In this episode of Soap Queen TV, I’ll show how to quickly and easily infuse Sweet Almond oil with Calendula petals. Then use this nourishing oil in a simple, from-scratch lip balm recipe featuring Shea Butter and Natural Beeswax. You can also get creative and use the infused oil in homemade lotions, salves, and massage oils!
How to Make Infused Lip Balm from Soap Queen on Vimeo.
For more in-depth information on how to make infused oils check out my book Infusing: Herbs, Spices, Teas & Clays (there’s a print version and an e-book).
Ingredients you’ll need to make the project in this video:
For infused oil:
16 oz. Sweet Almond Oil
1/2 oz Dried Calendula Petals
For Lip Balm:
2.5 oz Calendula Oil
1 oz Yellow Beeswax
1/2 oz Coconut Oil
1/2 oz Shea Butter
5 mini scoops Stevia
about 16 lip tins
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Love this recipe. I was wondering if it would be okay to add flavour oils to this recipe? Thank you for this lovely tutorial
Good morning!
You can absolutely add flavoring oils to this recipe. We suggest using them between 3-5% of your recipe. If you have a 10 ounce batch, you’ll want to us about .25 oz of the flavoring oil. Is there one flavor in particular that you were wanting to use? =)
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Love this recipe. Thank you. One question, the stevia (for me) leaves a bit of a gritty feeling in my batch. Is that normal? Or should it dissolve? I think you said it supsends in oil so maybe not. Is there a way to sweeten without that tiny bit of gritty feel?
Hi Mary!
Are you using Bramble Berry’s stevia for your lip balm? It should dissolve in your mixture if you are adding it to the melted phase of the oils. If you find that the Stevia just doesn’t work as well for you, you can also try our Lip Smacking Sweet Flavor Oil which makes any lip balm recipe the perfect sweetness. =)
Lip Smacking Sweet Flavor Oil: https://www.brambleberry.com/Lip-Smacking-Sweet-Flavor-Oil-P4679.aspx
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Hi Becky,
I didn’t use Bramble Berry’s Stevia, instead some that I picked up at the natural food store, perhaps that was the challenge. Or as I was reading and learning on your site, it might have been melting the shea butter in the microwave, doh! The Lip Smacking Sweet Flavor Oil sound wonderful too, being a rookie I didn’t even know that was an option.
Thank you for your wonderful site, supplies and advice!
Mary
Good morning, Mary!
We don’t suggest melting the Shea Butter in the microwave as you have read, because it tends to get a bit grainy when you do. I’d definitely take advantage of the Lip Smacking Sweet Flavor Oil (or any of our fun flavorings) and experiment until you get the perfect lip balm!
Flavoring Oils: https://www.brambleberry.com/Flavoring-Oils-C177.aspx
-Becky with Bramble Berry
P.S. Keep us updated on your progress and if you get any fun pictures be sure to share them with us on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/BrambleBerry
Hi Becky! I just stumbled on this site and as a beginning crafter, this website is wonderful! I do have a question though–what about using soy wax instead of beeswax? I already have soy wax I use for candles and am wondering how much softer the soy would make the recipe.
Good afternoon, Eudora!
The soy wax is going to be super soft for this recipe, and might not work with the lip balm tubes. If you wanted to make an all-vegan recipe and still use soy wax, you could also add a bit of Candellila Wax to help harden it up. But, you definitely want to use the frozen spoon trick (found in the video) to test the consistency of the balm before you pour it in the tubes. I hope this helps! =)
-Becky with Bramble Berry
I plan on making my own lip balms and lotions soon. I am so glad I came upon your site! So much great info, I’ve been browsing through for a while now. Thanks!
You are so sweet, Nicole! Your blog is absolutely adorable and we love all the fun ideas you have as well! π
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Hi Anne-Marie,
Can this infused oil recipe be used with jojoba oil for your body butter recipe which calls for 3 oz jojoba oil infused with calendula? Also, does it really take 16 oz of oil to make 2.5 oz of infused oil?
Thanks so much!
That would be fabulous Kristy! I think an infused body butter recipe would be fabulous. And all you need to do, for an infusion is just make sure you have enough oil to cover up the herb or botanical that you are infusing! π
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Would this work with lip gloss tubes instead of tins? Would it be too soft to twist up?
Hi Heather!
This recipe might be a bit soft for the lip balm tubes, but you can harden it up by adding a little extra beeswax! π
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Does it matter what oil you use? Could I use Castor oil or Avocado oil? Thanks π
Hi Gretta!
You could totally infuse with the Castor or Avocado Oil, we’ve just found that the Sweet Almond Oil works really well for infusing herbs into our soaps and lip balms. π
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Thanks! I wanted to make some an my friend has a serious nut allergy and I’d rather be safe than sorry π
Most definitely! If your friend has a serious nut allergy, I’d steer clear of the Sweet Almond Oil and use another non-nut based oil. π
-Becky with Bramble Berry
Is it possible to only package half of this recipe and put the rest in a container (say 2 oz jar), put in the fridge and reheat (with a double boiler) when I’m ready to package the rest?
Hi Art!
That is a fabulous idea! There will be no problem with storing your lip balm in the fridge until you are are ready to use it again. You’ll have to let us know how it turns out for you!
-Becky with Bramble Berry
I just tried this! So easy and so AWESOME!!! I had fun making a huge mess and using my favorite herbal tea to infuse in the oil. It was difficult to be consistent putting the balm in the tins which is where the mess part came in. I’ll have to try some other method to pour it in…injector maybe??
So you were pouring directly from a Pyrex? Yes, little droppers do help (https://www.brambleberry.com/Droppers-With-Suction-Bulb-P3802.aspx) but you have to keep the balm warmer so it doesn’t harden up in the tip (still – if you don’t have a steady hand, it’s totally worth it!) =)
What is the handmade lip balm’s expiry date? How does the shelf life of the oils affect the expiry date? Does vitamin E act as a preservative? What are the risks of using rancid oils in lip balm making? I’ve been looking everywhere for the answers π
Vitamin E is a great antioxidant but it does not act as a preservative. The shelf life of the lip balm is that of the oil with the shortest shelf life. Rancid oils really smell bad. So while they’re probably not super harmful…they are just kind of gross stinky! I hope that helps.
Courtney from Bramble Berry
Try refrigerating any extra lip balm to help extend the shelf life!
Is the Stevia necessary? Also would the recipe stay the same if we used Candellila instead of beeswax? (I am hoping for a harder type of balm that can stand up to selling in the FL heat, any suggestions on how much to use with this recipe would be great, I am horrible at figuring that stuff out). I can’t wait to try this one, need to place an order for the tins. Oh… can we use chapstick tubes instead? Thank you thank you!!!
Stevis is not necessary. It’s just to sweeten up the recipe. If you use Candellila, it will be much harder. That wax is considerably more hard than beeswax. Yes, you can use chapstick tubes instead. If you’re going to experiment with Candellila, just do small batches =) It’s about 15-20% harder in my experience and it is much more brittle.
I saw your video when you made this and thanks so much for mentioning that the shea butter turns gritty melting it in the microwave. I was wondering why I had so much trouble with shea butter! I was wondering if I could sub honey for the Stevia.
Honey doesn’t mix in very well – it sort of tends to granulate and sink to the bottom so I wouldn’t recommend that.
Another awesome video from BB! Thank you so much!
I was wondering if switching Beeswax for Carnauba wax, to have a Vegan lip balm, would effect the quantity to use in this recipe.
T.
Definitely – the Carbauba is a harder wax with a higher melt point so you just need to use about 10-15% less than the Beeswax OR increase the liquid oils. Definitely do the spoon trick before making a huge batch though. =) Candelilla Wax https://www.brambleberry.com/Candellila-Wax-P4207.aspx is another great vegan alternative.
Thank you for your feedback Anne-Marie!
The spoon trick is soooo helpful! Another awesome tip from BB.
T.
Would you recommend decreasing 10-15% if using Candelilla wax too. I think so? Thanks a lot.
That is correct – a harder wax so use less of it than beeswax (which is a more soft, pliable wax). =)
If you are using Candelilla to replace beeswax, reduce the amount by half π
So excited to see this new video! Waiting on my BB order to arrive, which includes Calendula petals. I tried a mango butter recipe recently and it turned grainy on me. I liked the feel of the Mango butter but not the grit. I’ve been using it on my feet and they are super soft. Thank you for taking the time to do the videos. They are so helpful. Looking forward to learning all about bath teas. Tricia F.
Mango Butter is similar to the shea butter- it can get a little grainy if over heated. Try stirring it into your hot oils like in the video. That should get rid of the grainy feeling.
Courtney from Bramble Berry
Thank you Anne Marie,
You always have the greatest ideas and helpful
tips. Thanks for sharing!
I’m so happy that you’re finding value in the posts. Thank YOU for being a reader =)
I will have to try this recipe. I was wondering can I sub the the powdered stevia with the flavored Stevia that I have found at Whole Foods? How much would I use? I guess if I select a flavoring that it would conflict with the Candula.
I believe liquid Stevia is water based (correct me if I’m wrong) so I don’t think it will mix in very well with the other oils. The calendula doesn’t give it much taste so using a flavoring oil is a-okay!
-Courtney from Bramble Berry
Thanks so much for this post! I have just gotten into making lip balm and have wanted a large batch recipe (with ingredients by weight). After watching this video I had to get the other one, too! Can’t wait to watch it!
Awesome! Your lip balms are going to rock =) And the infusing is just a nice extra touch to make them extra luscious.