Today we will be making Formulation #2. I targeted this lip balm to be vegan, firm and yet shiny. I have found sometimes it is really hard to formulate a vegan product. It is easy to make them overly stiff and waxy. It can also be hard to obtain a smooth product. Formulating today’s recipe was a big challenge for me. Come join me to see how well it turned out!
Finished Lip Balm
After applying Formulation #2 to my lips, I was a little unsure about the lip balm. It was a soft lip balm and it had a very different texture. Though it is a softer lip balm, the application wasn’t particularly smooth and creamy. It almost had an ultra-fine gritty texture to it. As I let it sit on my lips, it started to warm up. I rubbed my lips together and I was surprised how the texture had changed. My body heat let it melt and it felt I had applied two products rather than one.
Weighing Waxes
It felt like I had first applied a stiff, durable lip balm to my lips. Then to make sure my lips rubbed smoothly against each other, a tiny amount of a liquid oil was applied. I like this because my lips feel well protected while still allowing a little slip and glide.
While I did like this lip balm, I wasn’t particularly pleased with the slight grainy texture the lip balm had in the tube. This is where the Conditioning Emulsifier comes in. I think all I would need to do to ensure a smooth texture is increase my Conditioning Emulsifier just a little.
| Ingredients Soy Wax Candelilla Wax Conditioning Emulsifier Castor Oil Sweet Almond Oil Palm Kernel Oil High Melt Point Shea Butter Vitamin E Acetate Sugar Baby Flavor Oil Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Equipment Scale Microwave Safe Container Spoons Pipettes |
Original Recipe:
| Recipe in Grams 60 grams Soy Wax 20 grams Candelilla Wax 20 grams Conditioning Emulsifier 132 grams Castor Oil 36 grams Sweet Almond Oil 52 grams Palm Kernel Oil 60 grams High Melt Point Shea Butter 4 grams Vitamin E Acetate 8 grams Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 8 grams Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Recipe in Ounces 2.12 oz Soy Wax 0.71 oz Candelilla Wax 0.71 oz Conditioning Emulsifier 4.66 oz Castor Oil 1.27 oz Sweet Almond Oil 1.83 oz Palm Kernel Oil 2.12 oz High Melt Point Shea Butter 0.14 oz Vitamin E Acetate 0.28 oz Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 0.28 oz Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Recipe in Percentages 15% Soy Wax 5% Candelilla Wax 5% Conditioning Emulsifier 33% Castor Oil 9% Sweet Almond Oil 13% Palm Kernel Oil 15% High Melt Point Shea Butter 1% Vitamin E Acetate 2% Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 2% Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Proposed Changes:
| Recipe in Grams 60 grams Soy Wax 20 grams Candelilla Wax 32 grams Conditioning Emulsifier 120 grams Castor Oil 36 grams Sweet Almond Oil 52 grams Palm Kernel Oil 60 grams High Melt Point Shea Butter 4 grams Vitamin E Acetate 8 grams Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 8 grams Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Recipe in Ounces 2.12 oz Soy Wax 0.71 oz Candelilla Wax 1.13 oz Conditioning Emulsifier 4.23 oz Castor Oil 1.27 oz Sweet Almond Oil 1.83 oz Palm Kernel Oil 2.12 oz High Melt Point Shea Butter 0.14 oz Vitamin E Acetate 0.28 oz Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 0.28 oz Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Recipe in Percentages 15% Soy Wax 5% Candelilla Wax 8% Conditioning Emulsifier 30% Castor Oil 9% Sweet Almond Oil 13% Palm Kernel Oil 15% High Melt Point Shea Butter 1% Vitamin E Acetate 2% Sugar Baby Flavor Oil 2% Green Apple Flavor Oil |
Weighing Oils
Weigh everything except the Vitamin E Acetate, Sugar Baby Flavor Oil and Green Apple Flavor Oil into a microwave safe container. Heat gently until everything is liquid. If you still have a few stubborn beads of beeswax, remove the container from the microwave and stir. The heat in the solution should melt the beeswax.
Weighing Oils and Butters
Add the Sugar Baby Flavor Oil and Green Apple Flavor Oil to the liquid lip balm mixture. Stir well. For here you can either use a pipette to fill your lip balm tubes or use a filling tray. Use whichever is most convenient for you.
I like using a filling tray when making 50 or more tubes of lip balm because they are simple to use and fast. If you are using a filling tray, insert your tubes into your tray. Flood the tray with your melted lip balm. Allow the mixture to cool. Scrape off the excess. I like to use a plastic putty knife. Remove the tubes from the tray and cap.
Weighing Liquid Oils
If you are going to pipette the lip balm into the tubes, fill the tube until you get a dome of liquid material at the top. Wax shrinks when it cools and doing this helps insure that you get a very pretty top. Fill all of your tubes making sure they are domed on the top before they cool. (You may need to reheat your lip balm during this process. This is normal and to be expected.) Allow the tubes to cool then cap.
Adding Flavors
Now you can label your lip balm. Because I am making so many different formulations this week, I am labeling them with their formulation number so I can keep them straight. It is much easier than trying to guess!
Hi Taylor!
I’m wondering why you even bother with the soy wax when the candelilla wax makes a perfect vegan lip balm? I make several vegan lip balms and I only use the candelilla. About 6 years ago when I first started formulating lip balms I tried the soy wax and was never happy with the end results.
Just a thought 🙂
Lisa,
I tend to use the Soy Wax because it doesn’t leave an extreme waxy sensation on the lips. I find that using just Candelilla Wax or Carnuaba Wax can leave a stiff, waxy feeling on the lips. Using the Soy Wax with either Candelilla Wax or Carnuaba Wax allow me to create something that feels more like beeswax without actually using it. Day 5 of this series shows this very well.
I hope this helps!
Taylor