Wednesday 26 October 2011

Lovely lip balms

I am so glad this blog exists as I can't tell anyone about my adventures last night without ruining the surprise for my friends/family.

Last night I went to the Make Lounge in Islington and did a natural bath and body course. I made over a page of detailed notes and think I now have the know-how to make some lovely little gifts. I have never been to the Make Lounge before, but it was really nice and fun - would definitely consider going to another course there.

We made (from left to right) sugar scrub, massage bars, lip balm and bath bombs with lots of essential oils to choose from. They were easier to make than I expected, just melting and mixing, and the hardest part was choosing the scents.

I am definitely going to make lots of lipbalms as little stocking fillers, and some sets of everything as bigger gifts (am imagining all the different ways I can wrap them up in ribbons :-) or little make-up bags), but I can't decide on what essential oils to buy. There were quite a few oils last night that half of us loved and half of us hated (some very reminiscent of cough syrup to me!)
I don't want to buy too many (I know what I am like with hoarding) and would prefer to only make a couple of 'flavours' - any suggestions what scents would be loved by all?

11 comments:

  1. Lavender is a perrenial favourite and Ylang Ylang is lovely for a sweeter smell :)
    Looking forward to seeing your recipes!
    Px

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  2. I'm always for a light and airy floral of the non-musky variety. :)

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  3. Ooh lovely! That sounds like lots of fun - I would have loved to do that course. Personally I like spicey smells like cinnamon and clove, which are great for Christmas, especially with orange or vanilla. Geranium is nice too.

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  4. sounds so much fun...now I am thinking about getting my friends some yummy lip balms :)

    As for the flavors, I personally like fruity ones.

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  5. What pretty and thoughtful gifts! I would go with lavender, peppermint, lemon, and vanilla. Lovely!

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  6. Oh how lovely! I'm with Tilly on the spicy scent front and I also love Sarah's suggestions directly above...yummy!

    If you get to share any of your recipes or a generic recipe, that would be much appreciated ;o)

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  7. I love Ylang Ylang, Bergomot and Ginger.

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  8. Ooh that course sounds awesome, I would love for you to share your tips! I agree with much of the above - you can't go wrong with lavender and citruses such as orange and lemon, plus I'm definitely with Tilly on the 'Christmassy' spices like cinnamon and what I think of as mulled wine smells...very seasonally appropriate too :)

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  9. I love making lip balms! I second (or third) the fruity flavours. I'm a big fan of vanilla too. Perhaps try mixing the cinnamon and orange for a real christmasy taste?

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  10. ooh, thanks for all the replies :-)

    I was thinking about orange as I associate Christmas with satsumas, so I will investigate a Christmassy spicy orangey blend. I may have to make some testers to check I have the right balance! The peppermint lipbalm I made last night didn't smell that strong so I added a couple of extra drops, but it stronger on the lips.

    I wasn't sure if I am allowed to upload the recipes since I had to pay for the course... They are probably pretty standard. I will google tomorrow and see if I can find a similar recipe

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  11. Sounds both like a fun experience and a lovely gift idea! I think you can't go wrong with citrus cents and it might be fun to mix them with cinnamon, clove or peppermint to make them more holiday-appropriate.

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