DIY Network

Pamper Yourself Gift Basket Everyone deserves a little pampering. From "Creative Juice" episode DCRJ-504

Cathie Filian and Steve Piacenza have a great way to take the pressure off: gift baskets that are brimming over with inspiration! They heat things up with lip balms that are the bee's knees, work up a lather molding simple soaps and mix it up with unique recipes for sugar and salt scrubs that are skin-tastic!

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Homemade Lip Balms

Pucker up! With personalized flavors and labels, homemade lip balm will give you plenty of reason to smile.

Homemade Lip Balms

Materials:

2 tsp. beeswax
2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. oil (grape seed, olive, avocado or hemp)
1 tsp. honey
vitamin E capsule
essential oil or cake flavorings
lip balm containers
disposable plastic pipettes
packing tape
optional: old lipstick & lip balm filling tray

1. Use a double boiler on low heat (or a medium size glass bowl placed in a saucepan partially-filled with boiling water) to melt the beeswax. When melted, add the oil (figure A)>. Use caution, wax is a highly flammable substance.

2. Remove mixture from heat and whisk in honey and vitamin E oil (pierce capsule with a pin or scissor tip), whisking until there are no clumps (figure B). Optional: add a shaving or two of lipstick to create a sheer lip color.

3. Let mixture cool, but not harden, before adding approximately five drops of either an essential oil or flavor of choice (figure C). When using oils, use only essential oils -- lip balms are in constant contact with your mouth and fragrance oils do not taste good and should not be consumed.

Figure A

Figure B

Figure C

4. Pipe into containers (available on-line) and refrain from moving until hardened (figure D).

5. Make paper labels and apply to the tubes with packing tape (packing tape is the same width as lip balm tubes) (figure E).

Figure D

Figure E

Break the mold with countless combinations of scents, colors and additives that give handmade glycerin soaps a unique personal style.

Simple Soaps With Not-So-Simple Packaging

Simple Soaps With Not-So-Simple Packaging

Materials:

1 lb. melt-and-pour glycerin soap base
essential oil
bar mold
spray bottle with rubbing alcohol
plastic cling wrap
microwave
medium glass bowl
optional: additives such as lavender, peppermint, etc. & glycerin soap colorant

1. Cut a 1 lb. brick of glycerin soap base into 2" cubes. Place cubes in a glass bowl and cover with plastic cling wrap to keep excess moisture from evaporating (figure A). Melt on high for one minute and stir until melted.

2. If desired, add a few drops of colorant and/or additives to the soap and blend thoroughly (figure B). Add several drops of essential oil to the mixture and blend (figure C).

Figure A

Figure B

Figure C

3. Pour the soap into molds (figure D). Spray the soap surface with rubbing alcohol to remove excess bubbles. Allow the soap to harden/set for several hours before popping it out of the molds.

4. Package the soap in a paper sleeve trimmed with decorative scissors, place it in a cellophane bag or wrap it in tissue paper (figure E). Embellish paper labels with ribbons, stickers and rubber stamps and attach to the packaging (figure F).

Figure D

Figure E

Figure F

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