10 Natural Lip Balms You Need to Try

With skin that is thin and delicate, the lips need extra love
Dry, flaky, chapped, cracked: everything that can happen to the skin on the face and body can also happen to the lips—often even faster and with more regularity.
“The skin on our lips is much thinner than anywhere else on the body, and since it doesn’t contain sebaceous glands, it relies just on saliva to keep it moist,” explains green beauty expert and makeup artist, Karim Orange. “Plus, think about how many foods and beverages come in contact with our lips daily! These, along with outside elements, can cause sensitivity and issues like dryness.”
Orange also cautions that dryness is not just a winter thing. “There are many factors that cause chapped lips, from components in saliva and the repeated licking of lips, to elements like extreme cold and extreme heat. In summer, the hot weather is a factor, along with exposure to salt water and pool chlorine.”
To help heal and protect this sensitive skin, “look for products with ingredients that your body recognizes as food,” recommends Orange. “Lip balms with petroleum or mineral oils trick the body into not producing its own moisture—so the more you use, the more you need.”
These natural lip balms brands feature nourishing natural and organic ingredients to smooth and protect your
smackers all year long.
Korres Available in four tints and one clear version, the refreshing Mandarin Lip Butter Sticks sooth, nourish and hydrate dry lips with mandarin oil, sunflower wax, shea butter and vitamin E. Use alone or under lip gloss for added shine. korresusa.com
ILIA A blend of several organic seed and fruit oils, shea butter and more form the base for the Balmy Days clear lip conditioner, while the Balmy Nights lip exfoliator adds volcanic stone powder to gently scrub. A wide range of Tinted Lip Conditioners are also available, as are coconut oil-infused moisturizing Lip Glosses with cushy, contoured applicators. iliabeauty.com
COCOme Keep your beach bag or carry-on light this summer by throwing in the COCOme Bodystick, which can be used on the whole body, including the lips. Organic virgin coconut oil and a bit of beeswax help the balm glide over dry areas, leaving them soft and protected. cocomebodystick.com
Antonym   Created in pencil to help eliminate plastic tubing and excess packaging, the Antonym Certified Natural Lipstick Pencil (available in three natural, mineral-pigment shades) goes on silky, and finishes with a glossy, color-rich sheen. Soothes lips with sunflower oil, organically farmed shea butter, vitamins A and C and more. Perfect for summer, they’re also waterproof. antonymcosmetics.com
Spa Ritual   Though best known for its vegan, toxin-free nail lacquers, this brand offers clean products for the whole body, including the lips. The gluten-free SpaRitual Lip Glosses mix organic cocoa seed butter, coconut oil and shea butter with antioxidants and fruit oils to condition lips with a touch of color. Choose from a dozen shades. sparitual.com
Burt’s Bees The earth-friendly pioneer has expanded its lip line to include 100 percent natural products delivering different finishes and color intensities. The Lip Glosses, featuring jojoba esters, botanical oils and a light vanilla natural fragrance, provide rich, long-lasting color with a pearlized shine, while the Lip Crayon moisturizes with shea butter, and omega-3-rich kendi oil, leaving a creamy matter color finish. burtsbees.com
Alba Botanica Free of parabens, petrolatum, artificial colors and other no-nos, the Fast Fix for Thin Lips tinted gloss harnesses the power of cinnamon and ginger to trigger a slight plumping effect, which can help minimize the appearance of fine lines and cracked skin. albabotanica.com
COOLA   Available in SPF 15 and 30 versions, the water-resistant COOLA SPF Liplux features a blend of 70 percent organic ingredients, including fruit butters like avocado and raspberry, to hydrate, plus peppermint and vanilla for a cooling effect. coolasuncare.com
Eco Lips Start with the Lip Scrub (choose between mint, brown sugar and vanilla) to polish and condition, then replenish moisture with the Mongo Kiss balm, made with Fair Trade mongongo oil from Zambia, high in natural humectants. Organic cocoa butter, coconut and argan oils help the EcoTints—available in three shades—heal while adding a pop of color, while tamanu, sea buckthorn and red raspberry seed oils provide natural sun protection in the Zinc Sunscreen SPF 15 Lip Balms. The One World line includes one of the most sustainable lip balms around, packaged in biodegradable and compostable push-up tubes; we like the REVIVE flavor, with chia seed oil and Andean herbs. ecolips.com
Avalon Organics Not only does the antioxidant-rich Vitamin C Renewal™ Soothing Lip Balm help soften dry, chapped lips with a blend of 70 precent organic ingredients, but it also uses vitamins C and E and plant oils to protect against sun-related photoaging and future chapping. avalonorganics.com