Homemade Lip Balm Your Friends Will Love

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Learn to make your own luxurious lip balm.
Photo credit: silviarita via Pixabay.

Lip balm that you’ve made from the heart and home is a lovely holiday gift. Your friends will think of you every time they pamper themselves with one of your luscious creations!  Lip balms are also the perfect stocking stuffer or Secret Santa gift.  It’s easy to slip a decorative tin, jar or tube of lip balm into a Christmas stocking or onto your Secret Santa’s desk at work.

Shhhhhhhhh! Keep it under cover or everyone will want one!

Just kidding! This post was part of a series on money saving ideas for the holidays, so be sure to check out the other articles. In this post, I’m sharing my favorite quick and easy recipe, along with resources for where you can purchase supplies to make inexpensive but fabulous lip balm.

Benefits of Making Lip Balm

Lip balm is the perfect choice if you have decided to make all your gifts this year.  Even though you’ll be spending a little bit on supplies, you can still save a ton of money by making your own homemade presents for holiday gift giving.

In addition, lip balm is quick and easy to make.  If you have the supplies on hand, you can have beautiful gifts ready in thirty minutes, even on Christmas Eve!

Finally, it’s something people will use and appreciate!  The nourishing oil base will glide over dry, cracked lips; offering relief and protection from the elements.  These balms are very soothing and protective.

Pro-Tip

Lip balms also provide a beautiful glossy shine over lipstick for bright holiday sparkle!

Supplies Needed

You probably already have most of the supplies you will need right in your own kitchen.  Things like glass measuring cups, pans, spoons, honey, etc.  But you will need to purchase little containers, beeswax, and cold-pressed oils like almond oil or apricot kernel oil for the base of your lip balm.  You may also wish to purchase pure essential oils for flavor and fragrance (if desired) and be sure to get some pretty labels

Health food stores and herb shops often carry empty lip balm containers, beeswax, a variety of cold-pressed vegetable or nut oils, and essential oils.  I’ll also add a couple of my favorite suppliers at the end of this post.

A Note About Nut Oils

For people who are allergic to nuts, almond oil is usually the least bothersome of the nut oils.  To be on the safe side, you may wish to use apricot kernel oil or even olive oil (although olive oil has a stronger flavor and feels thicker on the skin).

Cold-pressed oils are best because they retain the most vitamin E, which is a natural preservative that prevents oxidation.  You don’t want your lip balms becoming rancid!  In addition, cold-pressed vegetable and nut oils contain other vitamins that are good for the skin.

Favorite Lip Balm Recipe

Sunny Honey Citrus Lip Balm

1 cup almond oil

1 to 2 ounces beeswax pastilles (or grated beeswax)

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon pure essential oil, such as sweet orange, tangerine, or lemon.

Stir the beeswax pastilles (small pieces) or grated beeswax into the almond oil, in a glass measuring cup.  Warm the oil just enough to melt the beeswax, by placing the glass measuring cup into a pan of hot water.  Alternatively, you can use a double boiler pan if you have one.

Once the beeswax is melted, remove the measuring cup from the heat and stir in honey and the essential oil.  It’s important to realize that the honey will not mix well and will tend to settle at the bottom of the oil.  Give the mixture a stir periodically as you are pouring into containers.

If there is any honey residue that has settled at the bottom of your measuring cup as you get close to the end of pouring, just discard it because it won’t set up in the container.

Once all the lip balm containers have been filled, let them cool completely before covering them with lids and adding labels. Presentation is everything! Create your own beautiful gift boxes or custom wrapping using colorful herb stickers and ribbons.

It’s as much fun to make lip balm as it is to receive it.  Ideally, it’s a good idea to make small batches, unless you plan to give out a lot of lip balm or start a business! 

A little lip balm goes a long way, make a small batch!
Photo credit: ljalbert via Pixabay.

Yes, you might enjoy making lip balms and other natural skin care products so much that you decide to start a little money making side hustle.  Add another income stream to your retirement savings by selling lip balm!

Where To Purchase Supplies

The Herbal Academy

Mountain Rose Herbs

For more inspiration, consider picking up a book or two and learn how to make additional herbal body care products, right in the comfort of your own home!

Finally, if you would rather just purchase something already made for yourself or for gift-giving, I recommend Jaffa Organic Lip Balm. It is made with natural and organic ingredients, including sweet orange and vanilla for deliciously kissable lips! 

Question:  What kinds of homemade gifts have you made before? 

Please share your thoughts in the comments!

62 Replies to “Homemade Lip Balm Your Friends Will Love”

  1. This post is great! I am doing a holiday craft party with my friends next week and just added this lip balm to the list! I am so excited to see how it turns out.

  2. Fun! I have never made my own but thought it was probably pretty easy. You did a great job of explaining the process. Maybe someday I will be adventurous with the kids and make some! Thank you for this post.

    1. Thanks for stopping by, Emily! You can alter the lip balm recipe to add more beeswax (makes a harder lip balm, but might seal your lips better), or add in some heavily moisturizing oils like shea butter or cocoa butter. Also, using a blend of olive oil & avocado oil would boost the vitamin E content, which might be more useful. I’m curious if drinking more water would help?

  3. Aw, thank you Lauren! Yes, homemade lip balms make a great gift for family & friends! Something that’s easy & inexpensive to make, yet it is so thoughtful & pampering! It’s great to get gifts like this anytime, not just at Christmas. Happy New Year to you, too!

  4. What a great post! So easy to follow as well 🙂 I love homemade items – both to use for myself and to give as gifts. Think there is something so special about giving something you made yourself! Also love this because my lips get so dry! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Rina | rinakay.co.uk

    1. Great point, Lisa Marie!

      That’s one of the best things about making homemade lip balms, lotions, and other herbal bodycare products. Not only do you save a ton of money (that you can put into your retirement account instead of spending), you also get to control the ingredients!

    1. It’s a lot of fun to do with kids, Lashunta! I’ve made lip balms with my daughter as well as nieces & nephews, and even young children when I had a child care business in my home. Let me know how your daughter enjoys the project! Thanks for reading & commenting!

    1. Thank you, Sue! Glad you enjoyed the post on making lip balms. Yes, you can color homemade lip balms by infusing dried alkanet root in the oil, before you add the beeswax. Warm the oil, add the dried alkanet root and keep the mixture warm for about 30 to 45 minutes to extract the desired color. For this recipe, start with one tablespoon dried alkanet root. Once your oil is a deep red color, strain out the alkanet and proceed with the recipe. Although the lip balm looks red, it will lightly tint your lips. Powdered mica or beet root powder can also be used for natural coloring, but mica tends to dry out the lips, and beet root powder can feel gritty.

  5. This is such a good idea! I’m a sucker for lip balm!! I literally have one in my car, baby bag, my purse, bedside table, my vanity and my desk at work! You never know when you will need it! These would make wonderful presents. Adding it to my gift idea list for Christmas on a budget!

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