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To make your own lip balm, you can use our basic recipe and then adapt it to your liking. Lip balm also makes the perfect gift or small present.
Make your own lip balm: The basic recipe for small jars
Lips are basically just skin that needs to be cared for. Therefore, your main focus should be on nourishing ingredients. To make lip balm, you will need the following ingredients:
- 5 to 8 grams of beeswax
- 5 grams of vegetable oil (this can be jojoba oil, almond oil, or coconut oil)
- 5 grams of butter (shea butter or cocoa butter)
- A 5-milliliter glass jar or an empty lipstick tube (we recommend looking at specialty glass retailers, as Amazon often only sells large quantities of jars)
- A precision scale that remains accurate even with small quantities
- Optional: cosmetic color pigments or lipstick for a little color
- Optional: 1 to 2 drops of essential oil (omit if you have sensitive skin)
- The 1:1:1 mixture fits in both 5 ml jars and lipstick tubes. If you prefer to apply it from a jar, you can also try a 1:2:3 ratio, i.e., 1 part wax, 2 parts vegetable oil, and 3 parts butter. This mixture is slightly smoother and may be more suitable for jars.
- Shelf life: 4 to 8 weeks at room temperature, up to 3 months in the refrigerator (can be extended to 1 year by adding vitamin E oil).
Recipe 1: Classic lip balm with honey and almond oil
The ingredients for a classic lip balm are almost exactly the same as in the basic recipe. However, instead of generic vegetable oil, use almond oil and shea butter. For extra care, add Manuka honey. Don’t worry, you will find the exact quantities in the following recipe:
- 5 grams of beeswax, 5 grams of almond oil, and 5 grams of shea butter slowly melt in a heatproof bowl in a water bath and stir thoroughly.
- Remove the bowl from the water and allow the mixture to cool for a few minutes. This is important because honey contains temperature-sensitive active ingredients that are otherwise destroyed by heat.
- Then immediately pour the balm into the sterilized jar (you can boil it to sterilize it) or lipstick tube and let it set.
- Shelf life: 2 to 4 weeks (honey can ferment or crystallize under unfavorable conditions)
Recipe 2: Rich lip care with cocoa butter and jojoba oil
Cocoa butter gives your lip balm a wonderful scent and a creamy texture. Jojoba oil is particularly suitable for dry skin and provides rich care if you often struggle with dry lips. Here is the recipe:
- Place 5 grams of beeswax, 5 grams of jojoba oil, and 5 grams of cocoa butter in a heatproof bowl and melt in a double boiler.
- Stir to create a homogeneous mixture and ensure that all ingredients are well combined.
- Remove the bowl from the double boiler and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- While the mixture is cooling, you can add a few drops of essential oil. We recommend tonka oil, for example, as it has similar warm notes, or mandarin for a fruity-sweet lip care product.
- Then pour the mixture into the jar or lipstick tube and wait until the balm has set.
- Shelf life: 2 to 3 months, as essential oils are volatile and their effect wears off. Without essential oils, 4 to 8 weeks at room temperature or 3 months in the refrigerator.
