Water for Lips {Lip Care}

Ok, so summers are gone and monsoons are already raging down on us. And, places which are cooler and highly humid come with another disadvantage. You forget to drink water because the thirst is not felt so much as much as in scorching heat. So, it is very important that you keep on sipping water little by little every one hour so that you don't go dry because it will affect your health first and then the skin, hair and lips show the signs of dryness. Lip becomes dry very easily when you don't drink enough water so make sure before applying your favorite lip balms or lip treatments, you are drinking enough water.

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Dry Skin around Lips {Lip Care}

Today only I noticed white spots on the skin around my lips. The skin around my lips has becomes extremely dry and is starting to flake off. I suddenly remembered that this is a sign of deficiency of Vitamin B complex in the body. So, in case you have dry skin around your lips, increase your intake of Vitamin B - either get supplements ny consulting a doctor or eat Vitamin B rich foods like bananas, pulses and lentils, all unprocessed foods including vegetables and fruits, potatoes and beans. This biotin drink also helps in fulfilling the vitamin B deficiency so check it out. Also, increase your consumption of yogurt in general.

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Himalaya Herbals Natural Moisturizing Lip Butter {Product Review}

Price: 125 INR for 10 gms

Ingredients

Well, I am really sorry that I threw away my pack but I remember reading the list and admiring few things in it. It has cocoa and sal and kokum butter. In fact the list was full of oils and butters and it also has beeswax and it is free from petroleum which is a huge plus for this product. 

My Experience

I have been using this since quite a long while (probably around 3 weeks). My biggest complain with this one is its packaging. I would have enjoyed this lip balm had it been in the tube or packaged just like Nivea lip balms because of hygiene and also because of the ease of use of the product. It pretty easy to use the tube on the lips as compared to digging into the tub and scooping it out and then smoothing it on the lips. Apart from this, I would say that the lip balm delivers what it promises. I use this on my lips on the days when I am at home or at night and it keeps my lips soft. Ok, there is probably another thing. The product is moisturizing but it sits on the lips. Well, this is a problem I face with every other lip balm I have tried (including Vaseline, Nivea and Baviphat) so I wouldn't say this lip balm fails on this point. And, of course, you have to apply it every time you eat or drink anything otherwise it stays for minimum of 3-4 hours. But, this lip balm doesn't dry the lips like some others do. And, this smells really awesome. But, the smells lingers on for a long time after you have applied so if you have a sensitive nose then it might irritate you after a certain while. And, regarding the quantity, it will last a long time.        

 

My Recommendation

Yes, it is a good lip balm to keep the lips soft and to prevent chapped lips problem.

PS: Product sent by brand for consideration.

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How to protect your skin and hair during Holi

Yes, finally, Holi is just a few days away and all are gearing up for the celebrations and festive cheers. But, the season of Holi brings with it the added risk of chemically synthesized colors which are extremely harmful for our skin and hair. So, you must take certain precautions before staring off with playing with colors. Not only should you take care of your face and hair, but do not forget your arms and your nails. 

Before playing:

• Wear a high factor water proof sunscreen on every part of your body which is exposed. Apply it in thick layers. You should ideally go for 2-3 layers applied at an interval of half or an hour each. This will protect you from prolonged sun exposure and do not forget that the colors might react with your skin and make it photo sensitive. Try to use a chemical sunscreen instead of a physical one as they are more effective and make sure sunscreen is the first thing you apply on your skin.
• After applying sunscreen, apply a thick layer of any oil like almond, olive, coconut or sesame oil (preferably castor oil as it is thick in texture) as they make a film on your skin and protect direct contact from colors. Sesame Oil also provides an added sun protection as it is a natural sun blocker.
• Do not forget to apply the sunscreen and oil to your arms and other parts of your body exposed. All the precautions apply to your feet as well. It will be beat if you are wearing socks. If not, apply oil and then, put a very thick coat of glycerin or honey to avoid slipping.
• You should take care of your nails too. So, apply a thick coat of any nail paint in the morning. And, do not forget to oil your cuticles. They get the worse effects.
• Oil your hair nicely concentrating on the roots and ends. And, after an hour, apply a thick coat of your hair conditioner to your hair. Prefer a leave-in instead of the regular after-shampoo hair conditioners.
• Apply a moisturizing lip paint coating it with a lip gloss.

After playing:

• First of all, wash all your skin with cold water. Do not use hot or lukewarm water. It takes more time to wash.
• Brush your teeth. I know you would have done it in the morning, but, nothing wrong in doing it again.
• Do not use a soap or cleanser to wash your skin. Use a homemade scrub mixed with milk and milk cream to wash your body.
• Now, use a herbal shampoo to wash your hair. After washing your hair, use an intensive conditioner or a deep conditioning treatment or you can apply honey on your hair and wash off after 30 minutes. 
• During your bath, clip your nails. The nail beds would have been ruined because of the color so make them grow nice and strong again. 
• Do a hand soak and a foot soak to relax your hands and feet during your bath. 
• Remove the lipstick and scrub your lips nicely.

And, now, you are back to being beautiful and gorgeous without ruining your skin and enjoying the festival of colors. Some precautions to be observed:

• Do not let the color go into your eyes. If you wear contacts, I would advise you to wear specs as they give a barrier between your eyes and color. If any color enters your eyes, wash them with cold water repeatedly.
• Do not let the color enter your mouth. Yes, it happened to me once. Someone attacked me from the back and it was liquid color. It went into my mouth. If it does, rinse your mouth thoroughly and brush your teeth then and there. 
• I would suggest you all to go for herbal colors available in the market instead of the synthetic colors. 

Wish you all a very Happy Holi.

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An amazing lip scrub

Yes, I wanted to share with you an amazing lip scrub which I tried while brushing my teeth. I have already talked about home remedies for teeth whitening. Now, I want to tell you that you can use Baking Soda or the toothpaste (3 spoons of Baking Soda and 1 spoon salt) for scrubbing your lips. Use a spare brush to scrub your lips. And, your lips would become natural pink with regular usage. But, be careful with the frequency of scrub. Be very gentle while scrubbing your lips or you might harm them. And, do not use the scrub more than 4-5 times a week and not more than once in a day. 

And, after scrubbing your lips, moisturize them with this homemade lip balm.

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Recipe for Lip Balm with Sunscreen factor {DIY}

Lip Balm is very important for taking care of your lips. As you use lotion or moisturizer for body and cold cream for face, lips also need to be moisturized. Today, I am posting a recipe for lip balm with sunscreen properties.

Ingredients:

- Vaseline / Petroleum Jelly / Beeswax / Shea Butter / Cocoa Butter (can be used in combination also)

- Coconut oil

- Sesame oil

- 2 Vitamin E capsules

- Almond oil

- Essential oil

- Grated Chocolate / Honey

Method:

• Melt Vaseline / Petroleum Jelly / Beeswax / Shea Butter / Cocoa Butter in a double broiler ( put a pan inside a pan). The butters or the waxes would melt and becomes liquid. At this point, remove the heat. The present heat would be enough to make the balm. (I used a 25ml vaseline jar so the measurements are according to that quantity. Vary them according to the quantity you are using.)
• Pour 20 drops of  sesame oil and 10 drops of coconut oil. Sesame oil and coconut oil have sunscreen properties. Sesame oil blocks 60% UV and coconut oil blocks 20% UV. 
• Pour 5 drops of almond oil. Almond oil keeps your lips soft and moisturized for a long duration.
• Remove the container from the broiler or heat completely now.
• Prick two capsules of vitamin E and empty the contents into the container.
• Wait for three minutes (do not let it get too solid, just wait for it to cool down a little) and put 5 drops of your favorite essential oil. 
• Stir all the ingredients together. It will begin to solidify in a matter of 5 minutes. Leave the mixture for  an hour to solidify properly and then scoop it out and store in a small glass jar.
• Do not use food flavorings because they irritate the skin and cause dryness.
• If your balm becomes too soft, add a bit more of vaseline / butters and if it is too hard, pour more of almond oil.

Variations:

• For chocolate flavored lip balm, melt grated chocolate in the broiler along with the butters or jelly. Remove from heat and add oils. Mix all ingredients and your chocolate flavored lip balm is ready.
• You can put a tea spoon of honey into the mixture for a more glossy and sweet smelling balm. 

Note: Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly) is not good for skin as it blocks the pores. Try to use shea butter, cocoa butter or beeswax instead.

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