This easy homemade lip balm recipe contains just 4 ingredients –cocoa butter, beeswax, almond oil, and vanilla. Use pure organic ingredients and you will have a wonderful organic lip balm that is gluten-free, paraben-free, and all natural. I love making my own beauty products because then I know exactly what’s in them. I feel better wearing products that have no mystery ingredients!
This lip balm is super moisturizing and protects our lips from the cold dry weather here in Colorado. Its flavor is so good that you just might want to eat it. My boys tell me it tastes delicious, when they wear it and lick their lips!
- 1 tablespoon cocoa butter
- 1 tablespoon beeswax shavings or pearls
- 1 tablespoon almond oil
- ¼ teaspoon essential oil of vanilla
- Melt beeswax and cocoa butter in a beaker placed in a small pot of simmering water
- When melted, remove from heat and stir in almond oil and vanilla
- Pour liquid into stainless steel lip balm tins and allow to cool until solid (20 minutes)
After you cook it up, pour your lip balm into the cute little stainless steel tin that I use in the photo above. I’ve linked the green words in the directions of the recipe to the tin so that you’ll know where to order it.
If you’re here in Boulder, you can buy these tins and so many other fun ingredients for DIY beauty projects at Rebecca’s Apothecary.
Store your lip balm in a cool dry place. It will last for 1-2 months if kept this way. This homemade lip balm is a fun and easy DIY project. You can make changes to my simple recipe and create your own fun flavors. This homemade lip balm makes the perfect eco-Christmas gift!
Here are some of my other solutions for keeping your body, home, and planet as clean, green, eco-friendly, and healthy as possible!
Ruth A says
Would this work with coconut oil instead of almond oil and if so, should I use the same amount?
Elana says
Ruth, I haven’t tried that so not sure, if you do please let us know how it goes :-)
Patti says
Be careful about using this vanilla on your lips, where it is ingested by licking your lips. The warning on the “Healing Solutions” brand on Amazon states:
“As such, all of our oils carry a label warning that the product is NOT FOR INTERNAL USE.”
You might want to buy a “flavored oil” approved for use on lips.
See this article from a very reputable source:
http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/the-truth-about-vanilla-essential-oil/
Anne B says
How much does this recipe make and what size tin should we use?
Sharon Ulam says
Hi Elana, I am wondering where you find the Vanilla. I make my own with a healthy ingredince but wondering if you are speaking about essential oil. YL and DT don’t have a vanilla. The lip balm turns our fabulous even with my own vanilla extract. Just wondering what the other is and where to get it.
Elana Amsterdam says
Hi Sharon,
I’ve updated the recipe to include a link for essential oil of vanilla. Please click on the link to be taken to the product page on Amazon.com.
Thanks,
Elana
Kelley says
I clicked the link for the tins but there aren’t any tins on the website. Are these safe to use since they’re metal?
Vee says
Does anyone have any suggestions beside the essential oil of vanilla? I want to try this but the essential oil is pretty pricey, only found it at Wholefoods. Any other oil ideas would be appreciated. Thanks
Vee says
Also. What size tins are used?
Thanks
Jolene says
Hi There
Can you use vanilla essence instead of essence oil?
Carolyn. (massage therapist) says
The almond oil isn’t flavored or scented like almonds it’s a carrier oil VERY different then essential oil or extract that you would use for Massage therapists use this for massage. There is no scent to it really. You can use jojoba oil, apricot kernel oil (sometimes actually does smell like almonds though) olive oil, etc. If you tried using a tablespoon of essential oil of any kind you will extremely over do it! DONT substitute an essential oil only substitute carrier oils! So the peppermint idea could be a nice addition and swapped out with some of the vanilla instead. One drop of essential oil is equal to 30 cups of strong tea. It’s extremely concentrated! This is very important to know the difference. You can find carrier oils with massage oils in
the nutritional area at stores. Olive oil or coconut oil is fine too the scents will cover up the smell of the olive.
Catherine Colbran says
Is there something similar to beeswax that you can use? Maybe lard, or cold butter??
nakedsweetshop says
You could use candela wax or carnauba wax.
Sara says
Thank you, my sister is a vegan so wouldn’t use this with the beeswax. I was wondering what else would work too. Would the amount be the same?
Crystal says
How many tins does this recipe make? I need to make 60 1 oz containers. Should I triple or quadrouple this recipe?
Laura says
How could I make it without a beaker?
Tanner says
You can use a pyrex glass measuring cup instead.
elana says
Hi Robby,
Thanks for your comment. I had an error in this recipe for lip balm and that is why you had trouble with the vanilla settling on the bottom. I have edited the recipe to list the correct type of vanilla –essential oil, rather than extract.
I am so sorry for this error, and thanks again for your comment which helped me to rectify the mistake!
Elana
Robby says
I tried making this, had a hard time measuring the beeswax and cocoa butter before melting them, but that’s just a logistical problem. The real issue was the vanilla. It wouldn’t mix in properly, no matter how hard I tried to mix it in, it predictably settled at the bottom of the little containers I poured the mixture into. I’m really interested in experimenting further with things like lip balms, lotions and other such things so I would really like to know what I have to do to make this recipe work. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
nakedsweetshop says
The reason it would not mix is because your vanilla is an oleoresin not an essential oil. The oleoresin is mainly used in perfumes or food. It dissolves easily in alcohol but as you saw does not mix with oil.
I am in the process of making a vanilla oil but most likely won’t be available for 6 months.
You could always make your own but it takes 4-5 months to make a good quality oil.
laura lee says
This sounds awesome ~ for the person who doesn’t like almond oil maybe try peppermint oil…with the vanilla it would give it a nice holiday flavor:)
Deborah H. says
Thank you so much for sharing all these great diy present ideas~they would make nice gifts all through the year!
Kenna says
I made this last night! It is amazing! My husband was impressed with it as well. We noticed that is has very little flavor or scent (so I don’t want to eat it!) and it lasts for hours…really! Even after eating and a few glasses of water, my lips and my husbands were still moist. My husband also mentioned that his lips had been chapped all day and this put an end to it!
I doubled the batch and poured a few little containers of the recipe as is, then with the other half of the recipe I added beet powder (I had dried them in a dehydrator the night before). About one tablespoon gives it a really great tint!
Between this and the delicious-smelling-I-want-to-eat-it foot balm, my Christmas gifts are done…and I have a recipe that I know I will use often (for me)! Silky soft hands, feet, and lips! Yay!
Thanks Elana!!
Karen says
Can we use another oil other than almond. The very smell of it makes me sick. That is strange as I love almonds, but not the oil or flavoring. Conversely, I don’t like hazelnuts, but love the flavor. Who’s odd?
elana says
You are too funny. I haven’t made this with any other oils. If you do an experiment and try something else, please let us know how it goes :-)
jacqui says
Hi, I just made a batch of this lucious Lip Balm and we have nut allergy so I used Sunflower oil instead, which has come out lovely. Thank you for the fab recipe xx
G. Leigh says
Thank you for the recommendation for sunflower oil – we have nut allergies at our house as well.
KellyBelly says
I’m still waiting for my local honey guy to have his beeswax available, so I can make this and the foot balm. very nice.
Aubrie says
How many does this make? Fantastic idea!
VLM says
What a nice idea! Thanks for sharing, Elana!
Karen says
Great! Thanks for all of the ideas….hope your Chanukah was wonderful : )