Healing Holiday Lip Balms

Getting Mistletoe Ready

As winter holidays approach, we bundle up against the elements. We protect our skin from the harsh cold and wind, but what about our lips? We don’t want to be caught crusty under the mistletoe this holiday season.

The skin on our lips is one of the thinnest on the human body. There are no sebaceous glands (oil-producing) or sudoriferous glands (sweat-producing). Because of the lack of these glands, the lips cannot protect themselves against the elements. Because the lips have a thinner, less robust barrier than much of the surrounding skin, they lose moisture more easily and can become dry and cracked, especially in cold or windy weather. Also, the lips contain fewer melanocytes (pigment-producing cells) that protect from aging due to ultraviolet radiation produced by the sun.

So, the lips are thin and vulnerable, constantly losing water, becoming dry and cracked, and unable to defend themselves against the sun. What do we do? Lip Balms to the rescue! Lip balms provide a protective, occlusive barrier that helps reduce moisture loss and soothe dry, chapped lips. For sun protection, use a separate lip balm labeled with broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher.

Below are two of my favorite holiday recipes for lips. They are luxurious, fun, and easy to make.

Rose Vanilla Lip Gloss

Castor Oil 2 Tbsp
Jojoba Oil 2 Tbsp
Shea Butter 1 Tbsp
Beeswax ½ Tbsp
Vitamin E ½ Tsp
Glycerin 1 Tbsp
Rose Essential Oil 20 drops
Vanilla Essential Oil 20 drops
Alkanet Root for color
Soak Alkanet Root in Castor Oil overnight for color. Strain Alkanet root and combine all ingredients in a Pyrex except Vitamin E and Glycerin and Essential Oils. Place Pyrex in a pot with a couple inches of water and heat until all ingredients are melted. Remove from heat and add Vitamin E and glycerin. Whisk together until glycerin is fully incorporated. Add Essential Oils and whisk again to combine. Dispense into lip gloss containers. Recipe makes roughly eight 8ml lip glosses.

Peppermint Pattie Lip Balm

Sunflower Oil 3 Tbsp
Jojoba Oil 1 Tbsp
Mini Chocolate Chips 2 Tbsp
Cocoa Butter 2 Tbsp
Beeswax 2 Tbsp
Vitamin E ½ Tsp
Peppermint Essential Oil 2 drops per container
Combine all ingredients except Vitamin E and Peppermint Essential Oil into a Pyrex. Place Pyrex into a pot with two inches of water. Heat until all ingredients are melted and combined. Add Vitamin E when mixture is removed from the heat. In a .15-ounce lip balm tube, add one drop of Peppermint Essential Oil. Then fill to almost the rim with lip balm mixture. Top off the lip balm with one more drop of Peppermint Essential Oil. Cap lip balm tube and let stand to harden. Recipe makes roughly 30 lip balms.
These recipes are delicious and fun! They are a joyful gift to give to family, coworkers, and clients alike. They make perfect stocking stuffers to show off your product making prowess. Your Aunt Ethel thinks she is so cool for bringing her pistachio pudding salad to the holiday party. Well, you made Rose Vanilla Lip Gloss from scratch! You win!
Now that our lips are soft and lovely, we are lip-smacking under the mistletoe ready! Did you know that the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe has its roots in several cultures, including Norse, Celtic, and Roman. By the 1700’s it was a widespread English tradition to hang mistletoe in doorways. Walking under the mistletoe and not kissing was considered bad luck. The kissing only lasted as long as the mistletoe berries, one for every kiss. Once the berries were all gone the kissing was done. Let’s hope their lips were as tasty and soft as the Peppermint Pattie Lip Balm will make yours. Pucker up, Buttercup!

Article written by Martin Hansen, who is one of our full-time instructors and is both an aesthetician and a herbalist, and has been practicing both since 2000. He also used to have his own natural, herbal skincare line called Martin George Skin. He teaches at our Aesthetics school, School of Botanical & Medical Aesthetics, and with our sister herbalism school, Herbalism Roots.

A Look Inside Aesthetics