SAVED extra lip balm stuff...Need HELP with recipe :(

[Sweet T]

Hey all,
I'm attempting to make my own lip balm this morning for the first time. I have what I believe is a good recipe but I'm really only wanting to fill about 5 tubes. I was thinking I could melt all of my oils and waxes but before I add the EO I would just separate out what I will need for my 5 tubes then add my stuff to that (EO, vitamin E) and maybe save the rest for another batch. (To tweak it later, or add another flavor oil??) Can I do that? It just seems a little weird to me to try and measure out so very little of each thing to make a total of .75 ounces. Could I just save it all in a container and remelt it later?


****I made my balm, filled 5 tubes and saved the rest. HOWEVER, I do NOT like the consistency of my balm. Its too hard and waxy...seems almost drying. I really like lip balm to be slick, softer and more moisturizing. (Think Softlips, which I love, as opposed to Burt Bees, which I don't care for).

My recipe is as follows:
20% beeswax
25% coconut oil and orange butter
15% candellila wax
40% caster oil, jojoba oil and sweet almond oil (mostly almond, just a touch of the jojoba and maybe .1oz of caster)
a couple drops of Vitamin E and Spearmint EO

Any suggestions or other recipes would be appreciated!

 

[Sunny]

yes you can do that.

 

[Sweet T]

Thank you, Sunny! It made sense that I could but I just wanted to make sure. Now I can get started

 

[welovesoap]

Yep! I do that with my big batches, too.

 

[IrishLass]

Ditto for me, too.

IrishLass

 

[carebear]

but it might be better to add the vitamin E to the base as it's an antioxidant and can help stabilize it and keep it fresh longer.

 

[SoapyD]

The best lip balm I've made did not include castor or candelilla wax, but did include shea butter and lanolin. It's firm in the tube, but very slippy and glidey on the lips, and my testers rave that it's the best one they've ever used. I know candelilla is harder than beeswax, and if you were subbing it for some of the beeswax, you would only use half as much, so that may be part of the problem. I also know that lanolin adds a great texture to my balms, and just don't think I could make a good one without it.

Oh, and another suggestion to save your tubes - when you make a new batch, put a spoon in the freezer until it's really cold, then dip the tip of it into your batch and it will harden on the spoon and you can test it on your lips. That way you can see if you like it before pouring into tubes.

 

[Sweet T]

Thanks for the tips! I was hoping that the candelilla wax would not be as waxy as the beeswax, which is why I used it, but clearly I was wrong. I knew it would be firmer but didn't expect it to be so "dry" I guess. I wonder what I'm going to do with all the rest I have left. Looks like I will have to try to make another product

Question: What about lanolin having such a strong odor? Will that carry over into my products? I have nightmares about lanolin...I FAITHFULLY rubbed it all over my expanding belly while I was pregnant hoping it would help prevent stretch marks. Alas, I went to be every night smelling like a greasy sheep and got stretch marks anyway

Also, any ideas on how to salvage what I have? I guess I can play around with other oils and butters and add it to my crappy leftover waxy junk to try and soften it up and then do the spoon trick... Can't hurt I suppose.

 

[welovesoap]

It's funny, I think lanolin has a mild scent!

I use it in all my balms, too, because there have been many studies out there showing that lanolin outperforms nearly anything as far as skin repair goes, and it's a wonderful humectant.

Only my best friend, Sarah, has commented that she can smell the lanolin in it -- she's a fellow mom, so I think she remembers it from the breastfeeding days. No one else seems to notice anything except the scent that I put in the balm, and the smell of beeswax.

If you DO ever put lanolin in your balms, promise me that you won't buy it at the local drugstore, though! It is WAY too spendy there!

 

[Sunny]

if you don't like it as a lip balm, you can use it up as a lotion bar or bath melt. gets rid of it and you can start over on a new recipe. may not be the most perfect lotion bar ever lol but it works.

 

[carebear]

I adore candelilla wax in my lip balm. It is slicker than beeswax, and the higher melting point helps make my balms pocket-proof. I also have castor in it.

You can customize it in a million ways.

 

[dlb2008]

Lip balm

You can cut back on the candelila wax, or omit it altogether, especially if you are using any solid oils or butters such as cocoa butter, etc.

It won't hurt to set this batch aside for now. You may find a way to use it at a later date.

 

[IrishLass]

I adore candelilla wax in my lip balm. It is slicker than beeswax, and the higher melting point helps make my balms pocket-proof. I also have castor in it.

You can customize it in a million ways.

Ditto. Candelilla = slick and hard (carnauba, too)! Wonderful stuff.

The balm I make just for the ladies uses 20% candelilla (or 10% candelilla/10% carnauba). The reason it's just for the ladies is because it leaves a nice dewy, glistening shine behind on the lips, which most menfolk don't like to have beaming off their own lips- at least mine don't.

It's funny, though- hubby and son were 'forced' to use my ladies-only balm about a year ago when we were on vacation and they got a little wind-burnt. They had forgotten to pack their 'man-balms' I made for them with beeswax, you see. Anyway, they both loved how the ladies balm felt going on- so smooth and slickery- and they both loved how it relieved their wind chapped lips, and they were both thanking me and giving my ladies balm high praises as we drove along in the car....until they got a glimpse of themselves in the rearview mirror and saw their lips beaming and glistening. I've since formulated a balm for them that incorporates some candelilla for the slickness that they liked, but not so much candelilla that it causes any undo beaming.


IrishLass

 

[Sweet T]

That's the lip balm I WANT! The slickery, glisteny stuff! I guess it's the beeswax that is too "waxy". Booo. Next time I will leave that out entirely and try using just the candelilla and perhaps some lanolin. Looks like I will have to find a better use for my beeswax (I'm very new at all of this).
Funny you should mention the guy take on the whole lip balm thing because my husband thought that my original formula was just fine. haha.
I did remelt it and add more orange butter, almond oil, vitamin e, and yes even a splash of (gasp) mineral oil. It's better but not great.
I can't wait to try again, though!

 

[MrsHearnie]

Roughly what percentage are you ladies using your lanolin at in your balm recipes???