If you live in a dry area with hot summers, or in a cold area with long winters, you’ll already know the effects that harsh weather can have on your lips. It’s easy for your lips to become dry, chapped, or even cracked over time without the correct treatment. Having dry lips can be painful – not to mention unsightly. Thankfully, we have lip scrub to turn to. But we’ll get to that shortly.

It’s important to keep your lips moisturized and in good condition. Generally, we use lip enhancement products to help maintain the moisture in our lips, as well to protect them from the harsh elements of the environment. The problem with most conventional lip treatments is that they often work for short periods of time before leaving your lips dry again. Slapping on some lip gloss only gives your lips temporary shine, and then dries off.

I recommend turning to a DIY lip scrub recipe in order to treat your lips, as you’re able to control the amount of the individual ingredients you put in the mixture and create a mixture that’s perfectly suited to you. I’ve had great results since switching to the DIY process, and so far, haven’t suffered from any dryness and don’t feel the need to re-apply lip products every hour – the effects are lasting! What exactly is lip scrub, you ask? Read on!

What Is A Lip Scrub?

DIY lip scrub.

Lip scrubs are quite similar to lip balms and often contain similar ingredients such as natural waxes, oils, and various butters and fats that help to moisturize and protect the sensitive skin on your lips from exposure to the harsh elements. The difference with lip scrubs though, is that they also contain slightly rougher exfoliating ingredients that help to loosen and remove dead skin cells from the surface of your lips.

By doing this, you keep your lips healthy and clean as well as allow them to retain moisture for longer periods of time. This is why conventional lip balms only work for a limited period of time. They only work on the surface of the skin and don’t penetrate much deeper than that. Exfoliating your lips is as important as exfoliating your skin in general.

One other advantage of exfoliating your lips is that it helps to stimulate the circulation of blood to them. This makes them seem fuller and more radiant which makes them look healthier. When it comes to beauty and cosmetic treatments, exfoliating your lips is essential before applying your lipstick. It makes the lipstick last longer and will help to make the application of the lipstick easier.

Be sure to exfoliate your lips 2 to 3 times a week and monitor how your lips feel afterwards. If you feel like they need more treatment – then feel free to do so. If, however, they feel sensitive or sore after scrubbing, refrain from doing so for a few days while you lips heal. Better safe than sorry!

The Importance Of Lip Health Explained

Generally, healthy lips are regarded as an indication of proper health. If your lips are sore, cracked, swollen, chapped, discolored, or too tender – these can all be isolated incidents, yes, but they can also serve as a warning sign of more serious conditions.

Healthy lips make speech and food intake easier and smoother; they make intimacy and romance better and more enjoyable; and basically, they make you look more attractive and desirable in the eyes of others. They are one of the most sensitive parts of the human body, with an astounding amount of nerves which are constantly sending information back and forth from the region, and which are always reacting to the outside world.

For this reason, keeping lips in optimal condition is paramount. The protection you provide them with is given back to you on a number of levels. Your lips can say a lot about you. It’s in your best interest to keep them healthy and vital. Ideally, lips should be soft, smooth-looking, and carry their typical pink-ish hue.

DIY Lip Scrub Recipe

Girl lying with flowers.

Making your own DIY lip scrub couldn’t be easier. It’s definitely the right direction to head in if you’re serious about maintaining healthy, beautiful lips. When utilizing a homemade recipe, you can control exactly what goes into the finished product. This means you have more freedom to experiment with different flavors and scents and are able to control how strong or soft the scrub is.

If you feel like your lips are taking too much damage from the scrub, feel free to add more oils and butters. You could even reduce the amount of exfoliating agents you include in your next batch for more sensitive lips. The sky really is the limit here – or rather, your imagination. The beauty of going the DIY route is that you control the formula – not anyone else.

I would also recommend DIY because it’s cheaper in the long run. Most skin care and beauty products are expensive and generally don’t last very long, even with artificial preservatives. By buying your own ingredients, you can make more for less.

Even if the initial cost of the ingredients might cost the same, or even a bit more than your conventional lip balm, you’ll save money in the long run by not having to replace the product when it runs out. You’ll also be doing your bit to help reduce the amount of waste we create. It’s a simple change that can have a much larger positive effect on your lifestyle as a whole. So, it’s definitely worth investigating. This is a really simple homemade lip scrub. It shouldn’t take you more than an hour (or two at most) to finish.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 tablespoons Brown Sugar.
• 1 tablespoon Organic Honey.
• 1/2 tablespoon Coconut Oil or Olive Oil
• 5-8 drops of either Tea Tree, Peppermint or Lemon Essential Oil.
• 1 Pinch Cinnamon.
• 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract.
• Small container with sealed lid.

To make this sugar lip scrub, simply heat a small frying pan and melt the coconut oil in it. Don’t burn it, just make sure it’s not in it’s solid state. While this is happening, mix the raw honey with brown sugar (this is your exfoliator). Stir well, so that the two blend together. Brown sugar is better than white sugar because it’s less refined and therefore more coarse. This gives your lips the proper exfoliation they deserve. Then add the moisturizing coconut oil and continue to mix. You can also use olive oil or almond oil, it depends on what nourishing natural oils you have lying around. Just make sure to choose one that contains vitamin E so your lips are left particularly hydrated and replenished.

As you’re mixing the coconut oil into the small bowl, you can add the cinnamon, essential oil, and vanilla essence to the mixture. Once you’ve properly stirred the mixture and have a finished product, scoop it into your container and seal tightly.

If you have a known allergy to any of the ingredients – obviously you should avoid them. There are loads of different recipes out there that you can try. There are other ingredients you can experiment with. Some people like to add mint or shea butter to make it a particularly delicious mint lip scrub or nourishing scrub. I personally prefer this recipe because I often have the ingredients around my home anyway and really like the flavor.

When applying this honey lip scrub, use a little at a time, as too much can have a negative effect on the surface of your skin – a fingertip’s worth should do the trick. You can apply the scrub with your fingertip or with a toothbrush – whichever you prefer or works best for you. Work it on in a circular motion.

Once you’ve applied the sugar scrub, let it sit for at least 2 minutes, then rinse it off with warm water or wipe off with a washcloth. Apply your favorite lip balm to help lock in your pout’s moisture and reduce dry skin. You can also feel free to check out Lush Lip Scrub (available on Amazon), as we’ve covered in our Lush Company Review! 

DIY Lip Scrub Before And After Results

You should feel the results of the scrub after the first application. I highly recommend using it 2-3 times a week over the course of your first week for the best results. After applying the natural exfoliant, your lips may feel a little sensitive – but not painful. If they’re feeling sore, you should either use less sugar in your recipe or apply the lip scrub more gently.

It’s imperative that you don’t eat or drink anything particularly hot, or anything that’s too cold for at least 30 minutes to an hour after applying the scrub, as it could damage your lips. Generally, at least in my experience, my lips have felt smoother and softer. This is once the sensitivity disappears. My lips tend to retain moisture longer after a good scrub. This gives them a more luscious, natural color and texture, as well as alleviating any dryness or irritability that I had before.

Over time, your lips become used to the scrubbing and you can use the scrub more regularly. It leaves your lips supple and sloughs off any dead skin cells.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I haven’t had any problems with my lips since using the lip scrub. And I used to regularly suffer from dry, chapped lips during the winters. I enjoy using the natural, homemade recipe. It’s a lot more affordable than the lip scrubs I’ve seen in stores and personally, I believe it works just the same, if not better. It gives me soft lips, and soft lips are supple lips, so sign me up!

It has no additional preservatives, flavorings or colorants that could dry out your skin. The natural flavor doesn’t affect the taste of your meals or drinks.

If you haven’t tried natural products or DIY recipes in your life yet, then I highly recommend this one to start with. It’s quick, affordable, and effective. Once you feel and see the difference in your lips – you’ll never go back to the conventional methods you used before. As they say, the proof is in the pudding, or in this case, the DIY sugar lip scrub!