DIY Lip Balm: How to Make Lip Balm with Shea Butter

Make DIY lip balm by melting equal weights of beeswax, shea butter and a liquid oil over hot water, then pour into tubes or tins and leave to set. Baraka's shea butter, African black soap, kombo butter and baobab oil are all made by hand by the women of the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre in Wa, Ghana.

This page gives the base ratio, a beeswax version and a vegan candelilla version, and notes on tubes, tins, flavour, colour and shelf life. It is written for everyday dry lips. These are plain moisturising balms, not a sunscreen and not a treatment for anything.

How do you make DIY lip balm?

Weigh equal parts of wax, shea butter and a liquid oil. Melt them together gently over hot water, stir, pour into tubes or tins and leave them undisturbed until firm. Work by weight rather than spoons, because wax pellets, butter and oil all pack differently. The quantities are in the recipe further down, and the method is the same for every version on this page.

1. Start dry and clean. Wash and dry your jug, spoon, tubes or tins. A drop of water left behind can end up in the balm.
2. Weigh. Put the wax, shea butter and oil into a heatproof glass jug or measuring cup on a kitchen scale.
3. Melt gently. Stand the jug in a saucepan holding about 2 inches (5 cm) of barely simmering water. Keep the heat low and keep water out of the jug.
4. Stir. Stir with a clean spoon until everything is clear and runny. Lift the jug out and wipe the base dry. Do not leave the mix sitting on the heat once it has melted.
5. Add flavour or colour. If you are using either, stir it in now (see the flavour and colour section below).
6. Pour quickly. Wax starts to set fast. Stand tubes upright on a tray. The balm shrinks and dips in the middle as it cools, so top each tube up with a small second pour.
7. Leave it alone. Let the balm set at room temperature until fully firm, then cap it and write the date on the label.

What do you need to make lip balm?

You need a butter, a liquid oil and a wax, plus a few pieces of kit. None of it is hard to find.

• Shea butter. Start with Baraka shea butter, because it is the base of every balm on this page. It is unrefined, strained and filtered only, with no refining, bleaching or deodorising. It is made by hand by women's producer groups at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre. The colour runs from ivory through cream to pale yellow, and a mild nutty smell is normal. Shea is solid at room temperature and melts on contact with skin, which is why it suits a lip balm.
• A liquid oil. Baobab oil is a good choice for its light feel, since it absorbs quickly without the heaviness of a richer oil. It is pale yellow to golden with a mild, faintly nutty smell. It is made by hand at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre. You can use virgin coconut oil instead if you like a fresh coconut aroma. It is pressed in Ghana's coastal coconut belt and solidifies below about 75°F (24°C), then liquefies again as the room warms. That is normal and does not affect quality.
• A wax. Beeswax pastilles are the classic choice. Candelilla wax is the plant-based option (see the section on making lip balm without beeswax).
• Optional: cocoa butter. Cocoa butter from Ghana is unrefined, so it keeps the chocolate smell of the bean. It is hard and brittle at room temperature, harder than shea, and melts close to body temperature. Add it when you want a balm that holds its shape.
• Kit. A kitchen scale that reads in ounces and grams, a heatproof glass jug, a saucepan, a clean spoon or silicone spatula, a small tray, and lip balm tubes or small tins with lids.

What is the best shea butter lip balm recipe?

The best place to start is the classic: equal weights of beeswax, shea butter and a liquid oil. It makes a balm that holds its shape in a tube and glides on soft, and the one-to-one-to-one ratio is easy to scale up or down. The table gives the base ratio by weight for a batch of about 1 1/2 oz (42 g).

Use the method above. Once you have made one batch, you can change it by weight:

• Firmer balm: add 1/8 oz (3.5 g) more wax, or swap 1/4 oz (7 g) of the shea butter for cocoa butter.
• Softer balm: add 1/8 oz (3.5 g) more oil.
• Different oil: swap the baobab oil for virgin coconut oil or Baraka shea oil, weight for weight. Shea oil is lighter on the skin than the whole butter and absorbs more readily. It is made by hand at the Konjeihi Women's Enterprise Centre.

Unrefined butters vary a little from batch to batch in colour and smell, so your balm may come out slightly different each time. That is the nature of an unrefined ingredient and not a fault.

Can you make lip balm without beeswax?

Yes. Swap the beeswax for candelilla wax to make a vegan lip balm. Candelilla is firmer than beeswax, so use about half as much by weight: 1/4 oz (7 g) of candelilla for every 1/2 oz (14 g) of shea butter and 1/2 oz (14 g) of oil. The method is the same, though the wax may take a little longer to melt, so keep stirring over the hot water.

You can also leave wax out altogether and lean on cocoa butter for body. Melt 1/2 oz (14 g) cocoa butter, 1/2 oz (14 g) shea butter and 1/4 oz (7 g) liquid oil together. Expect a softer, more spreadable balm than a waxed one, so a tin suits it better than a tube. Before you pour it all, put a spoonful on a cold plate for a minute to check the firmness. Add a few drops of oil if it is too hard, or a little more cocoa butter if it is too soft.

Tubes or tins: how many a batch fills

A standard lip balm tube holds about 0.15 oz (4 g), so a 1 1/2 oz (42 g) beeswax batch fills about 10 tubes. The smaller candelilla batch of 1 1/4 oz (35 g) fills about 8. Tube sizes vary, so check the capacity on the packaging before you buy.

A 1/2 oz (14 g) tin takes about a third of the beeswax batch, so you get three tins, or two tins and a little left over from the candelilla batch.

• Tubes need a firmer balm that holds its shape when you twist it up. Keep to the base ratio, or add the extra wax or cocoa butter mentioned above. Tubes are also tidier to carry and apply, and your fingers stay out of the balm.
• Tins are more forgiving, because you press a fingertip into the balm. For a softer, scoopable tin balm, add 1/8 oz (3.5 g) of extra oil to the beeswax batch. Wash your hands before dipping in.

Whichever you choose, pour while the mix is runny and fill each container right to the top, because the balm shrinks as it cools.

Flavour and colour, safely

Keep both small and simple. A plain balm of shea butter, oil and wax is perfectly good, and anything you add goes on your lips.

• Use only lip-safe flavour oils. Choose oils the supplier sells for lip products. Do not use fragrance oils made for candles or soap.
• Keep the amount low. Start with 2 to 3 drops in a 1 1/2 oz (42 g) batch, stir well and add more only a drop at a time. Let a little of the cooled balm sit on your lip before you decide.
• No citrus oils in a balm you will wear in the sun. Bergamot and lemon essential oils are phototoxic, and the safest course is to leave citrus oils out of any lip balm you will wear outdoors.
• Colour with a tiny pinch. If you want a tint, use a lip-safe cosmetic colour in a very small amount, stirred into the melted balm until it disappears. Add a little at a time.

This balm is not a sunscreen. For sun, use a broad-spectrum sunscreen as well.

How long does homemade lip balm last?

A water-free lip balm lasts about as long as its shortest-lived ingredient. Baraka shea butter keeps 2+ years when stored properly, away from heat and direct sun. Virgin coconut oil is highly saturated, so it keeps far longer than most oils and needs no added antioxidant.

The simplest way to judge the balm is the date on the label and your own nose and eyes:

• Keep it water-free. Do not add aloe gel, rosewater, honey or anything else that contains water. Dry your tools and containers before you start.
• Store it cool and shaded. Keep tubes and tins out of sunny windows and hot cars. Heat softens the balm and is hard on the butter.
• Write the date on every tube and tin, and check the date on your oil, because the balm will not outlast it.
• Use clean fingers. This matters most for tins.
• Throw it away if it smells off or looks changed. A mild nutty smell from the shea is normal, and a sharp or stale smell is not.
• Do not worry about a pale bloom. Cocoa butter can develop a pale surface bloom after a change in temperature. That is a change in crystal structure, not spoilage, and it disappears on melting.

More lip balm recipes

If you want ready-made variations, Baraka has individual recipes for a classic shea lip balm, a tinted rose lip balm, a coconut vanilla lip balm, a tinted berry lip balm, and a baobab oil and shea butter lip balm. Each one starts from the same idea as the base ratio here.

For more recipes beyond lip balm, the recipe book bundle collects Baraka's recipes in one place.

These balms are for everyday dry lips. If your lips are cracked, sore or keep getting worse, ask a doctor or pharmacist.

Quick answers

How do you make DIY lip balm?

Weigh equal parts of beeswax, shea butter and a liquid oil, such as 1/2 oz (14 g) of each. Melt them together in a heatproof jug set over hot water, stir, pour into tubes or tins and leave undisturbed until firm.

What is the best shea butter lip balm recipe?

The classic is the best place to start: equal weights of beeswax, shea butter and baobab oil, for example 1/2 oz (14 g) of each for a batch of about 1 1/2 oz (42 g). Add a little more wax for a firmer balm or a little more oil for a softer one.

What do you need to make lip balm?

You need shea butter, a liquid oil such as baobab oil or virgin coconut oil, and a wax such as beeswax or candelilla. You also need a kitchen scale, a heatproof jug, a saucepan, a spoon and clean tubes or tins.

Can you make lip balm without beeswax?

Yes. Use candelilla wax for a vegan balm, at about half the weight of beeswax: 1/4 oz (7 g) with 1/2 oz (14 g) of shea butter and 1/2 oz (14 g) of oil. You can also use cocoa butter in place of wax for a softer balm that suits a tin.

How long does homemade lip balm last?

A water-free lip balm lasts about as long as its shortest-lived ingredient. Baraka shea butter keeps 2+ years when stored properly, away from heat and direct sun. Label each balm with the date, keep water out, and throw it away if it smells off or looks changed.