Your lips are exposed to the same harsh environmental conditions as your skin — cold air, dry air, the sun's rays, etc. — but are rarely treated with the same care. Since you'd never dream of skipping out on your nightly moisturizer, you should also be incorporating one of the best lip treatments into your daily and nightly beauty routines. And gone are the days when medicated balms, like Carmex and Blistex, were your only options; today, you can find everything from lip masks that simultaneously moisturize and exfoliate to tinted treatments that'll replace your favorite gloss.
Before investing in the first lip treatment you come across, think about your own specific lip care goals. If hydrating and softening your lips are your primary concerns, a product designed to be used overnight, like a lip mask, is a wise choice since these treatments tend to have a higher concentration of moisturizing ingredients. Look for a formula that combines humectants (like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, ceramides) and emollients (like shea butter, cocoa butter, and jojoba oil), which will moisturize, smooth, and soften all at once. But if chapped or flaky lips are continually causing you discomfort, consider exfoliating your lips with a lip scrub before applying any moisturizing treatments. Lip exfoliators will help shed dead skin and soften those flaky areas, which also allows any balm, ointment, or mask you apply afterwards to do its job more effectively.
Ahead, you'll find six of the best lip treatments for heavy-duty repairing, from masks to creams to organic balms.
1Best Lip Balm
The easiest way to deeply nourish your lips is with an overnight treatment you can swipe on before bed. C.O. Bigelow's My Favorite Night Balm No. 306 was designed to moisturize dry lips for eight hours, which makes it an equally good option for putting on in the morning to last you throughout the day. Not only is its star ingredient, shea butter, loaded with vitamins and fatty acids that help make rough lips smooth again, but it also creates a protective layer that prevents moisture loss. Plus, the cruelty-free formula has a lovely, but subtle, vanilla scent.
One reviewer raved, "I have chronically dry lips, and with any lip balm I’ve had to reapply every 30 minutes or else they would start to become chapped. This lip balm is crazy. I only have to apply twice a day, and when I wake up I have NO cracks on my lips. Literally best lip balm ever and I’m pretty loyal to Vaseline, but this is my new holy grail."
Another devoted fan wrote, "My favorite lip balm! I'm currently on Accutane and this is the best lip balm I have tried for my dry, chapped lips! It has been a life saver during this treatment ... It's the only lip balm that keep my lips moisturized overnight so that they're not peeling and cracking when I wake up in the morning."
2Best Natural & Organic Lip Treatment
Given that you're literally applying lip balms and treatments onto your mouth, if ever there was a time to make sure you're using safe ingredients, this is it. This Henné Organics' Lip Mask is USDA certified-organic, which is rare to find in a lip product, and it can help rejuvenate your lips in 30 minutes or less. The golden balm pairs beeswax with a blend of antioxidant-rich oils like rosehip seed, avocado, and jojoba, which instantly leave lips feeling softer. Several of the botanical ingredients included in this treatment, like evening primrose oil and black cumin seed oil, even have anti-inflammatory properties, which can help soothe irritation.
"This is a really nice, high-class product," wrote one reviewer. "I'd give this as a gift to someone. The lip mask comes in a really nice metal container, which makes this seem so fancy. The mask itself has a pleasant, minty smell to it. It is definitely pricey, but it will last a long time. It made my lips feel really soft!"
3Best Lip Mask That Exfoliates & Moisturizes
For a lip treatment that works double-duty, this Korean beauty option exfoliates and moisturizes at the same time. Mamonde's Aqua Peel Mask uses apricot enzymes and the AHA glycolic acid to shed dead skin cells (aka dry skin), softening any rough or flaky areas in the process. This two-step system won't cause any irritation, though, because the ingredients only work on the surface of the lips. Plus, the exfoliating portion of the treatment helps allow the moisturizing ingredients to better absorb. To provide lips with that much needed hydration, Mamonde uses antioxidant-rich plum blossom extract and vitamin C, which helps leave lips looking shiny and smooth.
One reviewer went as far as to call this innovative product "better than anything on the market." Another wrote, "Simply the best. What a [difference] this product makes on your lips. I have really bad chapped lips and this is a game changer."
4Best Firming Lip Treatment (That Doubles As Eye Cream!)
Hydration isn't the only goal when it comes to lip treatments. If you're looking for an option that makes firming the main focus, Philosophy's Hope In A Tube Eye & Lip Firming Cream is a two-in-one product designed to do just that. Sure, ingredients like squalane and glycerin still keep your lips moisturized, but this Philosophy cream also includes some heavy-hitters when it comes plumping up your pout. Vitamins C and E, as well as the botanical ingredient bisabolol, stimulate collagen production and help protect lips from free radical damage — vitamin C even helps repair damage that may have already occurred.
What's more, you can also use this product on your eyes. Unlike most of the other products on this list, this isn't a salve or a balm. Instead, it's a cream, which absorbs instantly, so it won't affect the texture of any lip products you put over it, like some other richer balms can.
Amazon users also love the cream, with one writing, "I use it morning and evening, [and] my lips stay plump 24-7." Another reviewer spoke to its multi-tasking abilities, sharing, "It absorbs beautifully — brightens the eye and firms up the lips."
5Best Tinted Lip Mask
Another more natural option, Bite Beauty's cult-favorite Agave Lip Mask (in Smashed) provides a sheer red tint, so you won't even need to wear lipstick or gloss on top. Free of petrochemicals, parabens, phthalates, and sulfates, Bite Beauty is also Leaping Bunny-certified. The intensely nourishing formula contains ingredients like organic agave nectar, jojoba oil, and lanolin to soothe dryness and irritation while coating lips in a protective layer to seal in hydration. Just be warned: this stuff is thick. And, if you don't love the Smashed shade, Bite Beauty created several tinted options (including Champagne, a pearlescent rose gold) to satisfy every color preference.
One reviewer wrote, "This stuff is salvation. Not gloppy or heavy but super rich and moisturizing. This color is so lovely. Worth the cheddar $$$." Another raved, "The most moisturizing product I've ever found. The tinted version makes my lips look so big and healthy."
6Best Repairing Lip Cream
There isn't really anything this SkinCeuticals Antioxidant Lip Repair can't do. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid and glycerin attract moisture, while emollients like allantoin and dimethicone instantly leave lips smoother and softer. But because this treatment's main goal is to repair and protect lips, antioxidants like silymarin and vitamin E work to neutralize free radicals and heal signs of damage, whether it's environmental or from a recent procedure. Like the Philosophy lip cream, this is another product that's great to wear under lipstick, since it won't affect the texture and it helps prevent feathering. The pump canister also ensures that the cream doesn't lose its potency by being exposed to the air. Plus, since you won't be dipping your fingers into it, like you would with a jar, this also prevents the accumulation of germs.
"This is the best product out there for dry lips," one reviewer wrote. "I put it on at night and wake up with plump, moist lips. It's more of a cream than a balm (not at all waxy or greasy)." Another fan raved, "I have been searching for a product for my dry lips that actually works for years. I wasted hundreds of dollars on lip balms, chapsticks everything. This product is perfection."
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