By Mariela
Updated: August 6, 2024
7 minutes
While setting up our skincare routine, we usually forget our lips. Just like our skin needs hydration, exfoliation, and care, our lips need that, too. Keeping them hydrated and removing dead cells is necessary for them to look plump and healthy.
The most basic step in starting a lip routine is exfoliation. It is the process of removing dead cells and dirt from the lips. In this article, we will discuss some ways to exfoliate your lips at home. So, just follow those easy methods and get healthy lips without spending much money.
Why is it Necessary to Exfoliate Your Lips?
Exfoliation is the removal of dead cells from your lips. But why is it necessary? Because your lips need to stay healthy to look fresh and soft.
When you apply lipstick or go out in the sun without protection, your lips get chapped and dry. This also collects dead cells on your lips, which prevents the entry of any hydrating agent deep into them. Exfoliation helps remove the upper dead layer and helps the new layer in resurfacing. The new layer is smoother, more hydrated, and healthy.
Also, when you apply any moisturizer to your lips, it gets absorbed well after exfoliation.
How to Exfoliate Your Lips at Home?
There are products available in the market for lip exfoliation. But if you are too lazy to go out, you can try these methods.
Honey and Sugar
Honey is healthy in so many ways, and when you mix it with sugar, it can help remove dead cells from your lips. Honey is a great moisturizer, while the grainy texture of sugar can also help remove dead cells.
What to do: Take a bowl and add ⅔ of sugar in ⅓ honey and mix them well. Now, apply the paste on your lips for at least 2-3 minutes. Then, wash the paste with warm water and dry your lips using a soft cloth.
Lemon and Sugar
What to do: Mix one teaspoon of lemon with two teaspoons of sugar and apply it to your lips for 5-10 minutes. Now, scrub it off gently.
Coconut Oil and Coffee
Coffee is not only beneficial for exfoliation but also helps maintain an even tone of lips. Coconut oil, on the other hand, helps your lips stay hydrated. Its antimicrobial properties also protect your lips from microorganisms.
What to do: Mix the coffee with coconut oil in a ratio that makes a paste. Apply it on your lips for some time. Now remove the paste with water and dry them with a soft cloth.
Use Vaseline
We all have Vaseline present at our homes all the time. When you are applying it on your skin, apply some on your lips too, and see the magic! Vaseline helps in hydrating your lips.
What to do: Take some Vaseline and apply it to your lips. Now, take a toothbrush and rub it gently on your lips. Make sure it is in a circular motion. Don’t press the toothbrush so hard.
Tip: Use a separate toothbrush for lips and store it in a dry place to use again.
Lip Balm and Sugar
Lip balms are essential in our night skincare routine. While you apply them for hydration, mixing a small amount of sugar can help with exfoliation.
What to do: Take your favorite lip balm and add a pinch of sugar to it. Mix it and gently scrub your lips.
Baking Soda and Water
Here comes another DIY idea. Baking soda itself is an exfoliator but you cannot apply it in dry form as it won’t stick with your lips. So, add some water to it.
What to do: Mix baking soda with water in a ratio that makes a paste. Now, apply it to your lips and use a toothbrush in a circular motion to rub the mixture.
Tip: The toothbrush should have straight bristles and you can apply any lip balm after removing the paste to moisturize your lips.
Oatmeal with Milk/Water
Oatmeal mixed with milk or water can help in nourishing and removing the dead cells from your lips. The oatmeal removes the dead cells while milk prevents dry, patchy lips. It is preferable to use milk but you can use water too.
What to do: Take 3 tablespoons of milk in a bowl and add 1 tablespoon of oatmeal to the milk. Mix it and rub it on your lips for 2 minutes. Now remove the paste using warm water and apply cold water afterward.
Rose Petals and Milk
Rose petals are not only good for exfoliating your lips but also help your lips look pink and avoid patchiness or lip discoloration. Milk hydrates your lips and evens their tone.
What to do: Add 5-6 rose petals to half cup of milk and keep it overnight. Now, mash the petals and apply them on your lips for 15 minutes.
To try out some other methods for your lips to look pink, click
How to Make Your Lips Pink Naturally?
Cinnamon Powder, Sugar, Honey, and Olive Oil
There are lots of ingredients in this mixture, right? But all these ingredients can provide you with the maximum benefits in a short time. Cinnamon powder has healing properties and being an anti-oxidant, it can slow down the process of wrinkling. Sugar exfoliates and the honey and olive oil hydrates the lips.
What to do: Mix sugar (1 tablespoon) with honey and olive oil ( one teaspoon each) and add a little amount of cinnamon powder in it. Massage the mixture on your lips and use a warm cloth to remove it.
Some Tips for Exfoliation
You can try any of the above-mentioned At-home lip exfoliation ideas but all those methods can be more effective with some extra tips. Follow the following tips for perfect lips.
Never Over Exfoliate
Exfoliation means you are removing a layer from your lips. When you over-exfoliate, it can even remove the healthy layer leading to pain, bleeding, and disruption of the protective barrier. So, your lips get more sensitive and prone to micro-organisms.
So, it is best to exfoliate your lips not more than 3 times a week.
Avoid Exfoliation on Dry Lips
Hydrating your lips before exfoliation is as important as hydrating them after exfoliation. This can irritate your lips causing redness. Moreover, you will require more force to remove the dead cells layers which means more friction leading to small tears. So, your lips can bleed too.
Therefore, wet them a bit using water and then start your exfoliation.
Moisturize and Protect Your Lips After Exfoliation
Now, after exfoliation, make sure to use a lip balm or other moisturizing agents you use for use lips to hydrate them. This will help your lips heal quickly and look beautiful. Drinking plenty of water can also help your lips and skin stay hydrated.
You also need to protect your lips from the sun as it can cause hyperpigmentation. So, apply sunscreen on your lips too before going out.
How Can You Minimize Dead Skin On the Lips?
Avoid Licking
Most of us have a habit of licking our lips every now and then. Although it seems nothing at first, licking can dry your lips faster. The enzymes in our saliva can irritate the lips, making them even more dry and causing discomfort.
Use Sunscreen
A long time of exposure to the sun can cause hyperpigmentation and leave our lips scaly and dry. It can also cause sore lips. So, before going out, remember to apply a lip balm containing SPF. This will keep your lips hydrated and safe as well.
Before buying the lip balm, make sure it contains SPF 15.
Do not Smoke
Smoking can discolorize your lips by affecting the quality and amount of oxygen reaching your lips. The nicotine shrinks your blood vessels limiting the amount of nutrients that reach your lips. Resultantly, your lips can easily get dry and feel chapped.
So, do not smoke if you want your lips to look healthy, and avoid those dark-looking lips.
Avoid irritants
Women are very habitual about applying lipstick. Lipstick in the morning and lip balms during the night are a must. But if these products have chemicals in them, it means constant exposure to chemicals, leading to dry, chapped, and damaged lips. Therefore, before buying these products, ensure they have minimum chemicals in them.
We have a list of the
Top 10 Lipstick Brands in the World
that are less damaging than regular makeup brands.
Conclusion
Protecting our lips is as important as protecting the skin, as our lips play a significant role in making our face look pretty. Fresh, beautiful, and pink lips can make our smile attractive. To get such beautiful lips, exfoliating them at least twice a week is necessary. You can use sugar, oatmeal, coffee, or lemon for exfoliation and mix them with honey, water, milk, or oils for hydration.
You cannot overexfoliate, but you can take precautions, such as using sunscreen, minimizing licking and smoking, and using irritants to prevent dead cells on your lips.
