Homemade toiletries such as lip scrub and lip balm are a popular DIY project for good reason: not only does making your own allow you to control the ingredients to avoid those that are toxic or questionable, but it’s also much less expensive than buying them.
This homemade lip scrub and lip balm would make a great addition to a stocking or a little gift basket for a teacher or friend. Just make sure you make enough so that you can keep a set for yourself as well!
Lip Scrub
Recipe for 1 circular tin. Multiply the recipe by the number of containers you have.
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 4 teaspoons sugar*
- 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
- 6 drops essential oil (optional)**
*You can use any kind of sugar, but because I wanted my lip scrub to be very coarse, I used coconut sugar, which is rougher than white or brown sugar and doesn’t melt easily.
**The lip scrub has a natural honey flavor, so you don’t need to add essential oils to this one.
Directions:
Mix the ingredients together with a wooden skewer and transfer to a cute container with a tight lid. (I used these 2″ round tins from Silly Frilly Kids on Etsy.)
Lip Balm
Recipe for 1 rectangular tin or 3 tubes. Multiply the recipe by the number of containers you have. Adapted from My Buttered Life {Gifts}.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon beeswax pastilles
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil*
- 1 teaspoon shea butter
- 3 drops essential oils**
*Virgin coconut oil has a coconut flavor to it. That’s not necessarily bad, but some people prefer to use refined coconut oil, which is odorless and tasteless.
**Shown here: sweet orange, vanilla, and peppermint, which all make great flavors by themselves. But you could try any citrus, mint, coffee, etc., or try combining a couple of oils for even more flavor options!
Directions:
Combine the first three ingredients in a double boiler and heat until completely melted.
To test the consistency, use a wooden skewer to drop a small amount on a piece of wax paper. Once it hardens, test it on your lips. If it is too solid, add a little bit more coconut oil. If it’s too runny, add a bit more beeswax.
Once the consistency is right, remove the mixture from heat and stir in the essential oils of your choice with a wooden skewer.
Carefully pour this warm mixture into your tin or tubes. (I used these small rectangular slider tins from Silly Frilly Kids on Etsy.) Let cool completely before closing the lids.
Projects from the archives:
Join us as we celebrate 101 Days of Christmas with new DIY projects, gift ideas, traditions and more every day from now through Christmas!