Top 3 Hardcore Winter Lip Balms, When Nothing Else Works - Good All Year Round {Beauty Reviews - Lips}

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Top 3 Hardcore Winter Lip Balms, When Nothing Else Works - Good All Year Round

by Chantal-Hélène Wagner

You know when you reach that point of near-desperation in the midst of winter when your lips are getting dehydrated fast and *NOTHING* seems to work? If you try something ordinary, it seems that the problem only gets worse because you start licking the area - as it's not an efficient product - and irritating it with too many applications? That's the moment when you have to push further and find a real hardcore solution, even if it doesn't look the prettiest product to carry in your purse...

This post is also about suggesting a routine where you might want to mix some of the benefits of the three products we bring to your attention. From most emergency-oriented to back-to-normal yet in need of polishing, here are our top three best performing lip balms for winter and dry-patch periods, and only one of those is officially a lip balm.

Eucerin Aquaphor Baume Réparateur Cutané ~ Soothing Balm ~ Huidherstellende Zalf

Of the three suggested here, this is the most all-purpose, fastest, and most efficient dry skin relief in a pinch. It is absolutely great as a rescue lip balm. The formula is water-free to help skin regenerate in an ideal environment. Main active ingredients are said to be Panthenol, Bisabolol and Glycerin.

While Paraffinum Liquidum is the first ingredient on the list printed on the tube, curiously, it is not mentioned on the UK site I just perused. So the complete list is: Paraffinum Liquidum, Cera Microcristallina, Ceresin, Lanolin Alcohol (Eucerit®), Panthenol, Glycerin, Bisabolol.

This is fragrance-free, transparent and feels immediately rich on the lips without drying out your lips. It's not the best to stay put elegantly under the cupid bow but it works like a charm, when everything else you tried failed. Carried in your purse, it becomes also a hand-cream on the go which is discreet because transparent and scentless. Just apply a dab and work it in inconspicuously. Best of all for moms, you can use it safely on your kids and even babies.

Pommade Fletagex

This is a little-known "pommade" or greasy cream and one of the hidden gems of French pharmacy beauty culture. I believe I've never seen it mentioned in a beauty magazine or site which offer best-of lists of French pharmacy products. It was recommended to me by a doctor in pharmacy when all the pharmacies in Paris - and in France - ran out of cult beauty product Avibon Pommade. The latter have had reportedly formulation stability issues, which they were ultimately not able to overcome although a batch or two resurfaced before the official end on 12/04/2014 when it became discontinued.

Fletagex is like the other defunct pommade based on vitamin A or Retinol ( 40 000 UI vs. 1 million UI for Avibon). It is carried by a slightly fishy and quaint smelling cod liver oil, nevertheless fragranced with lemony verbena essence to help cover it. It also contains Lanolin, which may be a downside for those who are allergic to it. The texture is that of a rich oily gel colored a transparent orange.

Unlike Aquaphor which is safe to use at all times of life, Fletagex requires some medical advice when pregnant if you feel like using it often. Regular use for children is also discouraged. It can't go on the nipples of breast-feeding moms like the 19th century Guerlain nipple balm which became a lip balm, Baume de la Ferté. On the other hand, I find it's a good rescue cream for around the eyes.

On the plus side, it is a very efficient rescue lip balm. It works slightly less quickly than with Aquaphor but if you're looking for Retinol in a tube plus a cracked-lip solution, you certainly can turn to this product.

Nuxe Rêve de Miel Baume pour les Lèvres ~ Lip Balm

Once you have solved the most problematic aspects of your lip hydration issues, you can pick up a pot of Nuxe Rêve de Miel Lip Balm. It's good and efficacious for maintenance purposes. Because its texture is slightly grainy, it works also as an exfoliating balm.

Composition is said to be minimum 78% based on natural ingredients. They are: honey, sunflower oil, rosehip oil, almond oil, calendula, karite butter, grapefruit essence / (Miel, Huiles de Tournesol, de Rosier Muscat et d'Amande Douce végétales pécieuses (Calendula, Rosier, Muscat), Beurre de Karité, Essence de Pamplemousse...).

It's scented with grapefruit, but comes across more as orange spice. There again, it can feel like it's not meant to be a beauty product, meaning it lacks the physics of good makeup products which stay well-contained on the lips, but it's a very good lip balm. In fact, the brand advises you to use the balm not only on the mouth but around it.

And here's wishing better health and beauty for your lips!

XO, Chantal-Hélène