DIY: How to make a natural lip balm *no vaseline*

WARNING: BEFORE YOU ATTEMPT ANY BEAUTY DIY LIKE THIS PRETTY PLEASE CHECK YOU ARE NOT ALLERGIC TO ANY OF THE INGREDIENTS!!!

I think it’s actually been a month since my latest DIY so I apologise for that. So much for this being a regular feature eh! ;). Anyway today I am doing a beauty DIY. This will be one of many as I love making my own beauty products. If you follow my blog regularly you will know that I am a bit of an ingredients freak and where possible I try to buy only ‘natural’ (this is a word that has many different connotations in the cosmetic world!) or organic products. Lip balm is a type of product which is notorious for finding cheap, horrible synthetic rubbish, and some of you may not care and that’s fine, but I just can’t use products like that on my lips. The one lip balm I absolutely swear by is LUSH’s ‘Whipstick’ but this is just an extra I’m making that I will probably use out in my studio. Anyway enough waffle, enjoy the tutorial! Thank you so much for watching if you do.

You will need:


* Bowl
* Spoon (teaspoon)
* Pan
* 2 tsp shea butter
* 2 tsp almond oil
* 1 tsp Vitamin e oil
* An essential oil of your choice if you want a fragrance (optional). I used real vanilla.
* Container of some sort (I used an old hand cream)
* An old lipstick to tint (optional)
* Edible glitter for shimmer (optional)

Crafty Tips:

♥ If you’re lucky you can find most of the above in a health food shop but I don’t have anywhere near me so I get most of my crafting ingredients of this nature from ebay. Obviously you have to be a bit savvy but I used Aromatherapy Shop and The Bideford Apothecary and I would highly recommend their stores.
♥ As an FYI I wouldn’t necessarily see this DIY as a money saver…it can add up a bit if you’re not using the ingredients all the time. You can of course miss a whole lot out like the Vitamin e oil, fragrance etc, but it’s a lovely nourshing treat, and you’re in charge what goes into it.
♥ You may not want to add a fragrance at all, and that’s perfectly fine. In fact too much fragrance can dry your lips out.
♥  Real vanilla essential oil costs a fortune, so don’t necessarily do what I do! My 5ml bottle cost me £5, so far more than the other ingredients put together! However I adore vanilla. You can get a synthetic vanilla that is a cheaper option, but not as nice, but you can use any fragrance you can think of. Chocolate, mint, strawberry, and so it goes on!
♥ Please careful when placing and removing the bowl from the hot pan of water, I cannot stress this enough!
♥ Make sure you use edible glitter! Kind of obvious I know, sorry!
♥ The more lipstick you use, the stronger the tint. This MAC Cutester lipstick has seen better days and had collapsed anyway. Don't necessarily go and destroy your precious lippies!
♥ Obviously this won’t last as long as shop brought products but lasts me a good while!
♥ Don’t go out and buy a new pot before you have a look around your room and you can recycle old products wonderfully for this. You may remember my adorable cupcake from here. Waste not, want not ;).

Some little facts about our lovely ingredients (all information from Lush.co.uk):
♥ Shea Butter-

• A naturally occurring fat, derived from the nut of the Karite tree (Butyrospermum parkii) akin to an oak and usually grows wild. 
• Though it is difficult to cultivate, its fruit kernels are famed for their ability to nourish  inside and out. 
• The butter was a valuable commodity during Cleopatra’s reign. 
• It has a high lipid profile, also containing beneficial phytochemicals (vitamin A). It also contains oleic acid (omega-9 monounsaturated fatty acid). Topical application of vitamin A (known as retinol) helps to maintain youthful appearance and healthy skin. 
• Compounds within the butter have been shown to offer some protection from UVB rays. 
• Oleic acid is highly compatible with human skin and with the sebum we naturally produce to protect our skin’s surface. It absorbs readily and aids the absorption of other active ingredients.
• Lastly it's moisturising, emollient and super softening on the skin and it’s so gentle that it has been traditionally used in Africa for baby massage.

♥  Almond Oil:

• The almond is part of the plum family. Botanically, they are a fruit and an ancient ancestor of large-stoned fruits, such as apricots, peaches and plums.
• The beautiful almond tree is a medium sized tree with white blossoms that is native to the Middle East and North Africa, but now grown in the Mediterranean and California.
• It is unscented and excellent for the skin. It is emollient, demulcent and nutritious with a high vitamin E content. 
• Smooth to apply and leaves a silky feel to the skin. When applied to hair, it adds shine and softens the entire hair shaft.
• Ancient Greeks and Romans used almonds to counter the effects of alcohol; Egyptians used almonds for cosmetic purposes.

♥ Vitamin e oil:

• Vitamin E is a term used to describe a group of antioxidant compounds, one of which is alpha-tocopherol, the form of vitamin E most easily absorbed by the body. 
• As with all vitamins, obtaining vitamin E through a varied diet is best. Some good sources of vitamin E are nuts (almonds, hazelnuts and peanuts in particular), green leafy vegetables, avocados and various oils (wheatgerm, olive, safflower and sunflower, for example).
• First recognised in 1922, vitamin E was isolated and chemically identified in the 1930s. Ancient Greeks rubbed olive oil (a good source of vitamin E) on their skin and hair, and almond oil (also a good source) has been one of the most widely used beauty oils since the ancient Egyptians used it for skin and hair care purposes.
• Considered important for the maintenance of healthy skin, eyesight and circulation, vitamin E oil is a valued compound with varied internal and external uses. 
• It is an excellent antioxidant and considered important for cell protection and for the maintenance of our immune system and healthy skin. 
• Additionally, it has been widely researched for use in the prevention and treatment of diseases of the eye, Alzheimer’s disease, memory loss, and Parkinson’s disease, cancer and pain relief.
• Said to have anti-inflammatory and analgesic (pain relieving) properties. Studies also suggest that topical application of it can decrease skin roughness, dryness and fine lines, which partly explains the popularity of this ingredient with cosmetics formulators.

And I think that’s it! I really hope you enjoy the DIY and have fun making your own lip balm. I’m always up for requests with my DIY posts so if you have any ideas at all please let me know. ♥

* This tutorial is adapted from the tutorial by Jazz Domino Holly in the March 2012 issue of Company Magazine, page 87.

xoxo