Keep your kisser soft by making your own lip gloss!

You'll have a blast customizing and remixing the variations on this recipe to find your perfect match. More color, more flavor, more gloss? Go for it! Here are some great suggestions to get you started on your path to lip gloss glory!

This basic recipe without any color or scent is also a great alternative to petroleum jelly. Let's end our dependence on petroleum!

Step 1: Materials

To make your gloss, you'll need:

Basic Ingredients:

Wax - beeswax or paraffin - grated or in pearls
Carrier oil - castor, sesame, almond, jojoba, sunflower, coconut, olive, etc. - or a combination of the above.

Optional:

Cocoa butter or shea butter
Vitamin E oil
Flavoring: natural extract, essential oils, or even kool-aid or torani syrup
Color: beet juice, lipstick nubs, food coloring, etc.

Tools:

Microwave-proof container
Stirring stick (I use chopsticks)
Small containers

Step 2: Melt Wax

Add 1 tablespoon of grated wax (I used beeswax pearls) to the microwaveable container.

Melt wax. I nuked mine on high for approx 1 min.

Step 3: Add Oils

Stir in 1 tablespoon of carrier oil (I used a mix of jojoba and castor).

At this point, you're done! But I recommend the following to customize your gloss.

Add 1/8 teaspoon vitamin e oil for its multitude of benefits!

Add 1/4 teaspoon cocoa or shea butter to make lips oh so soft.

Step 4: Add Flavor

Add 1/8 teaspoon of your favorite extract or a few drops of essential oils.
I've even seen kool-aid drink mix or flavored syrups recommended.

Make sure if you're using an essential oil that you're aware of its specific dilution suggestions. I forgot to do this with my peppermint oil and when I added orange to that, I created chemical weaponry.

The next batch I made used just orange essence. Yum!!

Step 5: Add Color

I used the rest of my apple-grape juice to color my gloss. What was I thinking? Don't do that.

A bit of your favorite lipstick is your best bet here. It's already ready to go!
Alternatively, you can try food coloring, or even beet juice.

Stir it well.

You may need to reintroduce your concoction to the microwave at this point. Try 30 second intervals on high.

Step 6: Pour Into Containers

If you've used a spouted melting vessel like I have, this part's pretty easy.

If not, or if you're pouring into tubes instead of tins, I recommend using a small funnel or pipette.

This recipe makes enough to fill all of the containers in the picture - perfect for gifting!