Before you throw away that empty MAC lip gloss tube, wait! There’s a way to recycle the tube AND be good to your body with all natural home made lip gloss. I saw a little video online and decided to try it myself. But instead of using the recipe on the video, I came up with my own. The more you learn about natural oils and skin care ingredients, the easier it is to figure out what will work in combination.

So this is what I came up with:

• Lanolin - a waxy oil that comes from sheep wool and is used widely in cosmetics. It creates a protective barrier that holds moisture in the skin.
• Vegetable Glycerin - naturally sweet but not sugary, glycerin helps the skin retain moisture and draws oxygen into the skin.
• Castor oil - so many benefits I can’t list them all. Check out this website for more info.
• Raw Honey - added for flavor and for skin healing properties.
• Orange essential oil - smells so yummy and has anti-microbial properties.
• Cinnamon essential oil - same as orange oil.

All of these ingredients except for the essential oils have a smooth and sticky consistency, perfect for lip gloss when combined.

I combined them in the following way:

Using two small (8 oz) plastic bowls, I put 3 oz of hot water (microwaved for 60 seconds) in one and nestled the second bowl on the first like a double boiler.

To this bowl I added:

1 tbl lanolin

1 tbl castor oil

1 tsp glycerin

1 tsp raw honey

6 drops orange oil

3 drops cinnamon oil

I stirred the mixture till it was all melted together. And that’s it.

I found some bronze pearl dust in the cake decorating store that worked really well as lip color so I added that to the mix as well. It’s not perfectly natural that way though so you could leave it out.

Finally, you can of course use any kind of essential oil for scent and flavor. Some other good ones would be peppermint, grapefruit, or lemon.

To fill your empty lip gloss tube, clean the tube and brush by boiling them in a pot of water for 10 minutes. Then pull the plastic stopper out, pour about a half ounce of the lip gloss into the tube and replace the stopper. This is easier if the lip gloss is still warm, by the way. You’ll have enough lip gloss for several tubes or you can go to the craft store and buy some little containers with lids.

Be sure to follow my blog http://beautifulhealthybodysoul.blogspot.com or my tweets @hairbycrystal for more natural health and beauty tips!

Crystal Willingham- New Media Maven, IMMS, Owner- Just Hair by Crystal References http://skinverse.com/castor-oils-many-uses-for-beautiful-skin-and-hair.html http://trendtotrendmag.com/index.php/natural-skin-care-raw-honey