So…my post today isn’t about a food, although it does smell wonderful!

In my attempt to make some homemade Christmas presents this year I decided that Peppermint Lip Balm would be on the roster of “To Do” items. I found a recipe that looked like it would work pretty well at http://www.soulemama.com. I went online to Amazon and ordered what I needed: beeswax beads/pellets, peppermint essential oil and lip balm containers. I had the other few items that I needed on hand from the recipe. After waiting just a couple of days my package arrived in the mail and I was excited to start my experiment! The lip balm turned out great. It glides on smooth, and is a great consistency for winter.

Now, I did vary my recipe a little bit from the one I found on http://www.soulemama.com.

#1) I read somewhere that if you put vitamin E in the lip balm it acts as a preservative and so I squeezed a couple of capsules into the mixture.

#2) Her recipe called for raw honey. I had honey on hand and did not realize at the time that there would be a difference in how the raw honey vs. regular honey would mix together into the mixture. Regular honey does not stay mixed in with the oils and beeswax mixture. {It ended up working out alright because the honey stayed at the bottom of the measuring cup as I poured the oil/wax mixture in the lip balm containers.} The next time I make lip balm I will be leaving the honey out of the recipe if I don’t have raw honey on hand. So, please excuse my pictures that contain the added honey, but it will illustrate the issue that I had with it.

In the end, I am happy with my homemade Peppermint Lip Balm and hope that everyone who receives one this year for Christmas will get some good use out of it as well! -Shelley.

Updated 1/06/14: I made another batch of this again a year later after the first go-around and this time I added a little extra beeswax to the mixture, in addition to leaving out the raw honey which I did not have on hand. I did like the original version, but it melted pretty easily when applying, or especially when it got warmer out. By simply measuring out the beeswax in HEAPING tablespoons, verses level tablespoons, it made a firmer lip balm {more like a consistency that you would buy at the store}, but it still glides on easily. Hopefully this helps others to know what to expect. -Shelley.

Peppermint Lip Balm Recipe

8 Tablespoons Coconut Oil
3 Tablespoons Beeswax {use 3 HEAPING Tablespoons for a firmer lip balm, using 3 level Tablespoons makes a very soft, “meltier” version}
1.5 Tablespoons Raw Honey {will not put in recipe again, didn’t stay mixed in because I used regular honey, not raw honey}
30 drops Peppermint essential oil
2 vitamin E softgels, liquid squeezed out

Place coconut oil, beeswax, vitamin E oil, and honey a heat proof bowl resting on top of a small saucepan of simmering water {or a double boiler if you have one}. Heat on med-low heat until everything has melted.

Remove mixture from heat, and add peppermint oil and stir until blended.

Pour into prepared lip balm containers.

Allow to cool before placing lids on containers.

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First, place a couple inches of water in a small pot.

Place heat resistant bowl on top of pot.

Add beeswax pellets…

Coconut oil…

Honey… {NO REGULAR HONEY!! Remember…if you are going to add it use raw honey!}

And Vitamin E into bowl. I used a safety pin to poke a hole in the softgel and then easily squeezed the oil out.

Turn the stove onto a med-low setting and allow to melt until everything is completely dissolved.

Remove from heat and add the peppermint essential oil and stir well.

Transfer to a container that will be easier to pour from, if desired. I used a pourable glass measuring cup.

Already have your lip balm containers set out with the lids off so they are ready to fill.

Fill those babies up! {I have to warn you, this does get a bit messy. Especially if you aren’t so graceful, like me, and end up dumping a couple of the containers over!}

This is what the bottom portion of my mixture looked like and is where all of the honey stayed…at the bottom of the bowl. It wasn’t a problem and stayed out of my way until the last couple of fills. This is why I am not going to add it next time, by the way. Haven’t I mentioned that?!

Allow to cool….

After completely cool place the lids on the containers. Grab a clean rag and wipe the excess lip balm off of the sides of the container where you spilled when you weren’t so graceful, like me. Again. 🙂

Decorate the outside of the containers how you wish. I haven’t bought any labels of any kind yet. What I was thinking about today was that the Christmas stickers that are labeled “To: and From:” might actually work alright to put on the containers, but haven’t had a chance to look yet. If not, tie a cute little ribbon on the outside and give a gift that your friends and family will get some good use out of this winter! {Oh, and make sure to keep one out for yourself, you will be glad you did!} Merry Christmas!