Everything you need to know before you start
A custom label is one of those things that sounds simple until you’re staring at a blank canvas. What do you put on it? How much is too much? What actually makes someone pick it up, look at it, and remember where it came from?
We’ve helped hundreds of businesses — dental practices, boutiques, spas, and women-led companies of all kinds — design labels they’re genuinely proud of. And over time, we’ve noticed that the labels people love most tend to come back to the same handful of things.
Here’s what we’ve learned.
Start with your logo — and let it do the work
The most important thing on a lip balm label is your logo. Not a tagline. Not a list of features. Your logo.
A lip balm tube is small — the label surface is limited, especially on the clear 0.14oz tube. That constraint is actually a gift. It forces you to lead with the one thing that matters most: your brand.
If your logo is clean and recognizable, it will carry the whole label. If it’s complicated or detailed, it may need to be simplified slightly to work at a small scale. We work with clients on this all the time, and it’s always worth thinking through before you finalize a design.
A good rule of thumb: if your logo is legible and clear at the size of a postage stamp, it will work beautifully on a lip balm label.
Less is almost always more
The instinct when designing a label is to fill it. Practice name, address, phone number, website, social handles, a little graphic, a flavor name, the word “natural” somewhere… and suddenly a small tube is doing a lot of heavy lifting.
The labels that tend to photograph well, look polished, and feel considered are the ones that breathe. White space isn’t wasted space — it’s what makes everything else visible.
What we generally recommend keeping on a label: your logo, your practice or brand name if it’s not already in the logo, the flavor name if you’d like it, and your website. That’s often enough. Sometimes it’s too much.
Start with less. You can always add. It’s harder to take things away once you’ve designed around them.
Think about where the label will live
A label doesn’t just sit on a shelf. It goes into a patient’s hands. It travels in a purse or a pocket. It sits on a counter next to someone’s other things.
That context matters for how you design it. A label that looks beautiful on screen sometimes loses something when it’s printed small and wrapped around a tube. Colors can shift. Fine lines can disappear. Small text can become unreadable.
A few things that tend to hold up well at small scale: bold, simple fonts. Clean logos without thin strokes or intricate detail. High contrast between text and background. Colors that are true to your brand but also distinct enough to read clearly on the tube.
If you’re unsure how your design will translate, we’re happy to look at it with you before anything is finalized. That’s part of what we do.
Choose your flavor name thoughtfully
This one surprises people, but the flavor name is part of the label experience — and it’s fully customizable with Farmer’s Body.
The scent inside the tube doesn’t have to be called what it technically is. A peppermint balm could be called “Cool Mint.” A vanilla could be “Warm Vanilla.” A lavender could be “Calm.” The name you choose shapes how the product feels before anyone even opens it.
For dental practices, flavor names like “Fresh Start” or “Mint & Clean” can feel more intentional than simply “Peppermint.” For a spa or wellness brand, something like “Quiet Lavender” or “Soft Citrus” fits the experience you’re creating.
It’s a small detail. But small details are the whole point.
Match the label to the rest of your brand
The best custom lip balm labels don’t look like lip balm labels. They look like your brand.
If your practice or business has a consistent visual identity — specific fonts, colors, a particular look and feel — the label should feel like it came from the same place. A patient who’s familiar with your brand should recognize it on the tube without needing to read anything.
That consistency is what turns a lip balm into a brand touchpoint rather than just a giveaway. It’s the difference between something that feels like it belongs and something that was just ordered because it was easy.
If you’re not sure whether your label is consistent with your brand, the simplest test is to hold it next to your business card or your website. Do they feel like they came from the same place? If yes, you’re in good shape. If something feels off, it’s worth taking another look.
The kraft paper tube vs. the clear tube
Farmer’s Body offers two standard tube options, and the choice affects how your label looks and feels in a patient’s hand.
The clear 0.14oz plastic tube is our most popular option. It’s a classic lip balm size — familiar, easy to use, and fits in any pocket or bag. The label wraps around the outside, giving you a full 360-degree canvas to work with. Because the tube itself is clear, you’ll want to make sure your label background color is intentional — white tends to read clean and crisp, while a colored background can make the label feel more distinctive.
The kraft paper 0.25oz push-up tube is larger, eco-friendly, and has a texture that feels handcrafted and warm. It photographs beautifully and tends to feel more premium in the hand. The label sits on the paper itself, which gives it a slightly different visual quality — a little more artisan, a little less clinical.
Neither is better. They’re just different. The right choice depends on what fits your brand and your space.
What to send us when you’re ready
Once you’re ready to get started, here’s what helps us create the best label for you: your logo file in the highest resolution you have (vector formats like .ai, .eps, or .svg are ideal, but a high-resolution PNG works too), your brand colors if you have them (hex codes or CMYK values), any fonts you use, and a general sense of how you’d like it to feel.
You don’t need to have everything figured out before you reach out. Some of our favorite labels have come out of a simple conversation. We’ll ask the right questions and send you two or three concepts to react to.
From there, you get up to two rounds of revisions before anything is finalized. Our goal is to make sure you love it before a single tube is made.
A great label isn’t complicated. It’s just clear, considered, and true to who you are.