| I made a Lip Gloss on February 10th and I thought it was very nice. I had a question about choosing a oil for recipe, so I did some research to find the answer. I like to follow the policy of “If you have a question, someone else has the same question.”
Question: Can I use any oil I want for a lip gloss as long I have enough wax? Answer: Yes. You can use any oil you want as long as the lip gloss you make isn’t so fluid that it will just flow out of the pen. We recommend using at least some Castor Oil to give the lip gloss viscosity and a substantial feeling. For example, if you use only Sunflower Oil, the lip gloss will feel too oily. I’m going to make the a lip gloss similar to the Light Sunflower Lip Gloss, but there is more Carnauba Wax. Items to be collected: Castor Oil Recipe: 50 grams Castor Oil Weigh Sunflower Oil, Castor Oil, and Carnauba Wax into beaker and microwave in short bursts to melt. It took me about 3 minutes to melt the Carnauba Wax because of the high melt point of this wax. Once melted, add flavor and color. Fill the Lip Brush Pens and allow to cool. Once the Lip Gloss has cooled, cap the pens. Aren’t these gorgeous Lip Brush Pens? I’m so excited for the labels the Graphics Department designed for these pens. For those that are wanting to win one of the Mother’s Day Gift Baskets, these Lip Brush Pens will be included in the baskets. Notes: At the time I started testing the different oils, I didn’t understand why Castor Oil was so predominant in Lip Gloss recipes. I made a batch of lip gloss with only Sunflower Oil and the lip gloss was still fluid in the pen after it had cooled! I sat down with Stephanie and asked why Castor Oil was used in lip gloss. I learned that the Castor Oil gives both viscosity and a slightly tacky feeling that is a common element in various lip glosses across the market. After I looked at different lip glosses in the a pen, I noticed that most had a similar ingredient. Can you guess what it is? If you guessed Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, then you are right! Castor Oil was the similar ingredient.
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 Weigh ingredients.  Partially melted Carnauba Wax.  Adding mica and color.  Final color for the lip gloss.  Filling the Lip Brush Pens. |
 Starting to cap the Lip Brush Pens.  The cute label designed by our Graphics Department. |
 Filled and capped pens waiting for labels. |
I have a really dumb question about the castor oil. Aren’t you afraid it will give you an upset tummy?
I know it is sometimes used for treating constipation and for colon cleansing. I told you,DUMB!
kathyjane-
It isn’t a dumb question. It won’t give you an upset stomach if you just apply it to your lips. The amount that you might ingest is so small it won’t do a thing. Most of the time if you are trying to use it as a laxative or for a colon cleansing, you typically ingest 2 fl oz. The Lip Brush Pen only holds 2 grams of material, which is 0.07 ounces. If you were wanting to use the Lip Brush Pen that way, you would need about 29 filled pens! Hope this helps!
Hey Andee,
Have you ever considered using Jojoba Seed Oil, Carnauba Wax and Vitamin E Acetate for a lip gloss? It’s great! Give it a try.
Betty
Beauricua-
I will have to give it a try. It sounds interesting.
Andee
Andee, can the rice bran oil be used instead of the carnauba wax for lip gloss. Or does it need to be in wax form. MMS has dewaxed the rice bran wax. I am testing a gloss made of shea and rice bran. What are your thoughts?
denise-
I don’t think Shea and Rice Bran are going to have enough viscosity to make a lip gloss. You could replace the Sunflower Oil with Rice Bran, but you do need a wax for the lip gloss to work. You can replace the Carnauba Wax with Candilla Wax. If you replace oils or waxes, you must replace them with like items. Let me know how this works.
Andee
Andee,
I don’t have a great question, or a new recipe, just wanted to let you know how impressed I am with this Blog! I can’t believe you’re just HERE for all the rest of us! What a great thing you are doing! I’m new to all of this–will be making my first batch of lip gloss today, and then tonight with all of the young women in our area. And, I found your blog by accident. What a happy accident! I’m looking forward to receiving your posts regularly. 🙂 Thanks for what you are doing–it’s wonderful! –Nicole
BTW, Where are you located? I’m in Utah–we also got a ton of snow last night!
sourcandynut-
I live in the Logan/Cache Valley area. We are about thirty minutes from the Idaho border and about an hour and a half north of Salt Lake City. We had enough snow up here that my family’s two mini Schnauzers have snow halfway up their chests! I love the snow, but I didn’t like the black ice on the roads to work this morning.
I hope your lip gloss turns out well.
Andee
denise-
The sheen is generally given by the oils that are used, which is why we recommend the Castor Oil. It gives the lip gloss the viscosity and the gloss. Lip gloss is simply defined as a cosmetic used to give shine and often a tint to the lips. Lip gloss is generally semi-fluid and clear until color or micas are added. The wax is added to keep the lip gloss on the lips and not bleeding onto the face around the lips.
Andee
Thank you for the education. So if I was making a shea butter balm, I would add castor oil to give it a sheen??? If I am using shea butter as a base, do I need to use the wax?
Yes, you still need the wax. Shea butter is a good addition to lip gloss. Making good lip gloss is like making good brownies.
Basics:
Brownies: Flour, sugar, chocolate, eggs
Lip Gloss: Wax and a liquid oil with some Castor Oil for sheen
Additives:
Brownies: Chocolate chips
Lip Gloss: Shea Butter
Flavor:
Brownies: Vanilla Extract, Peppermint Extract, Almond Extract
Lip Gloss: Flavor or Essential Oil of your choice
Visual Display:
Brownies: Frosting
Lip Gloss: Color, Mica
This is a way of comparing what is needed for a lip gloss and what is not. I hope this helps!
Andee
Hey Andy,
I like a little more color on my lips, a bit darker than a lip balm. If I wanted my lip gloss color to be more pigmented, what would be the coloring ratio
using the Oil Soluble Lip Balm Color for a batch amount same as the Honey Flavor Kissable Lips? Thanks.
Beauricua-
The plate test can also be used for lip gloss. I like to use this test for seeing if I have enough color. My best recommendation is to add a small amount of color and test. Keep testing until you have reached the color that you want.
oN THE LIP GLOSS rECIPES you have one calls for 1 gr of wax(Carnuba) for 100 grams of oil and another calls for 17 grams of wax (carnuba) for 78 gr oil. why such a big disparity? from 1 gr to 17 grams???
denise-
The one recipe required the 17 grams because there were two oils in that recipe. I tested this recipe and it took 17 grams of Carnauba Wax for the Lip Gloss to not be fluid in the lip brush. It was so fluid at first that the Lip Gloss leaked out of the brush!
Hope this helps!
Hello, this is my first time visiting this blog after having purchased two separate orders through your website. On the first order I received a complementary sugar scrub and on my second order, I received a free sample of this lip gloss! I just wanted to let you know that it’s absolutely wonderful! I love the amount of honey flavor added (not too much and not too little), and the consistency is very nice. I generally can’t stand a “sticky” gloss, and this is far from sticky. It’s much more liquid than I’m used to, but I think that’s beneficial. I tend to get very dry lips, and this gloss moisturizes immediately. I think the mica adds a tiny bit of texture, but overall the balm is still smooth. The only drawback to a gloss this “liquidy” is that it does need to be reapplied more often than a more “waxy” one. Thanks for the sample, and thanks so much for these blog experiments! I love all the ideas!
Hi Andee,
I was surfing around on your site & stubbled across the blog. So cool. I was able to figure out my question, the one about what oil to use to get a little shine. I believe it is Castor Oil.
Thanks again so much for all your wonderful help. 🙂
Jaime
Jaime,
That is correct. Castor gives us the shine and sticking abilities that we all look for in our lip gloss.
Hello Andee,
I’m a huge fan of MMS. I have been shopping with you guys for years and never knew about the blog. It’s such a joy to have found it. All of the archives are very educational.
Ok on to my question:
How can I make my lip “bling” gloss thicker liquid wise? ( Do I add more wax.)
The reason being is beacuse my continers consist of a tube with a wand. Therefore a thick clear liquid is what I’m going for. My customers love it but I perfer to perfect it.
Thanks,
diamondsbathnbody
You should increase the viscosity by using more viscous oils (castor) or increasing your wax content. To get an exact assessment, I would send your formulation directly to the Technical Support Staff. Include everything you have here, plus your exact recipe. They will review the recipe and send back some testing suggestions. You can take their advice and make a few test batches. If you are closer, but not quite where you want to be, email them back with the original, their suggestions and what you desire to improve. They will repeat this process with you until you get what you want. Do not expect that they will remember your
name or your formulation. Once they help, your message gets deleted. So always include any correspondence you have had with them on the project. It makes assisting light years faster.
techsup@thesage.com Or you can get to the web for a direct submission at http://www.thesage.com/about/contact.html
Hi Andee,
I would like to make this lib gloss with beeswax instead of Carnauba Wax. Would it be 2 x times the Carnauba Wax amount for the beeswax in this case? ie 12 grams beeswax instead of 6?
Thanks!
Kathy
Kathy,
That is correct.
I purchased a bottle of your liquid glycerin (vegetablie based). Would that be a good additive to lip gloss and if yes, what would the porportion be? Thank you.
No, it is a water soluble ingredient so it won’t mix into an oil mixture.