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How to Make an Easy Homemade Lip Balm

Soothe and protect lips with this easy to make natural homemade lip balm recipe!

Learning how to make lip balm is truly nothing more than heating together some oil, beeswax, and honey. It’s a simple process that is also frugal and allow you to know and understand every ingredient being applied to your body.

This DIY lip balm recipe is a good starting point for learning how to make other homemade skin care products and herbal remedies. It also makes for an amazing bit of self-care to keep for yourself or give as a perfect gift to loved ones near and far. 

A jar of green honey lip balm sits on a wooden surface alongside dried flowers and a honey dipper. The text "How to Make Lip Balm" is displayed above.

Type of Oils

When making lip balm an oil of some kind is required, it is the main ingredient after all. Regular old olive oil will work just fine. Use that if you have it in your kitchen.

Sweet almond oil, grapeseed oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil etc. can all be used equally well. The color of the oil will determine the color of the final product. For example, grapeseed oil tends to be green in color meaning your lip balm will also be green – nothing wrong with that just know ahead of time. Experiment and see what you like best for your particular lips and weather conditions.

A small glass jar filled with amber-colored liquid sits on a windowsill. Sunlight filters through, highlighting decorative patterns on the jar, reminiscent of ancient herbal remedies. The word "Rootsy" is visible in the lower right corner, suggesting it's all about preparedness.

This is the great thing about making your own lip balm, you get to experiment to find out which natural ingredients work best for you without having to spend a fortune on beauty products from the store.

Herbal infused oils can also be used for an added layer of healing and soothing. Any single herb or combination of herbs can be used to create your own custom lip balm. Consider soothing herbs like lavender, calendula, dandelion, rose, chamomile, etc.

Beeswax

Beeswax is what makes the oil harden into a smooth, spreadable consistently that won’t spill out of your containers. 

Beeswax can often be purchased in pellet style pastilles or blocks. If you buy the block kind, simply grate a bit to get the desired amount. Pastilles are certainly easy to just scoop and measure.

A beeswax block with "BEESWAX" engraved sits on a wooden surface, accompanied by a small tin of honey lip balm, adding a touch of sweetness. Nearby, a greenish votive candle and a white candle wrapped with green twine complete the serene arrangement.

White beeswax gives a whiter color to the final product while the yellow beeswax will give a yellow color. This is a personal choice and doesn’t truly matter for effectiveness of the beeswax lip balm recipe.

Honey

Honey serves a couple of purposes in a good lip balm. First, raw honey sweetens it up a little making it nice for spreading and and providing a litlte natural flavoring. 

Second honey is very soothing to the skin making it one of the best things for sun or wind burned lips.

A clay pot with a lid and wooden dipper sits on a wooden surface, evoking the charm of rustic honey harvesting. Next to it, an open, small white container holds green salve or honey lip balm. The pot is adorned with a simple wheat design.

If you happen to have crystallized honey, this is good project to use it in since the ingredients will be heated up and the heat will decrystallize the honey.

Use whatever honey happens to be in the pantry. For an extra healing punch try something like Manuka honey which has been studied extensively for its medicinal qualities. but there’s no reason in most cases to buy anything fancy. 

Essential Oils

The addition of essential oils is completely optional. Some essential oils do have extra healing power, lavender for burns as an example, however in lip balm they’re mostly used for flavor.

Pick your favorite essential oil or feel free to skip it if desired and just use the flavor from the honey. Peppermint oil is always a good choice for flavor if you’re making a large batch to give away. 

A lit candle in a glass jar sits on a wooden surface, providing a warm glow. Next to it is an open white container of green salve and honey lip balm, accompanied by small dried rosebuds. The word "Rootsy" is visible in the bottom corner.

If you used an herbal infused oil, match the infused oil to the essential oil – lavender essential oil with lavender infused oil, for example, makes a perfect lavender lip balm. 

A small amount can go long way with different essential oils, you may want to start lighter and taste it in your first batch and then add more later if it feels necessary. 

Storage Containers

Lip balm obviously needs some kind of container. The choices are truly endless.

Feel free to pour the lip balm into old candy tins (like the ones Altoids come in). This is definitely what I do most often when making my own products to keep (not give away) for frugality and ease. 

A small open container of green honey lip balm sits on a wooden surface next to a cluster of dried rosebuds. A candle is partially visible in the top left corner.

Reuse old small tins from purchased lip balms. Simply clean those out well with some boiling water to get rid of old beeswax and other bits.

Small jars, like the one often found in gift baskets or for samples can make great and reusable lip balm containers. 

Lip balm tins and lip balm tubes are easy to buy in craft supply stores and online. The tins tend to be easier to clean and reuse in the future but use whatever is easiest and makes the most sense for yourself.

Great for Gifts

Lip balm makes for great homemade gifts. Make a big batch and simply label to stick into care packages, stockings, gift baskets, and more.

It truly doesn’t take much longer to make a big batch than it does to make a small batch so go for it all in one sitting.

Package it up with some homemade beeswax candles for a lovely gift basket!

A brown ceramic jar with floral patterns and a wooden lid sits on a wooden surface. Next to it is a lit candle in a glass jar, an open container of green salve, and a soothing honey lip balm.

Storage

Keep the lip balm stored at room temperature and in a dry place. All oils can go rancid so use up lip balm within a year. The shelf life might be a bit longer but err on the side of caution and use up within a ye

Yield: approximately 1.5 ounces

Honey Lip Balm

A small white jar of green honey lip balm sits on a wooden surface. Dried pink roses on the left and a wooden honey dipper to the right enhance the rustic and natural aesthetic.

Soothe and soften chapped or dry lips with this homemade natural lip balm recipe full of nourishing oils and honey.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Active Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Difficulty Easy
Estimated Cost $10

Materials

Tools

  • Double Boiler
  • Lip Balm Container
  • Whisk

Instructions

  1. Put an inch of water in ther bottom of a double boiler. In the top of the double boiler, add oil, beeswax, and honey.
  2. Heat over low heat until the wax is just melted.
  3. Remove from heat.  Add the essential oil, if using.  With a whisk or fork, stir rapidly for 30-60 seconds until everything is completely incorporated.
  4. Pour into storage container. Let cool and harden before capping.

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A lit candle in a glass jar sits on a wooden surface beside a small white container of honey lip balm and some dried rose buds. Text reads "How to Make Lip Balm.

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