BellaSugar

Bellissima! Bobbi Brown Extra Soothing Balm

BellaSugar — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 11:00:40 PDT

Attention all of you body-balm fans out there. This post is chock full of products that I know you'll love! I first became addicted to body salves about a year ago when I discovered this amazing wonderbalm. The smooth, hydrating, and soothing formulas are a great panacea for dry-skin issues since they can be used on your knees, elbows, lips, hands, and cuticles. It was love at first use and ever since I have been collecting more and more in search of the absolute bomb-diggity of balms.

For a while I swore by the pint-sized Smith's Rosebud Salve, but when I was introduced to Liz Earl's Superbalm in November, I became addicted for five months straight. I still think it has the best scent of them all, but my latest acquisition is the Bobbi Brown Extra Soothing Balm ($55).

Bobbi Brown has always been a brand I turn to when I'm looking for good quality basics. This rich, avocado, rosemary oil, beeswax, and geranium enhanced balm has been my saving grace during the cold weather of the past few months. I love the dense texture and because it contains shea butter, it is extra conditioning.

I hate wasting good product on my feet, but I will say that rubbing a little bit into the skin around my toes and heels has really helped keep my pedicure looking fresh. I know that sounds strange, but try it - it works! What's your favorite body balm?

Silky Strawberry Lip Balms

BellaSugar — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 08:00:37 PST

Welcome to my final installment of strawberry beauty products. Those of you who missed the reading about strawberry body creams, scrubs and cleansers, have no fear - you can find everything here. These three goodies are smooth lip smackers to help soothe, condition and impart shine to your lips. And not only do they smell like strawberries, they taste like them too!

Smith's Strawberry Rosebud Lip Balm ($4.49) is the latest launch in the Smith's salve family. This all-purpose balm isn't restricted to lip love only; I use it on my cuticles, hands, knees and even my eyes sometimes. This strawberry version smells of roses and strawberries mixed together - it's amazing!

For two more strawberry lip balms,

read more. This creamy Burt's Bees Strawberry Lip Gloss ($2.64) smells sweet, tastes good and leaves lips shiny and soft. I realize they call it a lip gloss, but because it's not sticky or tacky and you have to dip your finger into the pot to put it on, I think it's safe to consider this gloss the balm. Yuk, yuk. Since it's made from grapeseed oil it is also conditioning and contains antioxidants. FYI, it is also available in raspberry, cherry and lemon-lime.
Avon Flavor Savers Lip Gloss in Strawberry Fraise ($0.99) is a clear and conditioning lip balm that comes in a form similar to Chapstick. Just rub it over your lips a few times to get it soft and melty, then lick your lips for a sweet treat. I think it's great that Avon is still selling this product for under a dollar, because who doesn't love an affordable indulgence?

Bellissima! Liz Earle Superbalm

BellaSugar — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:00:38 PST

Liz Earle calls this product Superbalm because it comes to the rescue in a million different ways - much like Superman! This salve is a great remedy for dry cuticles, chapped lips, scaly heels, rough elbows and hands, frizzy hair, and as a barrier cream against extreme weather conditions. It is made from 100-percent pure plant oils and waxes, echinacea, vitamin E, soothing lavender, softening rose hip, and moisturizing avocado. Now you can understand where its amazing and calming aroma comes from!

Using Superbalm is easy: Just massage a little bit into your hands and spread it on your body. Be warned that a little goes a long way, so if you plan to use it on your lips, you really won't need much. Consider Superbalm your new and improved version of that jar of Vaseline that's been sitting on your bathroom shelf for ages. The formula is less greasy and even the big tub is light to tote around. Superbalm is available in a 1-oz. jar for $26.50 and in a .1-oz. mini container for $8. I can't wait to hear what you think!

Bellissima! DuWop Smoothset

BellaSugar — Thu, 24 May 2007 10:13:00 PDT

When it comes to Summer makeup, I like a flawless finish without much foundation, and the DuWop Smoothset ($32) offers everything you need to create a natural-looking face from start to finish. This long, sleek compact - about the size of two business-card cases - contains a pair of great products: a priming balm and an oil-controlling translucent powder.

The balm can be used underneath foundation or alone with the powder to minimize pores and fine lines. It delivers nutrients like Vitamin E to the skin while preventing your face from looking oily. A little bit goes a long way; simply smooth it on your skin.

After applying the balm and foundation (if you choose), dust the sheer powder all over your face to set your makeup and even out your skin tone. It feels incredibly light and is perfect for those of you with sensitive skin. The Smoothset is available in three desert-inspired shades: Sahara (translucent light), Mojave (translucent medium), and Kalahari (translucent dark).

Beauty Marked! All Purpose Body Balms

BellaSugar — Tue, 08 May 2007 06:00:58 PDT

For our inaugural BellaSugar Beauty Mark It challenge last week, I asked you guys to share your most bomb body balms with me. Since I am in love with my Boots Mediterranean Olive Almond & Sage Wonderbalm, I figured that you might have some secret salves stashed up your sleeves too!

You can see all of the body balm Beauty Marks on TeamSugar; thanks to everyone for your enthusiastic participation! Here are three of my favorites:

Beauty Mark #1: BadgerBalm Unscented Healing Balm ($6.50), found by SFKitkat. This looks like a great product for anyone with sensitive skin, because it contains no fragrances or additives. It can be used to treat cracked fingers, dry skin, and chapped lips, as well as to help heal boo-boos.

For two more body balms,

read more Beauty Mark #2: Burt's Bees Farmer's Friend Hand Salve ($5.60), found by Jennifer76. According to Jennifer76, this all-purpose balm is "thick without being super thick, and it goes in very easily. The only thing I wish is that it had a fun girly smell."
Beauty Mark #3: Mad Gabs Classic Hand & Body Balm in Lavender ($8), found by catstarr. This balm is great for conditioning any dry patches on your body. Some people even like to put it on their cuticles, knees, and elbows. It is made from rich shea butter, Vitamins E and A, olive oil, bees wax, and almond oil. Not only does it smell great, but it feels great too!

Beauty Mark It! An All Purpose Balm

BellaSugar — Thu, 03 May 2007 10:31:42 PDT

This Mediterranean Olive Almond & Sage Wonderbalm by Boots ($8.99) is the bomb of all balms! The light and pleasant-smelling organic salve is the perfect solution to dry, chapped, or rough skin. It’s not sticky, so it never leaves an icky residue, and the balm is nourishing and long-lasting. You can buy it in the U.S. in Target stores nationwide.

I love this balm so much that I wanted to share it and see if you could share one of your favorite all-purpose balms with me too! How about you all go Beauty Marking to find even more bad-ass balms? To learn what a Beauty Mark is and how to create one, click here. Let me know when your Beauty Marks are up, or just tag your bookmarks with the phrase "body balm."

Coincidentally, the Beauty Product Junkies challenge this week involves moisturizer, so you might be able to kill two balms with one stone!

To see some of my favorite online beauty stores,

Sad Keanu Is a Fun Lip Balm

Annie Tomlin — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 03:01:32 PDT

If you like year-old Reddit memes, you'll get a kick out of this. Sad Keanu is sad, as you'll see in this handmade vegan lip balm. Tinted purple and flavored with blackberry, the balm pays homage to the Sad Keanu meme, which implies that the actor is totally bummed. Keanu, oddly sounding like Sir Lawrence Olivier, addressed the issue in an interview this year - he's not actually depressed. If you like the idea of Keanu on your lips, act fast, because just like the staying power of an Internet meme, the lip balm supply is short-lived.

What We're Sweet On: Great Lip Stuff, Weird Names

Miriam Lacey — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 03:05:00 PST

Nobody would ever really be keen on the idea of putting blood or tears on our lips, so Rain Cosmetics is really lucky that its new lip stain, Blood ($12), and gloss, Tears ($12), are so superlatively great. Blood is a deep pink gel-based stain that's like a thicker, less-red Benetint. The lasting power is excellent when applied on the lips, but it works well on cheeks, too - even though it's not strictly for use as rouge. And thanks to the gel texture, the product spreads on wonderfully, allowing you plenty of time to blend away splotches.

Tears, the less eccentrically named of the two, is perfect if you're tired of supershiny, goopy gloss that makes you look like you just freshened up your makeup before eighth grade science class. Tears isn't sticky, the shine is so subtle that it almost looks more like balm, and it goes over stain or lipstick beautifully. So don't judge a gloss by its slightly creepy packaging; this stuff is much better than your average bodily fluid.

From Cool to Sweet, 4 Valentine's Day Lipstick Looks to Suit Your Mood

Jaime Richards — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:57:15 PST

There are only a select few holidays where going vampy is typically deemed socially appropriate. Halloween comes to mind instantly, but Valentine's Day might be a close second. And while a vampy lip color might not be for you this Valentine's Day, there are other ways you can create a mood with a simple switch of color. "Experiment with reds and pinks in different textures, like glossy, creamy, opaque, or sheer," advises Mark celebrity makeup artist Mai Quynh. To see her top selections for setting a tone that's either sweet, sexy, edgy, or vampy, just keep reading.

Minitrend to Watch: Macarons

Miriam Lacey — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 03:01:00 PST

Macarons are the delightful little French cookies that took American patisseries by storm a few years back, and now it appears they're making a go with beauty brands as well. Parisian macaron masters Ladurée are coming out with their own makeup line in Japan, and over the past few months we've seen the debut of several products inspired by the sweet treats. Mor launched a macaron-themed lip balm ($10), Chantecaille introduced a macaron palette ($68), and Kate Spade's new fragrance, Twirl ($65), includes a macaron note. Now, even Etsy shops are getting in on the confection craze, with sweet offerings like these raspberry macaron bobby pins ($5). Bon appétit, beauty fans!