Dry flaky lips are no fun but luckily they’re easy to fix with products that you already own. Most lip scrubs simply contain a mixture of sugar and oil that you can buff gently over your lips to remove skin flakes, preventing further cracking and giving you a smooth canvas for lipstick or gloss.
Vaseline is a fantastic option to use in a DIY lip scrub. It’s thick so it makes the scrub easy to handle, plus it’s perfect for sealing water into thin lip skin. If you prefer a more natural option, you can use coconut oil instead of Vaseline.
- Dip a cotton swab into Vaseline until it’s coated in a thin layer.
- Dip the same cotton swab into sugar that you’ve poured out into a shallow dish. Fine-grained caster sugar works best.
- Wet your lips with a little water to soften any dry skin.
- Rub the cotton swab gently over your lips in small circles.
- Wipe off any excess product with a clean tissue.
- Follow up with a lip balm or lipstick.
Internet favorites for lip hydration
- It might seem odd, but the lanolin in Lansinoh Lanolin Nipplecreams is a superstar ingredient.
- Rosebud Salve has been a cult classic since 1892.
- Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask might be a pricier option, but it’s pulled through for others when nothing else worked.
If you have an extra 10 minutes, you might want to try a lip mask for extra hydration:
- Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask is a classic that’ll give your lips a glossy sheen worthy of a magazine cover.
- For overnight healing, try Aritaum’s Ginger Sugar Overnight Lip Mask. This soothing mask is a must-have for many and has saved more lips than any lip balm!
Michelle explains the science behind beauty products at Lab Muffin Beauty Science. She has a PhD in synthetic medicinal chemistry. You can follow her for science-based beauty tips on Instagram and Facebook.