Winter skin problems are real, ladies, and one of them pesky problems is dry and chapped lips. As the temperatures drop, the dry winter wind strips the moisture away from your lips leaving them chapped, flaky, slit, sore and what not. But thankfully, proper winter lip care and the use of moisturizing lip products can save your lips from the wrath of cold weather. The harsh winter winds may be the reason your lips feel super tight and dry but that doesn’t mean you have to wait till spring to wear your favourite lipstick or get a picture-perfect pout for a selfie. Na-uh!

There are a few tips you can follow to make sure your lips are protected from the cold. Also, no matter how dry, flaky or chapped, they can be nourished back to health with some extra TLC and the right products. Let us help you with some brilliant tips to fight winter dry lips and also tell you how to curate a winter lip care kit for yourself to make sure your pout is always smooth and picture-perfect. Here are five winter lip care tips and three must have lip products to keep your lips soft, hydrated and healthy even when the weather isn’t as kind your skin.  

 

1. Winter Lip Care: Use a lip balm regularly

Use a lip balm regularly

The number one rule of winter lip care is to always keep your lips hydrated. How, you ask? By applying a moisturizing lip balm on your lips regularly. Dry winter air zaps the natural moisture from your lips, leaving them dry and chapped. Treating them with the proper nourishment and a boost of hydration every once in a while is the key to keeping them healthy and happy even in the chilliest of the months.

Before going out, apply a generous amount of lip balm on your lips and top it with lipstick. That’s right! A layer of lipstick can actually protect your lips from the dry air, pollution and dirt. Also, keep your lip balm in your bag and reapply every time you feel your lips get dry and parched.

 

2. Steer clear from licking your lips

Steer clear from licking your lips

Licking your lips seems to be the best idea when they are feeling dry and parched. However, it makes the dryness worse and thus you should break this bad habit. It may moisturize your lips instantly for a while, but the air causes the saliva to evaporate pretty quickly, and it actually leaves them feeling drier. This is because the enzymes in your saliva make your lips dry and can leave the delicate skin feeling irritated as well. Whenever your lips feel dry, apply a lip balm to hydrate them. Also, don’t touch your lips unnecessarily as the bacteria and germs from your hands can transfer to your lips and can lead to infection.

 

3. Don’t peel or pluck

Don’t peel or pluck

The urge to peel or pick the skin off your chapped lips is only natural but doing so is a complete no-no. Resist peeling or picking at the flaky skin on your lips to keep them healthy and avoid any further skin problems like scabs and blisters. Just like picking your acne does more harm than good to your skin and can leave life-long scars, the same way, peeling lips can also result in blisters and cracks which are not only unsightly but very painful as well. Try to keep your hands to yourself and don’t pick on the skin of your lips. Instead, treat them with a lip oil or ointment right away.

 

4. Heal your lips with petroleum jelly

Heal your lips with petroleum jelly

Cracked lips, flaky skin, slits, and cold sores are some of the skin issues that come with the colder weather. It is important to treat your cracked and chapped lips the right way so it heals properly and the skin woes don’t get worse. Avoid scrubbing or brushing your lips harshly when they are peeling or cracked. It can lead to infection and even worse, lip sores.

Apply petroleum jelly like Vaseline Original Pure Skin Jelly to heal chapped lips and moisturize them. Invest in a lip balm that is infused with an ointment or natural ingredients that help heal winter lip woes.  Vaseline Aloe Soothe Lip Care is a nourishing lip balm formulated with pure aloe vera extracts that soothe and heal your lips while also providing deep moisture to your lips.

 

5. Keep yourself hydrated

Keep yourself hydrated

Lip products are essential for winter lip care, but what’s equally important and unmissable is keeping yourself hydrated by drinking lots of water. You tend to drink less water in winters since your body doesn’t sweat as much, which is one of the reasons your skin and lips, in particular, feel and look dry and dull. When your body is hydrated from within, it shows on your skin. So, to combat dryness and keep your lips moisturized and healthy even in winters, make it a point to drink enough water and keep yourself hydrated from within.   

3 products to stock up on, in your winter lip care kit:

 

#Winter Lip Care Product: Lip scrub

Lip scrub

Exfoliating your lips once a week is important to maintain the health of your lips, especially in winters. It scrubs away the peeling skin and leaves your lips soft as a petal. You can DIY soothing lip scrub with equal parts of brown sugar, olive oil, and honey and rub it on your lips to get the flaky and chapped skin out and make your lips smoother and softer. While brown sugar makes for a gentle scrubbing agent, honey moisturizes your lips and leaves them hydrated. 

 

#Winter Lip Care Product: Lip oil

Lip oil

Your winter lip care kit is incomplete without a nourishing overnight lip oil. Your lips tend to dry even more when you are asleep as the moisture gets stripped away. Lip oils provide extra nourishment and added benefits to your lips. Before going to bed every night, slather on a lip oil and massage your lips using your fingertips. It helps stimulate blood circulation and makes your pout plumper and softer. You can use a few drops of lavender essential oil or mix coconut oil and almond oil to make your own DIY lip oil and use it every night before bed to wake up to soft and pink lips. 

 

#Winter Lip Care Product: Lip balm

Lip balm

Keep your lips moisturized throughout the day by applying a lip balm every couple of hours. Buy one that is infused with a good amount of SPF (yes you need SPF in winters too) to protect your lips from sun damage and darkening. Keep a lip balm of your choice handy and apply it every now and again to keep your lips nourished and moisturized. We suggest Lakmé Lip Love Chapstick that has SPF 15 in it and helps keep your lips soft all day.