We all know the feeling of dry, chapped lips right? It is one of the worst feelings and we always regret not putting on enough lip balm or forgetting to carry a lip balm with us at all times. But sometimes it is not always our fault, it could be the ingredients in the balm that makes our lips even drier and requires application more often. There are many different types of lip balms, and it is a struggle to choose THE one that works for you. But here are some lists of ingredients to look for and ingredients to avoid in a lip balm.
Ingredients to look for:
● Paraben-free
● Moisturizers like Vaseline, beeswax (cera alba), ceramides (fats that help retain water)
● Up to 5 percent of humectants — which increase water content, help prevent cracked skin and reduce skin irritation — like urea or glycerin
● Dimethicone, which helps prevent drying and makes the product last longer
● Lanolin and cocoa butter soften, moisturize and protects lips
● Sunscreen
Ingredients to avoid:
● Fragrances and artificial colors can cause lip irritation
● Menthol, camphor and phenol cool and anesthetize the lips, but can also dry your lips and/or produce redness and swelling
● Alcohol is also a drying ingredient
● Salicylic acid exfoliates and relieves pain but don’t use if you’re allergic to aspirin
● Aloe butter moisturizes, heals and soothes, but can irritate lips
● Vitamin E is an antioxidant and anti-aging, but can irritate lips
Tinted lip products and lipsticks can cause irritation and dryness because of the certain ingredients that are included in the product. Here is a quick trick to make your lipstick stay longer so that you don't have to keep re-applying your tinted/lipstick products, instead you can just apply your regular hydrating and nutritious lip balm.
Step 1: Exfoliate
● Brand products. LUSH offers the best lips scrubs that keeps your lips very smooth and healthy.
● DIY scrubs. You can make your own scrub just by mixing sugar with honey or
olive oil. Mix it well and apply to your lips. Leave it on for 2-3minutes and just rinse it off.
● Finally the easiest way to exfoliate your lips is with toothbrush. Just apply
Vaseline and leave it for a minute or so. Then take your toothbrush and brush it softly to remove the dead skins.
Exfoliating your lips removes all the dead skins and helps to make your lips look
healthy. You should exfoliate your lips at least once a week or whenever you feel like
your lips are chapped or rough. Remember to always apply unscented lip balm after
exfoliating!
Step 2: Pencil Lip-liner
● You should use a matching or similar color lip liner to your lipstick to make sure
your lipstick doesn't smudge around your lip lines. It also helps to bring the true
lipstick color.
Step 3: Apply lipstick
By knowing the helpful ingredients in your lip balms and with these easy three steps, you will have healthier and smoother lips to help you in the Chicago weather.
-Misheel
