Ultra Creamy Lip Butter

Lip balm, lip gloss, lip stick, and now lip balm. I have made several different lip products over the years to replace all the tubes of lip products I used to buy. This lip butter is super easy to make with just a few ingredients and melts like butter on your lips, hence the name!

It’s a little more nourishing than some lip balms so it’s perfect for when you need extra hydration.

Lip butter vs lip balm

When I first heard the word lips, I thought it was an unfamiliar name for lips. It turns out that there are some differences between the two (even if they are more subtle). Lip balms use a combination of waxes and oils to moisturize the lips. Lip butter can also be used with wax and oil, but it also adds to the lip gloss.

Shea butter, mango butter, cocoa butter, and cupuacu nut butter are some of the favorites here. Butters are thicker than oils but not as hard or waxy as beeswax or candelilla wax. They also have a unique fatty acid profile that is good for the skin and lips.

Music of the lips

I’ve kept the ingredients list simple so you don’t have to buy a ton of different oils and butters to make this. Beeswax aids growth, while cocoa butter and mango butter add a warming effect. I’ve also added foaming nut oil to make it plump and essential oil for the scent and lip benefits.

Mango butter

First, we get mango oil. I love how smooth and creamy it is without being too thick. It is softer than cocoa butter and feels like shea butter. Mango butter is one of the few butters with astringency, so it doesn’t leave the skin or lips feeling too dry.

You can substitute shea butter, but shea butter tends to get gritty once it cools. A good way to prevent this from happening is to refrigerate any products made with shea butter, rather than at room temperature.

Cocoa butter

I chose cocoa butter because it is thick and gives more lip butter without relying on beeswax. Cocoa butter is high in stearic and palmitic fatty acids and forms a lipid barrier to prevent water loss. And it smells really good with a slight chocolate scent!

Meadowfoam Seed Oil

This carrier oil may not be the one you are used to working with. It adds a nice shine to the mix and makes the shiny butters spread on the lips. Meadowfoam oil is a great moisturizer to lock in water, but it’s easier to concentrate than carrier oils like olive or avocado oil. If you don’t have any on hand, you can use any carrier oil you like, but it will affect the absorption and texture of the lip balm.

Essential oils

Not only do essential oils make this smell amazing, but they add a soothing benefit to aromatherapy. Just make sure to choose an essential lip oil that won’t irritate this sensitive area! Oils like cinnamon, lemongrass, clove, and ginger can be fragrant, but they can cause burning or sensitivity in lip products. And others such as lemon and lime can cause phototoxicity (hand burns when exposed to sunlight).

Here are some of my favorite lip balms to use:

• Lavender
• sweet orange
• Geranium
• Mandarin
• Neroli
• Rose
• Spearmint
• Peppermint

Since cocoa powder gives the lips a chocolatey scent I like to use essential oils and white chocolate. For this batch, I used lavender, but peppermint and orange are also good with cocoa butter.

Another important safety precaution when it comes to essential oils is dilution. Generally the amount of essential oil you use for lip products depends on the essential oil. Nothing in the above list is too arbitrary, so a good rule of thumb is .5 to 1 percent. This comes about 5-10 drops in this arrangement. It can be tempting to add a lot, but less is always better when it comes to essential oils!

Here’s how to make your own lip butter.

Tips for Making Lip Butter

In fact, we add everything together, melt, and pour into the bag. There is no multiphase or complex process. I have a large heat-safe glass bowl that I only use for making DIY products, and I’ll use that as a double boiler. You can also melt the ingredients in a dedicated Mason jar for easy pouring.

I found it easier to use a paper towel to wipe off the wax/butter residue after I poured the product into my bag. Don’t immediately reach for soap and washcloths to clean up or you’ll have a mess!

Avoid storing your lip butter in hot or humid conditions which will degrade the ingredients quickly. This includes leaving it in a hot car or in a bathroom with hot water.

Have you used your lip butters or balms? What is your favorite scent to wear? Leave a comment and let us know!