Anna Says - Lip Balm Road Test

I have had a merry little time road testing lip balms over the past few weeks. I was going to be regimented about it and I had a tally sheet and everything all typed up, but then I had another idea. I would get my family to help with the road test! So here is what I did...

1) I bought 3 lip balms

2) I used them and encouraged the girls to use them too {I didn't ask Mr Cool to road test them as he might get teased at work for shiny, supple lips}

3) I left them in the bathroom and asked the girls to tell me when they used them, which one and why.

4) I collated my evidence....

Here is what I found....

1) Vaseline - $2.55 for 50g

What great value for money! However, this one didn't really rate very highly, but I wanted a product that was a familiar household item that was easily recognisable. 

We all found that getting the jelly out of the tub was the turn-off. As was the really sticky feel. When the girls DID use it, they looked like they had drool all over their mouths, they tended to wipe it off rather quickly {on a towel - grrr}.

I do use Vaseline on my feet. I have a nice long shower/bath. Use a pumice or a Pedi-egg or other skin scraping thing and push the cuticles back with a my finger nails. I then slather my feet with Vaseline and pop on some {oldish} cotton socks. Great for getting feet ready for Spring! I have made the mistake of putting Vaseline on my feet during the day or before a run - your feet do slip around inside your socks, it feels icky.

2) Moo Goo Cow Lick Lip Balm {Edible} - $9.95 for 5g

I was very excited about his product. Although, for some reason, I thought that it was made from a milk product, like collostrum or something {typing that now I wonder why I would have been happy to smear that on my luscious lips}. But, as it turns out, it is based on a product used by dairy farmers to keep a cow's udders soft and supple. The person who developed the original product discovered that the cream that was being used on dairy cow's udders actually helped a family's skin condition. Now, the range includes shampoos, conditioners, cleansers, soap bars, psoriasis creams and night creams - plus lip balm of course.


Winter being windy in our part of the world, both my girls were struggling with dry sore lips. So, one night before bed, I slathered their luscious lips with Moo Goo .... . I then thought, "Hmmm, I wonder what is in this stuff? Might read the ingredients...." It had Sesame Oil in it. 


Now, to the average Jo Blog - this would mean nothing. For us - it meant sheer panic. We have a 6 year old who is highly allergic to Sesame Seeds. Within seconds we had washed and washed and washed it off with soap and had filled her to the brim with bubbles Phenergan - hoping that we wouldn't need the epi-pen. Thank goodness she just came out with a few spots around her mouth and not a full anaphylactic reaction. Not Moo Goo's fault mind you - all mine. I would never have thought that a product like lip balm would have Sesame in it.


Lesson. Learnt. Read. All. Labels. How bad did I feel? Pretty. Bad.


After this, I decided it wasn't even worth me using the Cow Lick, which was a shame given that it smells really good and feels really good and leaves lips soft and supple. Like ... ahem... cow's udders.

3) Bonne Bell Therapy Lip Maintenance {with SPF 30+) - $4.95 for 8g

Bonne Bell has been making lipbalm for decades. It is a strong name in all things lips {they make Lip Smackers}. I liked the packaging {red being my favourite colour} and it came in a sealed plastic pack - very tamper proof. 

I don't usually like things that come in tubes that you have to squeeze out. I don't know why - it seems as if it is not viscous enough to stay on lips for a long time.


But, I really liked this product. It stayed on for a long time. Made my lips softer. Has an SPF of 15+. Says it is waterproof. It has a really shiny finish. I even used it over the top of lip stick for that really glossy look.


Note: I did not let my girls put this product on by themselves. I think they would have squished way too much out and then there would be glossy stuff everywhere, that they would have then wiped up with tissues then run to hide under their beds until I discovered the mess. That did not sound good to me. They were more than happy to let me put it on for them.

The Verdict

The Bonne Bell Lip Therapy won first prize in my 'Road Test'. I liked that it had the SPF, the shine and although it was in a tube, was not sticky and the tube didn't get all gunky. 

Where did I buy the products?

Vaseline:  Woolworths

Moo Goo: Terry White Pharmacy

Bonne Bell: Discount Pharmacy

What lip balm/therapy bits and bobs do you use?