Guest Post - Love Your Lips

I love Oh Panda!  She's a mine of information, and a source of inspiration, and she's a total sweetheart to boot.  Here she is to talk to us today about how to look after your lips ...

*****

It’s all well and good buying a new lipstick, falling in love with it and never wanting to take it off but it is important to look after your lips to ensure that you’re getting the most from your lipstick and your lips are looking their best.  After all, lips are skin too, just very, very thin (around 4 to 5 layers, compared to the 16 layers on your face!)

Here are a few tips on keeping your lips looking and feeling fabulous.

Exfoliate
 
The most well known technique is the dry toothbrush scrub, lightly sloughing away dead skin with a medium/soft toothbrush.  This works fine and is a cheap and effective method.  I prefer to use a sugar scrub though (cos they taste nice.)  I currently use Lush’s bubblegum scrub.  It is ridiculously yum and sloughs dead skin away perfectly, leaving my lips ultra soft.  You can also make your own lip scrub quite simply, have a little Google for some recipes, they are dead simple to make and in most cases the ingredients will already be in your cupboard (and it’s fun to get a little creative!)

Moisturise

Do not get confused between products that moisturise your lips and those that create a barrier.  Petroleum jelly (Vaseline) will create a barrier and can be used to keep moisture in, however, it will not moisturise them.  Therefore go for something super moisturising once you have exfoliated your lips, something with vitamin E in is always good.

Protect

As mentioned above, petroleum jelly is awesome as a barrier for your lips so once moisturised you can add some Vaseline on, particularly if you suffer with chapped lips.  I would also recommend products with SPF in.  I have burnt my lips once.  It hurt beyond belief.  Most lip products contain an SPF nowadays or at least offer an SPF version in their range – I cannot stress how important SPF on your lips is,just Google “Sunburnt Lips” *pukes*

Tips for Colour

•    Use a neutral lip liner to outline and fill your lips.  This will help the lipstick stay in place for longer and also prevent feathering. Do not use a lip liner if you are using a stain to colour your lips!
•    If you have time, apply your lippie with a brush.  It gets into those creases better.  I also like applying it with a clean finger, again it ensures the colour gets in all the nooks, though there is no definitive right or wrong way about the method of application, try a few ways and see what works best for you…
•    Don’t overdo the gloss, not if you want some kissy kisses anyway.
•    Once you’re done, pop your finger in your mouth and pull it out.  This will stop you getting lippie on your teeth (not a good look…) It’ll now be on your finger instead, go wash your hands!

(some images of my favourite lip care products!)

I hope you found some of these tips useful.  Lip care is so important, particularly if you spend a lot of time outdoors, wearing colour on your lips or kissing… and I am sure you fit in to one of those categories…
 
*****

Get Lippie Says: Can't agree more about the tip about vaseline, barrier creams high in mineral oil only seal in the moisture that's already present on your lips, and don't add any of their own.  For preference, I use plant-based balms, which add moisture, and, crucially, taste nice ... 

This post originated at: http://getlippie.com All rights reserved.