespoons grated beeswax or beeswax pastilles
- 3 tablespoons coconut, castor, sunflower, or jojoba oil
- 2 teaspoons vitamin E oil {optional, but I recommend it for its super-moisturizing effects}
- 12-14 drops essential oil {I used about 10 vanilla and 4 coconut, optional, just for scent}
- 2 teaspoons honey {optional, adds a little flavor & scent}
Directions:
- Melt the beeswax and oils {but not the essential oil} together in the top of a double boiler, stirring semi-frequently to combine. If you don’t have a double boiler, put the beeswax and oils in a Pyrex measuring cup within a pot of water like so:
- Once melted, carefully remove from heat and add in the essential oil(s) and honey, stir until honey has melted into the rest of the mixture.
- Poor into your tin, let cool for about 20 minutes and voilà! Your very own lip balm!
A tip on finding ingredients: most can be found at your local organic supermarket (Whole Foods) or farmer’s market if you live near one. I had a hard time finding beeswax, so I ended up buying most of my ingredients online from Mountain Rose Herbs. They are wonderful! They stock practically everything you could ever dream of using to create your own cosmetics, plus tons of dried herbs, teas, incense, etc., and everything is certified organic. They also sell tins, jars, and plastic bottles. I love them.
To win the free Sami Jo’s Mind-Your-Own-Beeswax Lip Balm, just leave a comment, and make sure you leave your e-mail address so we can contact you for shipping information! There’s only one up for grabs! Winner will be selected Saturday, December 12th!
Love the site! Best of luck to you Sami and Mish. Cannot believe you went and made your own Beeswax, very cool. Curious about the differences between the oils you listed as optional — coconut, castor, etc. which one did you use and why? Which do you recommend? And how did you like the way it turned out? OK, thank you.
Pam
PS Please enter my name to WIN. I want to try it, but I’d really love to give it to my niece, Katelyn, who would absolutely love this.
Thanks for the comment & luck, Pam! Of course you’re entered to win! :]
As for the oils, these are all called “carrier oils” because they are used to “carry” different aromatherapeutic scents and also sometimes bind ingredients together when making cosmetics. There are dozens of types to choose from, each with different properties. Coconut oil has super-moisturizing qualities and that yummy coconut smell… I chose to use castor oil in this case though because I wanted to make my lip balm as scentless and hypoallergenic as possible, though I do intend on using coconut oil for future lip balm experimenting. Hope this helped!
you ladies made it?! you’re the coolest kids I know :-*
hey, this is awesome! i’ve made my own lip glosses from mixing cheapo stuff with my own flavours and colours, but never from scratch. i’ve got to try this, nice job. =P
Hi Paisley, thanks for the comment! I looove making stuff from scratch, especially since you know everything that goes into your products. To be honest, it wasn’t that pricey buying all of the ingredients because I bought in bulk from mountainroseherbs.com. If you ever want to give it a shot with purely certified-organic ingredients, buy everything from them! They’re so great! :)
thsi is really nice! :) I want to do something like this soon, but im not sure if i can find it in normal stores since i cant buy online :( Is this lipgloss very liquidy? Cause i was thinking about pouring it into a finished burt bees lip balm thingy D:
Huma, if there are farmer’s markets or local farms near you, you may be able to buy most of these ingredients there. You can also find them at natural/organic grocery stores like Whole Foods Market and possibly Trader Joe’s. This is actually more of a lip balm than a lip gloss, meaning it’s about the same consistency of Burt’s Bees lip balm, so you could definitely pour it into one of their empty tubes. This recipe makes 1oz of lip balm, however, and each Burt’s Bees tube is 0.15 oz, so you’ll have a lot of lip balm left over. I suggest pouring the rest into other empty lip balm tubes, or small clean containers or tins you may have :)
Omg thanks for posting this site, I love it! I bought a huge tub of raw shea butter at the Big E and have been looking around for affordable essential oils to scent it with since it’s kind of smelly on it’s own. I’m also super-inspired to make my own lip balm now (in addition to the cupcake soap I plan to make for Christmas gifts). I can’t wait to try it out! :o)
I love all of your homemade products! I have just been brousing your whole site, (thanks to stumbleupon.com) and I want to try all of it! Thanks for all the tips, keep posting your stuff! :)
Hi Stephanie! Thanks for the comment and welcome to Poor & Pretty! I’m so glad you like the DIY cosmetic posts — they’re my favorites to write! :)