How to Make Your Own Pumpkin Spice Lip Balm with Essential Oils

The fall season is in full swing! While this time of year brings beautiful changing leaves and cozy pumpkin-spiced lattes, it also brings crisp air, which can leave our lips dry and chapped. The skin on our lips is different from the skin we have on other parts of our bodies. It’s only a few cellular layers deep and doesn’t have a protective layer or any hair follicles or sweat glands, which makes it more prone to drying out. This is why it’s critical to keep your lips moisturized.

Rather than reach for conventional lip balms that use petroleum and artificial flavors, opt for making your own natural alternative. This recipe from professional Aromatherapist, Amy Galper, smells and tastes divine, and is also good for your lips! Keep reading to see how to make it and to learn more about the better-for-you ingredients.

Pumpkin Spice Lip Balm Recipe

Supplies

• Lip balm tubes or tins
• Mini whisk
• Double boiler
• Kitchen scale

Ingredients

• 11 grams of beeswax
• 14 grams of shea butter (refined and deodorized or raw virgin)
• 28 grams of virgin pumpkin seed oil 
• 20 grams of vanilla-infused jojoba oil 
• 1 gram of buriti oil 
• 8 drops of orange essential oil 
• 3-4 drops of clove bud essential oil
• 4 drops of ginger essential oil

Instructions

1. Measure the beeswax and shea butter and place them on the top of a double boiler, and wait until the mixture is completely combined and melted.
2. Add the pumpkin seed oil and vanilla-infused jojoba oil and stir with the whisk.
3. Remove from heat and add buriti oil, orange essential oil, clove bud essential oil, and ginger essential oils and stir.
4. Pour into your lip balm tubes or tins.
5. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes.
6. Apply to your lips and enjoy!

A breakdown of each ingredient and why we are using it in this recipe:

Beeswax:

Made by worker bees, beeswax is an all-natural type of wax that has been used for many years in cosmetics, candles, and sunscreen. In ancient times, Egyptians would even use beeswax in their skincare rituals. One of the things that makes beeswax so special is its ability to create a protective layer on the skin, which prevents moisture loss and helps keep the lips hydrated.

Shea Butter:

Shea butter comes from the nuts of the shea tree, which is native to West Africa. It has some amazing benefits for the skin because of its unique composition of certain essential fatty acids. Today you’ll find shea butter as an ingredient in many body care products and cosmetics. It’s incredibly soothing and conditioning for your skin. For this recipe, we suggest using refined and deodorized shea butter, but you can also use raw virgin shea butter, too.

Virgin Pumpkin Seed Oil:

Often used in cooking, pumpkin seed oil is derived from pumpkin seeds and has a rich, nutty flavor and vibrant color. Like shea butter, pumpkin seed oil contains omega-3 fatty acids, which are very nourishing for the skin. In this recipe, we prefer to use virgin pumpkin seed oil because of its high quality and purity; you’ll notice it has a slightly darker color than regular pumpkin seed oil.

Vanilla-Infused Jojoba Oil:

Jojoba oil is extracted from the jojoba nuts or seeds through a process of cold expeller pressing. This special method of squeezing specifically removes the fatty oil from the seed. The chemical composition of jojoba oil is very similar to our skin’s natural oil, which means it’s very good at helping skin regain its natural balance. In this recipe, we recommend infusing your jojoba oil with vanilla to give it extra flavor. All you have to do is add 1 drop of vanilla extract to the jojoba oil and blend.

Buriti Oil:

Lesser-known oil, buriti oil comes from the fruit of the buriti tree, which is native to the Amazon rain forests. It contains antioxidants — including beta carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E — that can fight free radicals and protect the skin from cellular damage.

Orange Essential Oil:

Orange essential oil is made from cold-pressing orange peels. It has a lovely sweet-tangy scent and contains limonene, a chemical component that is known for soothing irritated or dry skin.

Clove Bud Essential Oil:

Clove bud essential oil is steam-distilled from the dried fruit buds of the clove tree. It has a warming, aromatic scent and flavor. Similar to orange essential oil, it’s also wonderful at calming irritated skin and can help reduce the appearance of redness.

Keep your lips soft and moisturized all season long by making this pumpkin spice lip balm and other natural DIY recipes. Feel free to experiment with different essential oil combinations to create new scents and flavors. To learn more about how you can use essential oils in your self-care routine, take a look at this article: Top Essential Oils for Every Skin Type.