More on lip balm

[Eireann]

Okay, so the tubes FINALLY arrived.

Now, I'm finding out what goes into getting the balm into the tubes. Heat it up. Pour it. Spill. Dribble. Overfill.

Heat up lip balm again, because it has solidified. Go through the same process.

I'm going to see what the best techniques are, and whether a jar, rather than a tube, is the way to go.

[kpzra]

How much for one?

[DeltaSierra]

I'm interested!

[Elspeth]

What about using a pastry bag to the balm into a tube?

also interested

[Taurus52]

You could try a syringe without the needle. Use tongs to dip and fill in warm goop then inesrt plunger and push into tube?

[DeltaSierra]

Turkey baster with an "injection" tip?

[Food Lady]

Just do what you're doing, a little more slowly, and use a clean cloth and rubbing alcohol to wipe spills. Most people would want tubes rather than jars, I think.

[Eireann]

Thanks for the heads-up on tubes vs. jars!. Now, I'll need to get a pouring tray. Using a funnel just doesn't cut it. I need to make more balm, too. Six tubes? Not quite. I have a rough idea of the cost, but I won't finalize it for another day or two, if everyone can wait until then.

[Food Lady]

Also, are you using a natural preservative, like grapefruit seed extract or rosemary leaf extract? If you're gonna sell it, that's probably a good idea.

[Eireann]

Honey. I didn't think of it at the time, but I made some balm for myself about a year ago, and put honey in it as a flavoring. Then, months later, I realized that it hadn't gone bad. A quick Internet search revealed that honey is a natural preservative.

[Eireann]

I'm also working on flavorings. Natural ones, or as close to natural as I can get. Right now, I have a choice of two - mint, and vanilla. What natural flavorings out there would be good?

[zombiequeen]

I really like mint and vanilla!
I got a teeny little tin of lipbalm years ago that was made from natural sassafrass and vanilla, it tasted like draft root beer. 'Twas tasty. Too bad it didn't last long.
I like both tubes and tins, tubes are a bit more convenient to use.

Lemon or orange might be popular too, I'm allergic to them but I see LOTS of homemade balms using lemon or orange flavors.

[DeltaSierra]

Both flavours would be nice - I like the idea of citrus flavours too!

[dragon_wings]

Citrus, mint, and vanilla are all awesome.

[Kogarashi]

Watermelon and raspberry could be good flavorings too, if feasible. Personally, I prefer something that feels cool on my lips, so I'd probably go with mint myself.