Featured on Live! With Regis & Kelly & Rachael Ray – this stuff  is the ideal lip gloss for the modern woman who wants to look good while doing good. All profits, after taxes, are used to support women’s health advocacy and human rights issues — and their products are free from animal testing and harmful chemicals  We dig that.

ECO-SHEER LIP GLOSS with 75% Certified Organic Ingredients ($14)

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As somewhat of an extremist, I’m constantly on the prowl for beauty products that accentuate my assets to a maximal degree. It’s the reason why Bumpits, a reliable mascara, and a padded bra are quintessential to my everyday functioning (Yes, I’m guilty of sporting faux-cleavage now and again. Sue me).

So it’s no surprise that among my beauty regimen there is always, always a plumping lip gloss. Problem is, I can never stick to one. For awhile I was obsessed with Soap & Glory’s Sexy Mother Pucker lip gloss. Probably because of the raunchy name, let’s be honest here. To its credit, it really did plump me up (to the point where it felt like I had accidentally slathered the ever-so-tingly Sexplosion Climax Cream on the wrong set of lips). Also, it was kinda sparkly, and I’m too old to walk around looking like I was trapped in the Spice Girl’s tour bus during a Category 7 earthquake. (No offense to earthquakes.)

So my brand loyalty has been touch-and-go for the past few years. Before giving up completely, Ashley got me to try out Prana’s Plumping Diva Lips. For the record, I’m not so much a diva. But shit, once I put this lip gloss on, my lips went batshit Mariah Carey crazy on me, like “Nu-uh bitch, you’re drinkin’ tap water?”. It was mildly unnerving. Was it worth it?

Honestly, this was the first plumper I’ve used where I had to actually look in the mirror to make sure it was working. Usually, I know a plumper is working because it feels like my lips were injected with Mexican jumping beans. Upon inspection, my lips were shiny (without sparkle) and full. No discoball lips here. Diva Lips also fights against age-related thinning of the lips, lines and creases, and contains sunscreen– so believe it or not, this is actually a lip plumper made for grown women– not tweens or strippers. Who knew?

Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.

While winter whether often takes the blame for dry, chapped skin, the summer months with the dry heat and dehydrating air-conditioning can often leave our lips less luscious than ever. As a chapped-chica myself, I have made it my mission to find the balms that actually work to heal lips, not just mask them temporarily. And while I have my personal favorite (ahem, By Terry’s Baume de Rose), I get that not everyone wants their lips tasting like roses (nor can stomach the $58 price tag, even if it is the best), so below find my tried and true top ten favorites that include rose-flavored and mint, tinted and not, organic and not so much, from the absurdly pricey but worth it (if you can afford it) to the amazingly affordable.

1.  By Terry Baume de Rose – My personal favorite after all this luscious-lip-licking testing, this balm plumps and nourishes with rose flower essential wax for intensive moisture, pastel oil to stimulate cell renewal, and healing shea butter for cellular growth. It also has SPF 15 and antioxidant vitamin E! Bottom line: I love it. ($58 at spacenk.com)

2.  Lavanila Healthy Lip Butter SPF 15 – This all-natural balm boasts of Shea, Kokum, Illipe, and Cocoa butters as well as coconut and mango oils and SPF for instantly absorbed hydration with antioxidant protection. If you like vanilla, you will love this. ($16 at sephora.com)

3.  Nude Lips – As if its organic blend of vanilla monoi, cupuacu, and shea butters weren’t enough to convince you that this balm is worth trying, it’s packaging is similarly simplistically stylish, and its effects are surely superurb. Nude really does make lips luscious naked. ($14 at sephora.com)

4. Chappy’s Lip Balm Stick – for those partial to the basic stick, Chappy’s is an all-natural and, need I say, more luxurious version. Available in mint, lemon, Clementine, and berry, these lick-able lip-healers, formulated with mango butter, jojoba oil, beeswax, and meadowfoam seed oil, moisturize and protect in a convenient twist-up stick. Classic, but better. ($3.50 at sweetgrassonline.com)

4. 

5.  Snog Balm – named after a British and Australian expression for a passionate kiss, these pocket sized balms (available in mint, cherry, strawberry, and unscented) will ensure your pout is prepared for a “Snog” no matter how small your purse or pocket. ($3.50 at snogbalm.com)

6.  Kanebo SENSAI Cellular Performance Total Lip Treatment – While the taste of this one is a bit like licking your face cream, it really does feel like lotion for your lips and is ideal for a lip treatment under your favorite lipstick. Plus, it doubles as an anti-aging treatment by stimulating collagen production for better tone, elasticity, moisture, and plumpness. (Scarlett Johansson also swears by it – and if her lips are any indication, this one’s a keeper.) ($65 at bergdorfgoodman.com)

7.  PeaceKeeper Perfect as is Lip Balm – while this balm, infused with rosebud oil and stevia, tastes fabulously sweet and moisturizes wonderfully with its organic ingredients, this balm is also a perfect pick for your pucker because all profits, after taxes, go to support women’s health advocacy and human rights issues. ($7 at iamapeacekeeper.com)

8.  DuWop Icedteas – For the lipstick queens among us who find anything resembling lip balm or chapstick to be too childish and unsophisticated for your taste, DuWop has created hydrating and UV protecting moisturizing sticks that are packaged lick lipstick, go on like gloss, taste like those soda-flavored chapsticks you loved as a kid, yet moisturizes like a brilliant balm. ($19 at sephora.com)

9.  La Mer The Lip Balm – This mildly minty and somewhat sweet balm includes the coveted nutrient-rich broth found in Crème de la Mer as well as Marine Anti-Freeze Protein (a protein that prevents aquatic marine life from freezing) for a balm that not only tastes great and looks lovely, but actually helps strengthen the moisture barrier of your lips for a longer lasting moisture retention.  It’s pricey, but oh, so worth it. ($45 at neimanmarcus.com)

10.  Kyoku for Men Lip Fuel – For the men and women out there for whom lip balm is decidedly too feminine and fruity, Kyoku for Men has a solution for you. Their Lip Fuel, with SPF 15, is formulated with organic butters to moisturize, avocado oil to heal, and peppermint and green tea to energize, yet comes packaged in a masculine black tube in an equally manly black box. Your discomfort with lip balm is no longer an acceptable reason for you, or anyone else to go on with chapped lips. ($11 at kyokuformen.com)

Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.

A while back, I wrote about getting your mouth up to par, mentioning that I enjoy wearing a natural lip. Actually, I enjoy wearing a natural everything, as I spend most of the day running around in the heat, make up askew, and would prefer not to look like I’m taking a walk of shame at 7 PM when I leave work. Not cute.

Here’s how I’m keeping my smile sexy and simple this summer:

Good Fortune‘s edible Brown Sugar Vanilla lip scrub is the bomb.com (and you know I don’t throw that compliment out there too often). It’s edible! Need I say more? The 12-year-old fat kid inside of me who used to eat sugar cubes as an afternoon snack is screaming with delight every time I use this exfoliating lip prep. It tastes good, it smells good, it’s handcrafted and natural, and it’s always there for you should your blood sugar levels spontaneously drop. The directions are simple enough: rub it on, and lick it off. Or enlist someone else to lick it off for you, if you so choose. A hungry someone. You’re tasty, don’t forget it girlfriend.

Once your lips are rid of abnormalities and smooth as a baby’s behind, apply Cover FX’s MintGlaze, a SPF-15 primer that protects from UV rays, adds voluminous shine, and coats your lips with freshening mint. Don’t ask me how, I’m not a scientist. But this shit works. Wear it alone to protect yourself at the beach, or pair it with my new found favorite lip tints.

In true roomie fashion, I had to jump on the Yes To Carrots bandwagon after coming into contact with Ashley’s orgasmic, organic Yes To Tomatoes shampoo and conditioner. Combined, we are dangerously salad-like.

I kid! If we’re anything like salads, it’s not because of Yes To Carrots. It’s because we’re both colorful and delicious. Anyway, Yes To Carrots has made some bomb ass, all natural lipwear with enough variety to be appropriate for a day in the office or a night blacked out on the floor. I mean out on town…?

C Me Blush lip tints come in adorable, natural colors that don’t scream carnival sideshow freak. They’re all natural and use organic veg extracts and Vitamin E, so kiss all of the animal rights activists your little vegan heart desires. For some extra glam, layer C Me Shine lip gloss on top of your tint. Your mouth will be a regular Action Jackson.

Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.

It’s time to get ready for vacation season… with warm weather around the corner, think about taking this week to liquidate your makeup bag.   All you REALLY need is a great set of tools, some concealer, a fab blush or bronzer, some lipschtuff, concealer, and a little eye dazzle!

Cat Cosmetics has the cutest little makeup brush set that pops up from a tiny carrying case with a good size mirror… totally worth buying, and keeping with you at all times as I do (see below).

Cat Cosmetics Sesameow! $65

Also worth trying is the delish Lip Nibbler by Cat Costmetics in “Rich” because it’s shimmery and perfect for day or night, casual or glam!

Need a little skin fix?  I love the mineral concealer from Everyday Minerals… it’s light, gives great coverage, and so easy to use that you’d have to be a total moron to make it look caked-on! For $8, it’s a home run.

conceal with powder!

And, if you have a little extra room in your makeup bag for a super-cute little container… try some VedaPURE butter for baby! It’s made with shea butter, cocoa butter, and mango, and it’s light scent is a great pick me up. It’s perfect for dry hands, around your eyes as a lid primer, dry legs, and even as a great tamer for ponytail fly aways (shea butter is amazing for that).  And, it’s made for babies, so you know that even you sensitive skinned ladies will LOVE this one!

VedaPURE butter for baby, $30

Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.

Is it me, or is it impossible to apply lip balm any less than one hundred times in a day during the winter? My lips suffer from eternal dryness, and it seems as though there are some days that not a single treatment will suffice in getting rid of that cracked, chapped feeling. So while testing some lipstick at Sephora one day, the make-up artist helping me suggested I use Laura Geller’s Lip Strip to buff away the dead skin on my lips, making for a smooth lipstick application. I was skeptical, of course, having been defeated in my pursuit of a quick fix to this persistent problem. To my pleasant surprise, this cooling lip scrub not only did the trick, but it tasted and smelled deliciously (its ingredient list includes Brazilian organic sugar, Peppermint and Spearmint Oils)!

Laura Geller's Lip Strip, $18

I’ve integrated Lip Strip into my daily beauty routine by using it every morning, and I have gabbed incessantly to my friends about how it’s my must-have of 2009. You can pick it up at any Sephora or at Laura Geller’s website for just $18, a total steal for a staple that has lasted me for a few months already! Try it out ASAP – you can thank me later.

Disclosure: All products were provided for review. No monetary compensation was received for this review. All opinions belong to the author.