How To Choose The Best Chagrin Valley Organic Lip Balm
A Very Brief History of Lip Balm
From ancient civilizations to the present day, people have been using products to keep lips moisturized and protected from the elements. The use of beeswax, olive oil, and animal fats to treat dry lips can be traced back to the time of Cleopatra around 40 B.C.
Throughout the centuries numerous civilizations continued to invent their own lip treatments.
In 1829, an American women’s rights activist named Lydia Maria Child published a book called "The American Frugal Housewife" in which she recommended earwax (yes, wax from your ears) as a cure for chapped lips.
Earwax was replaced by a "petroleum jelly" product invented by American chemist Robert Chesebrough in 1872. He sold his product as “Wonder Jelly” which was later renamed Vaseline.
The first lip treatment that closely resembled the lip balms of today was invented in the early 1880s by Charles Browne Fleet, a pharmacist from Lynchburg, Virginia. It resembled a small wickless candle wrapped in tin foil and was called ChapStick.
Fleet's new lip balm did not sell well and in 1912 he sold his recipe for five dollars to John Morton. Morton's wife began tinkering in her kitchen. She added a bit of pink dye and poured the waxy formula into brass tubes to mold them into sticks. The business was successful and the Morton Manufacturing Corporation was founded on the sales of Chapstick. (1944 Ad taken from Duke University Libraries: Collections & Archives)
Do You Know What’s in Your Lip Balm?
Lip butter or lip balm is probably the most universal body care item used.
While it may be more convenient (and sometimes cheaper) to buy your lip balm in the checkout line, please check out the ingredients?
The ingredients will vary from items like organic beeswax and plant oils to low-quality petroleum and mineral oils. The ingredients should not be some sort of coded mystery.
Can you read all of the ingredients? Do you know what they are without an internet search?
If not, it might be time for you to find a natural alternative for your lip care.
Commercial lip balms often include petroleum-derived ingredients such as mineral oil, petrolatum, and paraffin.
One other consideration is that since lip balms are applied on the lips, you will most likely ingest some of the ingredients So be sure to choose a lip balm with ingredients that you don't mind eating.
Despite the promises of miracle lip repair, many lip balms can actually damage thin lip skin and make dry lips even drier.
The skin on our lips is very thin and extra sensitive and puts up with a lot of wear and tear through eating, drinking, breathing, talking, kissing, etc. This skin does not produce melanin and does not contain sebaceous glands or sweat glands to protect against environmental assaults such as cold, heat, wind, or even acidic or spicy foods.
While it's normal for lips to get chapped, lips require special attention to prevent cracks and inflammation that can lead to infections and painful sores.
Dry lips can result from not drinking enough water, living in a dry climate, winter dry skin, licking your lips, the accumulation of dry skin, as well as from an reaction to one or more ingredients.
Since the lips are so unique when compared to the skin on the rest of the body, our lips need a some extra TLC to keep them looking and feeling healthy.
Lips want gentle, natural ingredients that condition and soften. Look for natural moisturizing lip balms, that will penetrate and heal the skin—not simply coat the skin’s surface.
The moisturizing oils and butters in our creamy, organic natural lip balms penetrate deep into the skin cells. Each recipe is made using natural ingredients recognized for their soothing, moisturizing, and healing qualities.
So, the next time you are looking for a lip balm,
we have some ingredients you should look for—and a few to avoid.
Lip Balm Ingredients To Look For
- Organic ingredients
- Beeswax helps helps seal in moisture and provides a natural barrier against environmental irritants such as wind and cold temperatures.
- Natural plant oils and butters (shea and cocoa) that soften, condition, moisturize, protect, and are easily absorbed.
Lip Balm Ingredients To Avoid
There are many lip balm ingredients that can actually cause dry lips! For example, phenols, camphor, salicylic acid, alum, and menthol can all dry your lips and cause irritation if used for an extended period of time.
- Artificial colors in tinted balms as well as artificial fragrances may cause lip irritation.
- Alcohol is a drying ingredient that will zap the moisture from your lips.
- Petrolatum (petroleum jelly) is petroleum-based and comes from crude oil. It sits on top of lips and actually suffocates the skin by preventing oxygen absorption can actually dry out your lips over time by blocking their natural ability to breathe and absorb moisture from the air.
- Mineral oil has the same problem as petrolatum—it does not allow your lips breathe
- Parabens and other synthetic preservatives can cause lip skin to become brittle, cracked and dry.
Insider Tip: Apply Lip Balm At Night Before Going To Bed
At night many people sleep with their mouths open, causing their lips to dry out. We’ve found that if you apply lip balm before going to sleep you’ll wake up with softer, moisturized lips. Give it a try—especially in the winter.
Which Chagrin Valley Natural Lip Balm Is Right For You?
All of our lip balms harness the power of nature's finest ingredients to provide long-lasting hydration and nourishment to dry, chapped lips. Rich botanical butters like shea and cocoa butter, combined with an blend of natural oils like sunflower and coconut, create a protective barrier that locks in moisture and soothes dryness. Indulge in the luxury of soft, healthy lips, naturally!
The result is soft, smooth lips that feel comfortable and healthy. Our lip balm is perfect for everyday use, providing a gentle, non-greasy texture that is perfect for keeping lips hydrated and happy.
The first thing to decide is whether you prefer your lip balm in a tube or a tin. We make both in eco-friendly packaging (no plastic).
Lip Balm Tubes
We are excited to introduce our new collection of 5 lip balms in tubes, crafted with love and care to nourish and protect your lips. Made with only the finest organic ingredients carefully selected to provide long-lasting hydration, these lip butters melt onto your lips with a rich, velvety smoothness, leaving a sumptuous, silky finish that is pure bliss.
With their rich, creamy textures and beautiful, eco-friendly packaging, our lip balms make the perfect treat for yourself or a thoughtful gift for someone special.
Four tubes are the same recipe using a nourishing base of organic plant oils and butters with different natural "flavors" using essential oils.
- Lemon Vanilla (lemon essential oil + real vanilla beans)
- Doublemint
- Citrus Blossom
- Lavender
Our Three Butter Lip Balm has no added scent and uses moisturizing plant oils, cocoa butter, shea butter, and mango butter to create a unique moisture barrier to help heal, protect, and nourish sensitive lips.
Each lip balm is packaged in a 0.3 oz eco-friendly paperboard tube which is over 2 times the size of a standard lip balm. The recyclable, push-up paperboard tube has FSC certification. Zero-Waste and Plastic-Free!
Lip Balm Tins
These 6 lip balms (plus 1 seasonal) are each a special recipe. They are made in recyclable 1/2 ounce tins in order to keep the ingredients as concentrated as possible using less or no beeswax.
- Avocado Cream with Lavender (Vegan)
- Coconut Cream
- Creamy Shea (Vegan)
- Healing herbs
- Honey Butter
- Mocha Java
- Pumpkin Spice (Seasonal)
Choosing Your Lip Balm
In the end all of our lip balms offer the same benefits -- hydrating, moisturizing and soothing ingredients that help heal dry, chapped lips and leave them soft and smooth.
Take note of how your skin responds to different ingredients in the lip balms to find the best one for your unique lip skin type.
Also, your skin's needs will often change with the seasons! Your favorite summer lip balm may not be your favorite winter lip balm.
Each of our Lip Balm Tins is crafted with unique blends of ingredients. Whether you are looking to soothe dryness, calm irritation, or nourish and protect, our lip balms are formulated to provide targeted benefits for healthier, happier lips. Below we have described a few of our favorites and included others that also fit the category.
Glossy Lips
My absolute favorite "glossy" lip butter is our Honey Butter Lip Balm. Honey hydrates and moisturizes, has antimicrobial and wound healing properties, and adds a lovely creamy gloss to the lip balm.
Sun-Damaged or Dry Lips
One of our favorites for a bit of lip TLC for sunny days and dry lips is our vegan buttery Creamy Shea lip balm made with moisturizing Virgin Shea butter, Babassu Oil and Jojoba Oil to help calm irritated skin and soothe lips.
- Avocado Cream Lavender Lip Balm Tin Vegan (Also a great stress reliever--place a dab under your nose)
- Creamy Shea Lip Balm Tin (Vegan)
Dry, Chapped & Minor Irritation
One of our favorites for irritated lips is our concentrated Three Butter lip balm. Moisturizing plant oils, cocoa butter, shea butter, and mango butter create a unique moisture barrier to help heal, protect, and nourish sensitive lips.
Soothing Relief for Irritated Lips That Need TLC
Our Soothing Herbs Lip Balm helps calm and comfort lips in need of extra care. This organic lip balm is made with healing oils like Sea Buckthorn and soothing botanicals like Calendula. Within minutes bring the soothing qualities of our organic healing herbal infusion directly to your lips.
Do You Like Flavors?
No synthetic fragrance oils here!
From the soothing, floral notes of our Lavender lip balms to the invigorating, minty zing of our Doublemint lip balm, each flavor is a delight for the senses.
- Mocha Java Lip Balm Tin (Natural flavors using real organic Chocolate and Coffee Beans)
- Lemon Vanilla Lip Balm (Organic vanilla beans plus a bit of lemon essential oil)
- Coconut Cream Lip Balm Tin (Natural coconut flavor using organic virgin coconut oil)
- Lavender Lip Balm Tube AND Avocado Cream Lavender Lip Balm Tin (Organic Lavender and Ylang Ylang essential oils)
- Doublemint Lip Balm Tube (Organic Peppermint, Spearmint, and Eucalyptus essential oils)
- Citrus Blossom Lip Balm Tube (A touch of sunshine in a lip balm using organic orange, lime, and grapefruit essential oils)
- Pumpkin Spice Lip Balm Tin (Seasonal--Natural flavor using our blend of organic Pumpkin Pie Spices)
Final Thoughts
Your lips want gentle, natural moisturizing ingredients that condition, comfort, and soften--ingredients that will penetrate to soothe and heal the skin—not simply coat the skin’s surface.
The moisturizing oils and butters in our creamy, organic lip balms penetrate deep into the skin cells.
Each lip butter is formulated to harnesses the power of nature's finest ingredients recognized for their soothing, moisturizing, and healing qualities.
Lip balms play an important role in our daily skincare routine.
Please explore Chagrin Valley's Organic Lip Balms.
Whether you are dealing with dry and chapped lips or extra-dry and cracked lips, we hope that by understanding the ingredients discussed on each product page you can choose the one that works best for your lips.
Finally, remember that no matter how much you love our lip balm it won’t last all day. Our organic ingredients can be reapplied as often as needed in order to ensure that your lips stay moisturized throughout the day. This is especially important during times when lips are prone to drying.
Care for Your Lips and Our Planet at the Same Time.
Another very important consideration is to look for eco-friendly packaging.
Plastic waste is a huge global problem. It is estimated that over 200 million plastic lip balm tubes end up in landfills or our oceans every YEAR. When making your choice for a good balm for your lips, be mindful of our awesome planet and choose a good product for our environment made without synthetic ingredients or plastic packaging.
Our lip tins are totally recyclable and our tube lip balms are packaged in eco-friendly paperboard tube. The recyclable, push-up tubes have FSC certification. Zero-Waste and Plastic-Free!
