A few things start to happen after you celebrate your fortieth birthday. You become wiser, sexier, more confident, and just overall more amazing. But I regret to inform you of another possible side effect that isn’t as enticing: your skin may become drier. As the skin gets thinner with age, the skin on your lips (which is already thin to begin with) has a harder time replenishing itself and tends to become drier faster. Aquaphor and Vaseline become your new best friends, but you may notice another thing happening: your lips will start to prefer certain more moisturizing lipsticks and glosses over others. This is a time when you’ll really start to see that lipsticks are not created equal and some formulas are simply less kind to aging lips. This is the one type of lipstick that many beauty experts agree dries out your lips the fastest.
Longwear Matte Lipsticks
Longwear lipstick is one of those inventions that seems like a great idea, but is often better in theory than in actual application. Add a matte texture to the mix and you have the recipe for an intensely drying lip product that isn’t doing your lips any favors.
“Many of the longwear matte lipsticks are very drying and will draw attention to the dryness of the chapped lips,” says Makeup Artist and Beauty Expert Margina Dennis. “The alcohol that aids in the dry down and the silicone which helps to give the longwear formula staying power also draw moisture out of the lips and don’t allow moisture to penetrate, causing further dryness.”
Cha Cha Woska at Cha Cha Beauty Bar, agrees that mattes aren’t the way to go if dryness is a concern. “If you have dry , chapped lips, using matte or liquid lipsticks aren’t recommended,” Woska said. “They are formulated with more pigment, have less hydrating oils and can be a bit more waxy, making them more drying to your lips. A better option is to use a traditional cream lipstick or a gloss which tend to have more hydration and treatments in them to keep your lips softer.”
Preparation Is Key
No matter which formula you choose, prepping your lips is always the best way to treat dry skin, keeps lips hydrated and help the lipstick wear better, Woska says. “First use a lip scrub to eliminate dry, flaky skin and leave your lips supple,” she suggests. “Sara Happ lip scrubs are my go-to products. They come in a variety of flavors and work beautifully. Follow this with a lip treatment. Something with an oil complex that will heal your lips from within. Sara Happ Dream Slip and Dream Slip No2 treatments are perfect to use for both day and night. Once your lips are prepped, your lipstick will glide on smoother and last longer. Follow these steps when removing matte, liquid lipsticks or lip stains as well to help re hydrate your lips.”
Dennis also recommends looking for lip balms, oils and tints with squalane and/or jojoboa oil. “Squalane helps to increase moisture and jojoboa oil is close to our skin's natural oil and has a small molecule, so it penetrates easier,” she says. “A lip mask will add much needed hydration back to the lips.”
