At long last we've finally tracked down an *all-natural* sweetener specially designed to be used in lip balms. This thick, pale-golden liquid is derived from liquorice and is sweet as can be -- in fact, it's recommended that you add only 1-3% of it by weight to your lip balm creations. To all those who've contacted us in the past to ask why your own homemade lip creations don't have as much flavour and oomph as commercial ones, here's your answer. NOTE: Anticipating your questions, I asked the flavour chemist if any harm could come from ingesting, say, 3 or 4 or 5 times more sweetener than is recommended, and he said that you can use as much sweetener as you darn well please (although we don't recommend doing so -- it may change the texture and consistency of your lip balm adversely). Flashpoint: >200* F.

For those of you who sell your lip balms, the INCI name for this product is "Natural Additive (as sweetener)."

Make your basic lip balm mixture (whether it's "from scratch," using various liquid oils plus beeswax, or using our pre-blended lip balm base). Add to this our All-Natural Sweetener (we recommend using 3% by weight). Stir continuously as the base cools (the sweetener will want to pool at the bottom initially, but will become more willing to blend and integrate as the mixture cools down). When the base has cooled and is opaque and thick, put the container in a hot-water bath to remelt, stirring constantly. Voila! The sweetener will stay nicely combined with the base.