Baby Soft Hands in a Jiffy: All Natural DIY Cuticle Balm

I don’t know about you but the dry, cold winter air was murder on my hands. Even when I made my way to Florida, my hands weren’t spared from nasty calluses and ragged cuticles. Normally, I’m a slave to hand lotion but this winter I decided to try something different---a real, honest to goodness, greasy, moisturizing cuticle balm that has not only done wonders for my hands but, as it turns out, has a bunch of other uses as well. Read on to learn more!

As I’ve written before, one of my newest hobbies is learning about and formulating my own products. My research has taken me all over the internet and one of my favorite blogs is Point of Interest, written by my cosmetic formulation hero, Susan Barclay-Nichols, aka Swift! The last time I was at my home in Virginia (which seems so long ago), I put together this nice Lanolin & Lecithin Cuticle Balm (from Susan’s blog) and I am hooked! It’s soooo easy to make and (I think) just about all of the ingredients can be sourced from either a health food store, Whole Foods Market or from any one of hundreds of online shops specializing in skincare ingredients. This balm is thick and extremely moisturizing because it contains both lanolin and lecithin. Lanolin comes from sheep and provides a great protective barrier to the skin. The mango butter and hazelnut oil are moisturizing and the beeswax gives it its substance and solidity. I’ve used this on my hands/nails, on my dry, cracked feet, on my face when it was really chapped and have also used it as a lipbalm. In fact, when I get back to Virginia, I’m going to do a little bit of experimenting with this formula to see how it will hold up in a lipbalm tube. I’m thinking I may have to change out some of the beeswax for another type of wax to keep it firm in the summer heat, but that’s another post! Here are a few more pictures before we get to the recipe: