As the goddess Mindy Kaling once said, "Sometimes you just have to put on lip gloss and pretend to be psyched."
This seriously works. It's a secret weapon - when our hair's doing its own thing entirely, or we're tired, or just not having it altogether - a little bit of red goes a long way. That being said, my boyfriend won't bring his lips anywhere near mine when there's lipstick on them, so wearing a tinted lip gloss is a compromise.
Making your own lip products is great for a few reasons: one, you know exactly what's going in them and two, you're in control of how much flavor and color is going in, so you can get the taste and tint just how you want it. You can also change the ratio of oil to base, so the level of gloss is to your preference - for this tutorial with
Bramble Berry, I decided to go with
avocado oil for its soothing qualities, and added just enough to create a bit of shine without being a liquid.
Using ingredients from Bramble Berry, I made three different shades of coconut lip gloss: coral, merlot, and clear. The coral and merlot shades look pretty pigmented, but go on as a slightly tinted gloss. A tip from
Bramble Berry is to put a spoon in the freezer before you begin, which you can dip into the hot gloss while mixing to test the color - the mixture will harden automatically on the spoon, which allows you to test the shade before it hardens. I found this very helpful!
Shopping List:
1 tsp sugar (optional)
I made two tins of the clear shade, to wear on its own or over a matte lipstick. I added a small amount of granulated sugar to this mix to make it into a slight exfoliant, and it tastes kinds of amazing.
Clear Coconut Lip Gloss
Ingredients:
1 tsp granulated sugar
Makes two pots of lip gloss
This shade has a pretty red sheen, and can be worn on its own or used throughout the day to refresh a red lipstick.
Merlot Lip Gloss
Ingredients:
Makes four pots of lip gloss
The coral is perfect for summer, when you want just a little bit of color to add to a beachy or brunch look.
Coral Coconut Lip Gloss
Ingredients:
Makes 4 pots of lip gloss
The process for each is very simple:
1. Melt the lip balm base in the microwave in 20 second increments, stirring in between, until fully melted.
2. Add flavor and stir until mixed.
3. In a separate bowl, combine color mica and oil until fully mixed.
4. Add color mixture to base mixture. Stir until fully incorporated, then pour into lip gloss pots and allow to harden.
In the case of the clear gloss, I added the sugar at the end. Again, you can tweak these recipes as necessary, depending on how much flavor or pigment you want. I gave a few away as gifts, but will be using these throughout the year when I need a little bit of color!
