Burt’s Bees Original Beeswax Peppermint Lip Balm was my gateway product into the world of natural living…really.
I was a devoted conventional makeup girl and had a drawer full of the latest glittery, scented, brightly colored lip glosses available. And my lips were chronically dry (wonder if it was from the chemical cocktail I was slathering on multiple times per day). One winter, tired of Carmex and other restorative lip treatments, I grabbed a tube of Burt’s Bees at a checkout counter on a whim.
I loved the light peppermint scent and how well it nourished my lips. I became an exclusive Burt’s Bees user for years…
And then, as most stories often go in the land of corporations, Burt’s Bees was bought out by Clorox and their formula now contains canola oil and soybean oil (which I don’t eat and also don’t want on my lips).
So as most stories go, in the land of Katie’s endless DIY projects, I decided to create a homemade copycat version sans industrial seed oils.
This was the result. I recommend this as an easy lip balm recipe and it makes a great gateway product into the world of homemade deodorant and toothpaste. Fair warning, once you start making some natural products, you are just a hop, skip and jump away from detoxing your armpits and mud shampoo (not that either of those is a bad thing…)
Homemade Lip Balm
I’ve shared my shimmer lip gloss and homemade lip balm recipes before but this recipe is specifically designed to look, feel and smell like Burt’s Bees.
Another bonus, besides avoiding the franken-oils, is that this version is much less expensive than buying pre-made options like Burt’s Bees (and you can even re-use the tubes to save even more). I also omitted the lanolin in this recipe, since it irritates my skin and I haven’t found that it is necessary, but feel free to add a small amount if you have it on hand.
Kids love helping with homemade projects like this (and they are really fun for adults too!). This DIY lip balm locket is another fun way to take your lip balm with you.
Before you start, make sure you have the ingredients and equipment on hand.
- Beeswax
- Coconut Oil
- Shea Butter
- Peppermint Essential Oil
- Lip Chap Tubes (can also make in a small jar and just use your finger for application if you don’t have these) I order 100 at a time since I give these away a lot. They cost $0.13 when I order this many.
- A plastic pipette (makes filling the tubes much easier!)
- A double boiler or a glass bowl on top of a small pan with boiling water
- A spatula
If you’re switching from conventional lipstick and want some color and shimmer naturally I recommend adding a tiny amount (1 tsp) of mica powder like this one. It has natural color and shimmer and blends perfectly. You can see an example in this post.
Imitation Burt’s Bees Lip Balm Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons beeswax pastilles
- 2 tablespoons shea butter
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 30+ drops peppermint essential oil
Lip Balm Instructions
- Melt beeswax, shea butter and coconut oil in a double boiler or small glass bowl over a small pot of boiling water, stirring constantly until melted.
- Remove pan from heat but keep over the still-hot water to keep the mixture melted.
- Add essential oils to your preference. I just added peppermint in this recipe. I recommend adding a few drops at a time and testing a tiny amount on your arm to make sure the scent is to your liking.
- Once you’ve added the essential oils, use the pipette or a dropper to fill the lip balm tubes. This must be done quickly since the mixture will start to harden as soon as it is removed from the heat.
- Let tubes sit at room temperature for several hours until cooled and completely hardened before capping them.
Notes:
Use an extra teaspoon or two of beeswax if you prefer a thicker and longer-lasting lip balm or slightly less if you prefer a smoother and softer lip balm. Since there are no water based ingredients, you can re-melt and add more of each ingredient during the melting process until you get the exact texture you want. When experimenting, I’ve put a few drops of the melted mixture onto a piece of parchment paper and let harden in the fridge so I could test it before putting the mixture into tubes. Have fun with it! This makes 12-14 tubes.
Another great DIY I love is my Mint Chocolate Lip Scrub for Deliciously Smooth Lips.
Ever made an imitation product? What was your gateway product into natural living?
I’ll be darned, my super picky lips love this just as much as Burt’s Bees! I am so tickled that I can now make my own and will never have to pay for Burt’s Bees again. It’s wonderful knowing that the ingredients are so wholesome and nourishing without any of the BS. Thank you so much for this great recipe! I was truly a fangirl of Burt’s Bees but starting thinking hard about the cost and the iffy ingredients.
I made a ton of this yesterday for my MIL shop. But I used Plant Therapy Love Vanilla essential oil and I used a couple drops of stevia for sweetness. It is so good! The consistency is just right imo. This recipe is a keeper!
Hello, instead of EOs can I add ghee? Need this for my son who always keeps peeling his lips off!! Tks
Why not try a half batch and see if it works for what you need? The recipe doesn’t call for very many ingredients, so not terribly wasteful to test out a batch. Just my opinion.
Made the lip balm last night. Instead of tubes I used mini slider tins. Also, substituted out peppermint for 1/2 tsp of raw honey plus 1/4 tsp of pineapple flavoring, and used mango instead of shea butter. It turned out perfect – thanks for the recipe! I think the secret to ensuring that the balm doesn’t turn hard is to melt the beeswax and butter super slowly; you can’t rush it.
I’ve made this and it tastes weird… obviously don’t eat it but it’s nice for a lip balm to either not taste of anything or taste nice… any ideas?
How many tubes does this yield?
Hi, i am planning on using a similar recipe for lip balm and selling it, but would i need a safety report or some sort of test? Ive looked it up online but i’m not getting straight answers. I live in the UK so i’m not sure wether or not it changes which tests i need? I’m not sure, please reply if you have an answer for me! Thank you 🙂
Hi, I made the recipe, but without out the peppermint oil, and it turned out – kinda dry, especially when the house is cold. What do you think about adding a tiny bit of almond oil, would that make it ‘creamier’. Long short, based on very little experience on my part! Thanks!
Are your tablespoon measurements in US?
I’m in the US, so yes they are 🙂
What would you suggest using instead of peppermint to make vanilla lip balm? Would cooking vanilla essence be ok?
Wondering if this lip balm stays solid even when warm like Burt’s bees or is that the chemicals in it? I have some homemade lip balm but it always melts into the cap even in my pocket.
You need extra beeswax to get it to stay hardened in your pocket.
A couple years ago I made a great “carmex” diy lip balm and cannot find my recipe anywhere. I thought maybe this was it but now I’m thinking not. Do you have a recipe like that?
This sounds like a great one too. I get horribly chapped lips in the winter and I’ve heard that being hypothyroid affects dryness in the body – so I need a good moisturizing lip balm in addition to all the water I’m drinking. If I can’t find a good Carmex diy recipe I’ll give this one a go.
Maybe this one? https://wellnessmama.com/5859/healing-lip-salve/