Beauty, Charm & Style

Most people get chapped lips from time to time – like mine, RIGHT NOW. Dry, cracked or sore lips can interfere with my many daily activities, such as smiling, kissing, eating, blogging and talking.

According to the Mayo Clinic, lips may become chapped for a variety of reasons, including:

• Exposure to wind, sun, and cold, dry air
• Obstructed breathing
• Irritants or allergens in cosmetics or skin-care products
• Certain medications, such as those used to treat acne
• A habit of frequently licking your lips
• Dehydration
• Too much kissing (I added that one)

To treat or prevent chapped lips, consider these tips:

• Use an oil-based lubricating cream or lip balm containing beeswax.
• Apply lip balm before going out in cold, dry weather and don’t be afraid to reapply.
• Choose a lip cream or balm that contains sunscreen
• Avoid licking your lips. Saliva evaporates quickly, leaving lips drier than before you licked them – gross.
• Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids. Dehydration can contribute to chapped lips.
• Use a humidifier at home to keep air moist.

Hopefully, my lip de-chap before this weekend, until then, I’ll just keep them clean and moisturized.

Tips:

• If chapping is severe and self-care measures don’t seem to help, consult your doctor. Rarely, persistent chapped lips may indicate an underlying problem, such as dermatitis.

Oui Oui, L’amour de ma Bouche
(Yes, Yes, Love my Mouth)

French is such a romantic language.  You must agree. And a French man is often oozing with sex appeal.  When he speaks, the words roll off his tongue in such a passionate way that each and every syllable makes a lady melt.  That’s why I can never go to Paris.  I’d melt away.

But I can have a taste of Paris when I use my new Ceci Cela Almond Lip Balm.

Ceci Cela Almond Lip Balm

French for “this and that,” Ceci Cela soothes and nourishes my lips and protects my mouth from exposure to the harsh elements of Texas (the sun) with Vitamin E and SPF 15.

Easy, peasy, nice and easy – Ceci Cela Lip Balm coats my lips in a smooth, lush and rich layer of fun! Infused with essential oils,  the almond lip balms leaves me soft and silky-smooth. Using pure ingredients, natural anti-oxidants and emollients, Ceci Cela is a luxurious treat for my lips.

And best of all, it doesn’t leave my lips clammy and sloppy and I never have to worry about my hair sticking to my lips while I walk in the breeze down the Champs-Elysées.

I know the importance of nourished lips, because nourished lips lead to nourished French kisses!

The Breakdown:

• Available in both Almond and Spearmint
• All natural, petroleum, paraben and synthetic preservative free
• SPF 15
• $6 each

Tips:

• Apply over tinted lipstick and you pout stays colorful and moisturized longer than you could ever imagine!

Did you know that Kool-Aid comes from Nebraska?  It was invented BY Edwin Perkins in Hastings back in 1927.  Those wonderfully helpful CliffsNotes – they too are a Nebraska native as well.  Nebraska Cornhusker Football has brought pride to the state, and a few bouts of heartbreak. But one of the biggest things to come out of Nebraska is CORN!

Corn is wonderful and versatile and it is renewable and abundant.  From corncob pipes, to popcorn, to grain alcohol, to corn syrup and the ever popular ethanol/biofuel – corn can make practically anything.  Including lipstick tubes.

That’s right, CARGO Cosmetics have come out with their PlantLove™ Botanical Lipstick.

CARGO PlantLove

Seeing as I have been getting into darker lip color, I was pumped to try the Muir Woods color, which is a dark spicy mauve color inspire by the Muir Woods of Northern California.  A sexy and zesty color, my lips look ready to hit the town.  Light pinks and shimmer is perfect for daylight, but under the moon, I need something with a little more POW.

The lipstick goes on smooth and I feel the shea butter and mango seed oil hydrating my lips, making them silky and smooth.  It doesn’t flake off after a few minutes and it doesn’t fade away after one cocktail.  Rather, my lips stay soft and supple and perfectly kissable. And with no petroleum and mineral oils, my lips will STAY kissable way past the stoke of midnight.

And no, my lips don’t smell like corn.

The Breakdown:

• Orchid Complex, Meadowfoam Seed Oil and Mango Seed Oil
• $20 each
• 20 shades available
• The box the lipstick tube comes in has SEEDS in it so when you look to throw it away, how about planting it instead and getting a nice bouquet of flowers!

Tips:

• CARGO is donating two dollars from the sale of every shade to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The seeds we sow today affect future generations so invest in the earth and the children for the future of the planet!

Sealed with a Kiss

So I have a friend who is serving our country in Afghanistan and I try my best to send him care packages.  True, I send him pictures of our friends, magazines, and balloons; nail clippers, hand sanitizer, sun block, canned beans and other items from the suggestion page of www.troopcarepackage.com.

And when I write him letters, I always make sure to put a big red SMOOCH on the envelope.  I’m not his girl back home, but I know he appreciated my warped sense of humor.  But my problem always is I don’t wear very dark lipstick.  I’m a shimmer gloss or a light pink balm type of girl.  That is till I got my paws on L’Oreal’s Hip Lip Gloss in Zealous.  Now that’s an army letter kiss worthy color!

L’Oreal Hip Lip Gloss in Zealous

So the apply the deep red color to my lips and blot them using a tissue.  Magically, my smile looks like that of a girl from the glamorous forties. Add victory curls a skinny belt and some saddle shoes, and I’m off to the USO.

Well, not really, but lips do pop a bit more than usual and I feel utterly sophisticated. I’ve always thought of lip stick as an older woman’s cosmetic, so with the addition of this color, I feel grown-up and mature.  Who knew a little pigment could change a girl’s outlook on her life?

L’Oreal HiP Shine Struck Liquid Lipcolor has the color coverage expected from L’Oreal and the lasting shine I expect from my gloss.  And with the added conditioning agents, my lips stay hydrated and soft all day long.  So when I get home after a long day with Rosie the Riveter, I can kiss my soldier hello and not worry about having rough, unrefined lips.

The Breakdown:

• $12.00 each
• 12 colors to pick, ranging from Pretentious, to Splendid and from Tainted to Precarious
• Easy to glide on stick delivers Vitamin E and Jojoba Oil to help recondition

Tips:

• If you smoke, you should quit because smoking kills the cells around your mouth leaving your lips dull and dry, something NOT sexy and NOT kissable.

Ever dream of being a rock star?  I’m not talking about the one who plays the colorful guitar or miniature drums to some video game. I’m talking Shea Stadium, groupies, private planes, ripped denim and yards and yards of gold lamae fabric.  THAT’S what I call a rockstar.

But, I can’t play an instrument, I was kicked out of 4th grade choir because of my lack of singing ability and I can’t clap to a rhythm.  It is doubtful Detroit Rock City will ever chant my name.

Doesn’t mean I can’t look like a rocker though.  And with Armour Beauty, the new gloss line inspired by classic rock, I’m able to live out my fantasies of grabbing the mic and belting it out on stage amidst the pyrotechnics and jumbo-trons.

Armour Beauty Lip Gloss

Today, I’m wearing Shattered, the Red gloss from the Shimmer line aptly named after the Rolling Stone’s song we all know and rock out to. With ingredients like avocado oil, mango oil, shea butter and vitamin E my lips feel cool and moisturized.

Not for the faint of heart, Shattered goes on strong and lasts all concert long, including the double encore at the end. And though the color is much stronger than my usual clear gloss, it doesn’t over power my face or make me look like I had an allergic reaction to a tomato.  No, I just look cool.

So when you go out to party like a rock star, make sure you look the part.  And party on.

The Breakdown:

• $19.00 a pop
• 2 different collections – Shimmer and Opaque with 14 colors
• Contains moisturizers, antioxidants and natural SPF
• All the glosses are named after rock songs and ladies of rock
• Cruelty free

Tips:

• Blot, blot, blot, blot, blot, blot, blot – last thing a rock goddess needs is gloss on her teeth!

« Older Entries