Lip Balm - Martha Stewart Recipe

Lip Balm - Martha Stewart Recipe

Spa-inspired presents, including these handmade lip balms, can be created from basic kitchen ingredients and craft materials.

To make more than one kind of lip balm at a time, divide the recipe in half and scent and color the batches separately. For lip balms, we like to use essential oils that have an "edible" scent, such as citrus. Beeswax pellets are available at crafts stores.

Makes two .15-ounce tubes and two 1/2-ounce tins or pots

Tools and Materials
1 tablespoon beeswax pellets
2 tablespoons carrier oil
A few drops essential oil(s)
Lipstick shavings in desired color
Special equipment: heatproof glass jar, plastic pipettes, cosmetic-style plastic tubes, slide tins, or metal pots

Directions
1. Put beeswax and carrier oil in jar, and close lid. Heat the jar in a pot of water over medium-low heat until wax has melted. Remove jar from pot carefully.

2. Stir mixture with a metal spoon. Using a pipette, add essential oil, 1 drop at a time, until strength of scent is to your liking. Stir in lipstick shavings, 1 at a time, until desired shade is achieved and color is even throughout.

3. Using another pipette, transfer lip balm to containers. Let set for 1 hour.

Gift-Packaging Idea
Top cosmetic tubes and tins with custom labels: Water-slide decal paper is clear, making the design look as though it has been printed directly onto the container.

Clip-Art Labels
Small Rectangular Lip Balms 1
Small Rectangular Lip Balms 2
Small Round Lip Balms 1
Small Round Lip Balms 2
Large Rectangular Lip Balms 1
Large Rectangular Lip Balms 2
Large Rectangular Lip Balms Blank 1
Large Rectangular Lip Balms Blank 2
Large Round Lip Balms 1
Large Round Lip Balms 2
Lip Balm Tubes

Label How-To
Always fill containers before labeling them. Download clip-art labels, above, and print with an ink-jet printer onto water-slide decal paper. Spray with clear-coat varnish, and let dry. Cut out each label. Transfer to a bowl of water; soak until decals start to separate from paper backings, about 1 minute. Slide decals from papers and onto clean containers. Blot excess water with a paper towel. Let dry for 2 hours.

Sources
Oval lip balm tubes with caps (#0807-12SP), $6.48 for 12; and Tins: Flat (pots) with rolled-edge covers (#5562-02SP), $12.12 for 12, and slide top in small (#5569-01SP), $17.76 for 12, and large, $22.56 for 12; from sks-bottle.com.

Similar containers, from sunburstbottle.com.

8 1/2"-by-11" clear water-slide decal paper for ink-jet printers, $10.50 for 10 sheets, from beldecal.com.

Varnish, $5.67, by Krylon Kamar, from dickblick.com.

Get More Bath and Body Treatments and Learn About Essential Oils

First Published: December 2008