Korres Lip Butters: Perfect for Spring

I had been thinking about these pretty, punchy lip butters by Korres since spying them at Sephora a few months ago—when the temps here in Chicago were hovering around in the teens and I was, overall, in a winter of discontent.  The colors remind me of warmer months and happier times.

Now that spring is here and the blues have dissipated with the last blasts of radiator heat, I thought it time to buy one.

Pretty factor: These balms nearly melt into your lips and give a remarkably smooth finish and deep hydration, thanks to shea butter and rice wax. They'll kick to the curb any chappedness left over from winter. Available in four, richly pigmented shades.

Eco factor: No parabens, mineral oil, silicones or propylene glycol

To buy: $9 at Sephora and sephora.com

Softlips® Pure Organic Lip Conditioner

During my early teens, Softlips® was the brand for fending off chapped lips: the tall slender tube, the refreshing menthol, the fact that it cost double the price other balms...it was all so sophisticated! 

While I’ve grown and matured, apparently so has Softlips®. Perusing a CVS on a dry, cold day in Boston, I saw a display for its new Pure Organic Lip Conditioner. Actually, I first saw the pomegranate– my favorite fruit—which lured me in like Persephone.

Pretty Factor: The balm is flavorless and colorless, but the organic pomegranate extract leaves a scent that captures the fruit's essence without that over-sweet, bastardized smell  common to fruity products.  Vitamin E, organic shea butter and organic coconut, olive, and jojoba seed oils smooth and moisten your lips for hours without leaving a waxy feeling. I fell asleep wearing some and my lips still felt good when I woke up!

Eco Factor: Softlips® Pure is 95% USDA-certified organic. It is produced without pesticides and contains no parabens or gluten. This cruelty-free balm is also available in honeydew (better for summer) and comes in recyclable packaging.

To Buy: $3.69 at drugstores nationwide and drugstore.com

—Guest blogger Virginia Green

NEW Target-Sold Line: Green by Nature™ Lip Glazes

Move over C.O. Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine!  You've been blown out of the water (or, rather, off the shelves) by a new gal on the market: Green by Nature™ Lip Glazes.

Green by Nature™ Lip Glazes are 95% natural.  They contain pure peppermint oil to freshen breath, fruit oils for a uniquely yummy taste, are petrolatum-free.  Did I mention they cost about $3 less than Mentha Lip Shine?

Pretty factor: Like most women, I've tried countless lip glosses, but these are by far the best bang for your buck. They boast rosehip seed oil, which is rich in fatty acids and vitamin A.  Shea butter, pistachio oil, avocado oil, and aloe leaf extract offer superb hydration. 

Eco factor: No parabens, petroleum, mineral oil, propylene glycol, or synthetic color and fragrance. The company is a member of 1% for the Planet, an alliance of businesses that give at least one percent of their annual sales to environmental organizations.

To buy: $4.99 at select Target stores and greenbynaturebeauty.com

NEW DuWop Pure Venom Plumping Lip Stain

A few years ago, after going through three tubes of DuWop's infamous Lip Venom (I was obsessed with its tingly, tasty blend of cinnamon and ginger oils), I decided that I absolutely could no longer pay $16 for a tiny tube of gloss. Shortly after this decision, I came across a display of essential oils at a small health foods stores in Indianapolis. The cinnamon one grabbed my eye. Eureka! I could add a few drops of cinnamon oil to my regular lip gloss and instantly transform it to a plumper! "Look at me, being all cost-effective chemist," I proudly thought.

Ha. I apparently dded one too many drops because every nostril in the state seemed to know when I applied it. "What is that smell??" I heard from family and friends nearly every time I whipped it out. After a couple weeks, my mom and brother pleaded, "For the love of God, will you throw that crap away?!" Okay, okay. But you know what? It worked. My lips instantly become plumper and brighter.

Now I have an excuse to shell out the big bucks again for DuWop: Lip Venom not only comes in a longer-lasting stain...but it's organic and paraben-free: DuWop Pure Venom Plumping Lip Stain.

Pretty factor: Organic shea butter, safflower oil, and jojoba oil thoroughly moisturize, while sugar cane extract (the natural source of glycolic acid) exfoliates to keep lips young. And, of course, the classic cinnamon and peppermint leaf oils stimulate circulation, increasing lips' fullness and color. It has to be the perfect lip product.

Eco factor: Organic ingredients, no parabens, petrochemicals, or synthetic colors and fragrances

To buy: $24 at Sephora

Juice Beauty SPF 8 Lip Moisturizers Review

Hurray for May! Here in NYC, warm days seem to finally be here. I've always been diligent about slapping sunscreen on my face, but have been reading more about the importance of protecting you lips.  (We want youthfully plump, not old-lady puckered, right?)


A fun search brought forth Juice Beauty's SPF 8 Lip Moisturizers.  They whisk you back to the carefree days of a Bonne Bell-wearing youth—but with way healthier ingredients and non-chemical sun protection.

Pretty factor: These fruity-flavored sheers contain certified organic coconut and sunflower seed oils for hydration, real mango and passion fruit extracts for antioxidant protection, and 4% zinc oxide to prevent sun aging.

Eco factor: Juice Beauty products are made with 100% certified organic ingredients. No parabens, synthetic fragrances, petroleum derivatives, artificial dyes, sulfates, phthalates or animal testing. Their facilities are solar-powered, their containers are made from recycled content, and they source many ingredients from small California farmers.

To buy: $15 for 3 at juicebeauty.com

NEW Tarte Double Dose Berry Boost & Gloss

If you're anything of a beauty nut, you've probably heard the stat that women consume 2 to 4 pounds of lip gloss each year. It's better than that rumor that we also munch on 6 spiders in our sleep, but it nevertheless gets you thinking about what you're putting on your lips!

Tarte Cosmetics is the leader in healthy lipstick. Last year, it debuted Inside Out Vitamin Lip Gloss, a you-can-actually-eat-this collaboration with BORBA Neutraceuticals. Well, the product now comes in even purer form: Double Dose Berry Boost & Gloss, free of parabens and petroleum and loaded in fresh berry extracts.

Pretty factor: The glosses contain an antioxidant-bursting blend of today's uber-fruits: goji, acai, maracuja, acerola and pomegranate. Peppermint oil, in a larger amount than the fruit complex, freshens breath and stimulates circulation to give a slightly plumper pout.

Eco factor: No parabens, petroleum, mineral oil or phthalates. Every purchase of a Tarte product that has its new T5 Super Fruit Complex supports the Sambazon Sustainable Acai Project, a Brazilian organization that provides companies worldwide with organic and fair trade acai berry while re-building the Amazon rain forest via planting of acai trees.

To buy: $21 at Sephora stores and sephora.com

Ingredients

Still My Favorite Lip Product: Jane Iredale Puregloss™ for Lips

I've used countless natural lip glosses the past year, but Jane Iredale Puregloss™ remains my fav. It's all about the invigorating ginger root extract, top-notch antioxidants, and numerous shades to chose from (20 to be exact).

Pretty factor: Jojoba esters plus coconut, palm and soybean oils give above-and-beyond moisturization. Grape seed, green tea leaf, and pomegranate extracts pack an antioxidant punch.

Eco factor: No parabens, phthalates or chemical dyes or fragrance

To buy: $19 at janeiredaledirect.com

Ingredients

CARGO PlantLove™ Lipstick

This Sephora-sold lipstick isn't 100% natural, but its eco efforts and impressive moisturization merit it a mention—you can plant the box and it'll grow into flowers!

Pretty factor: These creamy lipsticks are ultra emollient thanks to shea butter and mango, jojoba and meadowfoam seed oils. They come in 15 shades (6 are designed by actresses, like Courteney Cox and Lindsay Lohan), so you should have luck finding a for-you hue.

Eco factor: No mineral oil or petroleum. The tube is made from corn, a renewable resource, and its carton is constructed of flower paper embedded with seeds—moisten, plant and it will grow wildflowers! Additionally, $2 from every sale goes to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. (Note: This product does contain potentially parabens.)

To buy: $20 at Sephora stores and sephora.com

Burt's Bees Lip Shimmers

Several months ago, I was using a popular, Sephora-sold lip gloss and began to notice slight flaking around my mouth. Now I can tolerate a little dryness from long-lasting lip stains (notorious for turning lips into a mini Mohave) but from a kid-like lip gloss? It got a disgusted chuck in the trash. Knowing how much my mom loves her Burt’s Bees Honey Lip Balm, I too went au naturel and bought one of Burt’s Bees lovely Lip Shimmers.

Pretty factor: Cocoa butter and sunflower and castor seed oils provide hydration that could get you through an ice age. Real peppermint oil freshens breath and stimulates blood circulation, which means a plumper pucker. Though only 6 shimmers are shown above, they come in 11 shades.

Eco factor: For over 20 years, Burt's Bees has made beauty products that are nearly 100% natural (they tell you the exact percentage on the package) and are packaged in post-consumer recycled material. In 2003, co-founder Roxanne Quimby bought a 24,000-acre tract of forest in Maine for preservation.

To buy: $3.99 at drugstores nationwide, Whole Foods and Borders Bookstores

Ingredients