A simple balm is the best staple you can have. If you dig in your handbag you'll probably find one -- a small, simple tube of cream that you use for your hands or lips. I always carry one with me, it's both a tiny necessity and a luxury. The gentle scent calms me. It moisturises my hands, feet, cuticles, lips. If my face feels really dry I dab on a very light layer. Sometimes I use a tiny amount on top of my cheekbones as a kind of natural highlighter. I scrunch some into my hair ends to protect them.
If you haven't got a simple multi-purpose balm yet, you should -- you'll never look back. So what is the ideal balm like? Best is a small light jar or tube that fits into your smallest purse. My favourite kinds of balm are those that are oil or wax based, since I can use those on my lips and hair. The ideal balm is soothing and doesn't contain harmful chemicals, so I can use it everywhere, even on my kids. Ideally it should smell nice, since a pleasant scent can really pick you up during a long commute.
My balm right now is a simple three ingredient beeswax balm that I got from a local bee-keeper. You can easily DIY something similar by melting together beeswax and any oil that tolerates a bit of heat. I do not recommend using coconut oil or monoi oil as these turn completely liquid in warmer temperatures and I've had them splash all over my clothes.
If you prefer to buy rather than DIY, most natural cosmetic brands carry some kind of balm, hand or cuticle creams often work too. Here are my favourites:
Do you use a multi-purpose lip balm? Which one is in your purse?
If you haven't got a simple multi-purpose balm yet, you should -- you'll never look back. So what is the ideal balm like? Best is a small light jar or tube that fits into your smallest purse. My favourite kinds of balm are those that are oil or wax based, since I can use those on my lips and hair. The ideal balm is soothing and doesn't contain harmful chemicals, so I can use it everywhere, even on my kids. Ideally it should smell nice, since a pleasant scent can really pick you up during a long commute.
My balm right now is a simple three ingredient beeswax balm that I got from a local bee-keeper. You can easily DIY something similar by melting together beeswax and any oil that tolerates a bit of heat. I do not recommend using coconut oil or monoi oil as these turn completely liquid in warmer temperatures and I've had them splash all over my clothes.
If you prefer to buy rather than DIY, most natural cosmetic brands carry some kind of balm, hand or cuticle creams often work too. Here are my favourites:
* Weleda Skin Food
* Hauschka rose cream Smells divine, and makes a great face cream.
* Any of the Martina Gebhart balms. The containers are heavy though.
* Lush Ultrabalm has really great ingredients, though I'm not a huge fan of the brand.
* Homeoplasmine Though I'm not a huge fan of petroleum, the homeopathic additives in this make it really soothing to the skin. The tiny nozzle is a bit irritating.
Do you use a multi-purpose lip balm? Which one is in your purse?
