little white truths

This is one of those products that I've been using for as long as I can remember, although I must say that I haven't used it much in the last five years.

Back in my school days, though - gosh, twenty years ago now - I always had one in my schoolbag. So did the other girls. Blistex was apparently the balm to end all balms.

I don't know why this was because of course the obligatory Lip Smackers we also had in our pockets were all the rage back then, but this was the serious balm to treat seriously dry lips. My mum has been using it for decades now and she's the one who keeps buying these for me, even though I tend to pass them on for the reasons I'll discuss below.

I didn't pass this one on, though. I wanted to keep it so I could finally review it, and using it for the past few weeks has reminded me of why I haven't used it so much these past years. It tingles when applied, and not necessarily in a bad way (more in a medicinal, antiseptic kind of way), and while in my youth I liked that about it, in my old age I don't. Perhaps my lips have become more sensitive over time.

What I will say, however, is that this stuff works. It always has. So if you want a treatment balm that targets chapped lips, this is still a product I would recommend.

Blistex claims/product details:

• Broad spectrum high protection sunscreen SPF 15
• For the prevention and treatment of dry, chapped and sunburned lips
• Protects lips from sun, wind and cold
• Conditions lips with moisturisers for super smooth healthy lips
• Helps moisturise and nourish the lips
• The formula is enriched with collagen and enhanced with cocoa butter, vitamin e, grapeseed and olive oil
• RRP $4.99 AUD for 7g, but do shop around

Verdict

This is a cult-classic that a lot of people swear by and it has been for years, so if dry, chapped lips are an issue for you and you haven't tried it, I would give it a shot.

It's a hard yellow balm that comes in a pot. It smells a bit plastic-y, medicinal and weird, and the pot delivery system is annoying because it means covering a finger in balm whenever you use it, but if you can see past that, then it's definitely worth testing.

Also note that you're getting a good 7g of product in this (more than most standard balms) and the tub will last a good while because you only need a little each time, plus it only costs five bucks - less, if you can find it on special - so it won't break the bank.

As mentioned above, I used to enjoy the tingling feeling you get when you first apply this, but these days I'm not as comfortable with it. I'm not sure why that is, but I suspect my lips are less tolerant than they used to be - the same way that my skin is less tolerant of the sun than it used to be. Let's call that ageing or the fact that the Australian sun is getting worse (or perhaps a combination of the two).

The other thing worth noting is that this isn't a 'do everything' balm in my books. If my lips are chapped or burned, then I'll use this and it works. But if they're normal and I just want something for hydration, this isn't the balm for me: it doesn't give my lips that hydrated, comfortable feeling that I want from my lip balms, and for me it operates more as a medicinal/treatment product as opposed to a nourishing, everyday one.

Oh! The sunscreen. Thank golly this contains sunscreen. Not enough lip balms do, in my experience, and they should because your lips are in the sun as much as your face is.

Overall I think this is a good treatment product but it's no longer a favourite of mine for the reasons mentioned above. While it certainly treats chapped lips, it's not something I love using every day because it doesn't feel that moisturising and I personally don't find it enjoyable to use.

Still, it works.