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Homemade lip balm is so awesome.
And so ridiculously easy to make! It’s a wonder how large companies have managed to screw it up so incredibly!?
Oh. Wait a minute…
Petroleum.
Petroleum jelly is an ingredient in many popular chapsticks/lip balms, along with petrolatum and mineral oil. None of which are good for the skin, and in fact all three are by products of the oil industry. These cheap, non-renewable, far-from-green-ingredients give a false sense of hydration, forming a seal over the skin and disrupting the body’s natural skin sloughing cycle; and potentially damaging collagen and elastin.
Yikes.
Your lips do not have sebaceous glands, which are responsible for keeping the skin moisturized. That is why lips are so susceptible to being chapped. Coupled with having no melanin; thus no sun protection, they are left vulnerable to the elements. Tight, cracked, dry and uncomfortable lips practically beg for lip balm. But, before you reach for the nearest tube, be sure to check your ingredients. Most commercially processed, chemical lip balms will make your lips worse, and you won’t be able to stop the slathering.
I used to be one of those people…
Crazy chapstick-applier, every 5-minutes-can’t get-enough type of gal who had more tubes of chapstick than pairs of socks. And I still somewhat resemble that gal, in that I deeply appreciate a properly moistened and supple pucker, but; I will go without if my choices are nothing; or conventional chapstick. Once I quit the chemical-induced lip assault, I found that my lips healed themselves, and were much better off.
I still needed a good slathering though. What can I say? Old habits die hard. So again, I was cruising the natural products circuit, paying stupid-high amounts of cash for a natural lip balm. And that was over 10 years ago…
Have I been making my own lip-happiness for a decade? Heck no. It was only a few years ago that I made my first lip balm. I will share with you though, the very same recipe that, in fact, was the catalyst of my kitchen cosmetics obsession, and part of the fuel for the fire that drives this blog.
Once I made this lip balm and fell in love with it, I realized I *might* have something to say about it…
What a silly girl. She fell in love with a lip balm…
Lavender~Calendula Lip Balm
* measure all ingredients on a digital kitchen scale*
- 0.75 oz. lavender-infused (olive) oil
- 0.75 oz. calendula-infused (olive) oil
For directions on how to infuse oils, click here
- 1 oz. beeswax
- 1.25 oz. coconut oil
- A few drops vitamin e oil (or capsules) (optional, but recommended)
- 10 drops lavender essential oil (optional)
- 1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
In a small double boiler; (I use a glass mason jar placed atop of a washcloth in a pan of water), slowly melt beeswax, infused oils, and coconut oil. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Add essential oils, (if using) and almond extract. Pour into chapstick tubes, lip balm tins, small glass jars, re-used containers; whatever you’d like. Allow to cool completely before using.
This was my first time using the almond extract. I went for it since I had it on hand from my almond~poppy muffins. It was great addition, and the end result is a delightful lavender/honey/almond scent. We keep bees, and lucky for me, my beeswax has a rich, heavenly, honey scent, and it always shines in my body care recipes. (Depending on the beeswax you get, you may or may not get the honey scent in your lip balm). This recipe fills approximately 25 chapstick tubes, or a few tins, or any combination in between. Either way, it’s enough for you, and some to share. Sharing is my favorite part! 
I buy tins for lip balms, salves, ointments, etc. here.
I get my chapstick tubes here.
I grow my own herbs and flowers and harvest and dry them for the year, but if you don’t have access to your own stock, you can find great dried herbs at Mountain Rose Herbs. I can’t grow all that I need so I get my extras here as well. This is why:
Mountain Rose Herbs has over 11 farm operations, 6 wild harvesting operators, and acts as a direct liaison and processor with hundreds of farmers and growers all across the globe.
We are confident not only in the quality of material you may order but the ethics involved with their preparation and handling. If you feel beguiled and often frustrated with the inferior quality of “Mass Market” herbs that have been on market shelves and within stores inventories for months and sometimes years, then you can count on Mountain Rose Herbs to deliver a product that is unsurpassed in quality and freshness.
Sounds great to me! I find dried calendula flowers here and dried lavender flowers here.
If you want to start your own herb garden, but need a good source for medicinal herb seeds, look no further. Mountain Rose Herbs carries a full line of organic or respectfully wild-crafted medicinal herb seeds, from angelica to zaatar, they’ve got you, (and I), covered
Full Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links that provide a small commission to me when purchases are made through that link–-at no extra cost to you. I only affiliate with companies whose products I personally use and can whole-heartedly recommend. Thank you for supporting Sustain, Create and Flow.
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Shared with: From the Farm, Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, Wildcrafting Wednesday
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