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Winter weather can really do a number on our bodies, from making our hair frizzy to making our epidermis dull and dry. Like many women, your cabinet is probably lined with an array of hair serums and skincare products to combat these issues. One area you might be neglecting, however, is your lips. Though our pucker is home to some of the thinnest skin on our bodies, it’s a spot that tends to be neglected sans for the occasional swipe of lip balm. Not to fret: We’ve got you covered with a roundup of the best lip care products around to give your pout the TLC it so desperately needs.
What is lip care?
Lip care is exactly what it sounds like — the practice of maintaining the health of your lips. While it may seem obvious, there are three major reasons it’s important to pay attention to this neglected spot.
Let’s start with the least concerning: chapped lips. We’ve all experienced this condition at one point or another. Because lips don’t have their own oil glands, they cannot rehydrate on their own. This means it’s up to us to ensure that this delicate skin stays moisturized.
Keeping your lips hydrated prevents more than a flaky, crumbly pout, however — it also prevents fine lines and wrinkles! By using products loaded with nourishing ingredients, such as hyaluronic acid (a natural ingredient that helps skin to retain moisture), shea butter, and vitamin E, you’ll keep your lips looking younger, longer.
Now for the more serious part. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, lip cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United States. It makes sense when you think about it: Our lips are in constant contact with the sun, and while many of us are diligent about applying SPF to our face and body, slathering sun protectant on our lips isn’t always at the top of our to-do list — but it should be.
How to Care for Your Lips
Here are three easy tips to make sure your pucker stays healthy, 24/7.
1. Commit to lip care. The first step in improving your lip care is to commit to going the extra mile. By pledging to consciously make lip care a devoted part of your overall skincare routine, you’ll be holding yourself accountable to a pretty pucker.
2. Include water-rich foods into your diet. Just as water-rich foods can reboot your metabolism, they’re also an essential part of head-to-toe hydration. From tomatoes and zucchini to strawberries and yogurt, upping your intake of such foods is an easy way to boost moisture all over your body — including your lips.
3. Invest in these five essentials. As you’ll soon see, there are many products you can use to care for your lips. There are five in particular, though, that we’d call downright essential: lip scrub, lip serum, lip oil, lip balm, and a hydrating lipstick. Combining everything from exfoliation and hydration to color, these items will be must-haves in your makeup bag for crafting the ultimate lip-care kit.
The Best Lip Care Products
From balms and oils to butters and brushes, we’ve rounded up a collection of some of the best lip-care finds on the market today. If you’re ready for the healthiest lips of your life, keep scrolling for Woman’s World’s picks for the best lip care products for kissing dry, cracked lips goodbye.
We write about products we think our readers will like. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the supplier.
If there's one product every woman over 50 should have in her lip-care arsenal, it's a good lip scrub. Perfect for days when no amount of balm will do, scrubs, like this Beauty For Real Just Sugar lip scrub will give you softer, smoother lips in minutes. This organic and cruelty-free version is made from a blend of organic cane sugar and coconut oil to gently exfoliate away dead skin and replenish moisture.
The perfect companion to your new lip scrub comes in the form of this exfoliating lip brush. Unlike a spare toothbrush, which some use for the task, Sephora's Refresh and Prep lip tool is made of silicone and features a double-sided head for a much gentler scrub and circulation boost. Its construction makes it easy to disinfect, and there's an ergonomic handle that will make it easy for even those with arthritic hands or wrist issues to utilize.
Much like a face oil, lip oils are a great way to bring some much-need life back to lips. Made from a blend of plant oils, including hazelnut and organic jojoba, Clarins' Lip Comfort is a gel-like lip topper that nourishes and smoothes for deep, penetrating hydration. With its slight tint and glossy appearance, it's also a pretty way to top off your favorite lipstick.
For lips in need of more intensive recovery, give Hanalei's lip treatment a try. It's made with moisturizing Hawaiian kukui oil from the Big Island, plus shea butter, agave, and grapeseed oil to provide a mega-dose of antioxidants straight to the kisser. As an added bonus, it also provides preventative care, protecting skin from the harsh effects of harmful free-radicals.
You probably have a face serum you swear by, but do you have a lip serum? A little-known gem on the lip-care scene, lip serums are concentrated wonders that can rejuvenate even the driest and dullest of lips. For a particularly luxe option, we like Amore Pacific's dual nourishing lip serum. Infused with green tea seed oil and green tea essence (a hydrator sourced from the green stuff), this K-Beauty find has botanical powers that will revitalize lips like none other. Hurrah!
A staple in homes across the country since 1895, Smith's Rosebud Perfume Co.'s minted rose lip balm is a longtime favorite of lip care enthusiasts, and for good reason. Intensely-hydrating and long-lasting, this balm uses a blend of hydrating oils, such as peppermint and cotton seed, to moisturize and smooth lips in a flash. It comes in an adorably vintage tin, too — what's not to love?
If you prefer natural and organic skincare, your favorite castille soap brand — Dr. Bronner's — is here with the ultimate balm. This four-flavor (peppermint, lemon-lime, orange-ginger, and naked) organic lip balm value pack uses a blend of jojoba, avocado, and hemp oils to transform the delicate skin on your lips without any sketchy ingredients: in addition to being certified-organic, these balms are also cruelty-free.
For a balm with a little more weight and a sheer tint that will give you just a touch of color, reach for Korres' Wild Rose lip butter. Dermatologically-tested and silicone, paraben, and phthalate-free, this moisturizing salve is downright indulgent thanks to its rich, natural formula of shea butter and rice wax.
For days when your hair isn't the only thing in need of a deep conditioning, treat yourself to Caudalíe's lip conditioner. Rich in antioxidants, this treatment uses grape polyphenols (plant-derived compounds that can aid in anti-aging) and repairing apricot oil to provide lasting comfort.
Similar to your favorite face mask, a good lip mask can rejuvenate your dull, dry lips in a hurry. One of our favorites is the Agave Lip Mask from Bite Beauty. With star ingredients of agave nectar and jojoba oil, both of which are known for their luxe, hydrating properties, this emollient mask, which can be used daily, will improve the texture of the skin around your lips, making it a must-have come winter's cold temps.
When the day is through and you're going through the steps of your nighttime skincare routine, don't forget to treat your lips with this Laneige lip sleeping mask. Made with a blend of vitamin C and antioxidants, Laneige's special berry mix complex, which consists of raspberry, strawberry, cranberry, and blueberry extracts, is as delightful as it gets. Complete with a healthy, hydrating dose of hyaluronic acid, this mask locks in moisture as you sleep, so you can wake with a supple, flake-free pout.
Lips aren't immune to signs of aging, with fine lines and wrinkles popping up over time. The solution? Wilma Schumann's mouth & lips age-defying masques. These concentrated treatments are loaded with skin-plumping ingredients, such as hyaluronic acid, glycerin (a non-pore clogging hydrator that attracts moisture and seals it in), and, of course, collagen — aka the skin protein that keeps it firm, taut, and plump. Fragrance and paraben-free, this weekly treatment is just the thing for anyone that's looking for a non-invasive way to firm things up.
Like the rest of your skin, your lips require proper protection from the sun — or maybe even more. Due to the constant exposure of lips to the sun and elements, investing in a good lip balm with a built-in sun protectant, like Supergoop!'s Fusion lip balm with SPF 30, is a must, even in the cold winter months. Infused with superfood açai berry and shea butter, this protectant makes hydrating and shielding your lips easier than ever.
If you're a lipstick lover, a lip primer is a must-have. Just as a face primer smooths the skin to create an optimal canvas for your makeup, a lip primer readies your mouth for long-lasting color. Take Elizabeth Arden's Advanced Lip Fix cream. A conditioning lipstick primer, this product helps to blur out everything from fine surface lines due to dryness to deeper lip lines that appear as we age. It minimizes lipstick bleeding and feathering and comes loaded with a whole slew of antioxidant-rich ingredients, like sandalwood and mistletoe extract.
It's official: Lip gloss is undergoing a major resurgence, and this time it's gotten a mature upgrade. Gone is the goo-like substance your teenage daughter used to slather on. Sticky, drying formulas have been replaced by lighter, nourishing ones in far more sophisticated packages. One wonderful example? Becca's Glow lip gloss. A great option for anyone looking for a "beneficial" pop of color, this lip gloss has "a luxe, conditioning" formula with plenty of pigment and shine, plus the all the same benefits you'd get from a lip balm, thanks to vitamins C and E and shea and murumuru butters.
By now, you're likely aware of the power of probiotics for your gut, but did you know they also work wonders on your skin? Much like your digestive system, a balanced skin flora leads to a healthier complexion — right down to your lips. This tiny tube from H2O+ Beauty is packed with millions of healthy bacteria alongside champagne and yuzu extracts for a probiotic lip treatment and subtle tint in-one that adds just the slightest flush to your pout.
We all love a good lipstick, but finding one that's not only long-lasting, but hydrating, can be a tricky feat. Legendary makeup artist Charlotte Tilbury seems to have done the impossible with her best-selling Matte Revolution lipstick. Despite it's name, this lipstick is actually a creamy, long-lasting dream. Enriched with orchid extract and Tilbury's secret ingredient of lipstick tree extract (a natural colorant and hydrator), this lipstick feels as soft as cashmere and never dries you out.
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