Today we are diving deep into the archives to Bee Better a project I published almost exactly nine (!!) years ago. This formulation began life as a Lush dupe(ish), and while the 2014 version wasn’t bad, I’ve learned a lot since then. Today’s updated version is softer and more cosmetically elegant, uses fewer ingredients, and I think it smells better, too. Let’s get making!
We’re continuing our Hot Chocolate holiday making theme with some tubes of the sort of lip butter I need in the winter. It’s rich, creamy, and most importantly, long-wearing. This stuff sticks around for hours—an absolute must when it’s cold, dry, and generally bleh outside. You’ll only need seven ingredients; most of them are pretty common, and the two you might not have can probably be purchased locally at a drug store or health food shop. Let’s get buttery!
This Extra Creamy Green Clay Cleansing Balm is a Bee Better version of 2017’s Forest Cleansing Balm. That formula was one of the first anhydrous formulas I made with fatty thickeners and I remember being absolutely blown away by its rich, creamy, slippy consistency and incredibly easy rinse-off. I wasn’t the only one! Over the years I’ve heard from many people that my Forest Cleansing Balm is their favourite cleansing balm formulation 💚 Because the original was already pretty darn lovely, this updated version isn’t super different, but it’s definitely more polished. Keep reading to learn what I levelled up 😄
I’m sharing this decadent Chocolate Hazelnut Emulsified Body Butter formulation to celebrate World Nutella Day, which falls on February 5. It’s definitely the sort of holiday I can get behind 🤤 This formulation is a Bee Better update to a 2014’s Chocolate Hazelnut Body Lotion; it’s softer, richer, includes more of the star ingredients, and features a vegan collagen alternative to help moisturize and rejuvenate the skin. Swoon!
Today’s Creamy Clay Balm-to-Milk Cleanser is a Bee Better update to 2016’s Creamy Clay Cleansing Balm. It’s a rich, slippy, gentle facial cleanser that rinses off the skin beautifully. True to the name, it’s creamy and contains a hefty dose of soft white kaolin clay for a wee bit of physical exfoliation and a cleansing experience a bit reminiscent of a clay face mask. This updated version is gentler, fully percentage-ified, and has better rinse-off than its 2016 predecessor.
If you love Burt’s Bees lip balm, you should definitely try this formulation. I’ve been working on this project for months, testing and adjusting and comparing it to the original and circling back and trying again, and I think I’ve gotten really, really close. I wouldn’t call my version completely identical, but it has the lovely slippy/creamy/minty blend that I’ve always loved about Burt’s ❤️
Make it Up: The Essential Guide to DIY Makeup and Skin Care is now available at booksellers all over the world!