Green Room Thursdays: Improve Your Lips’ Karma With Buddha Balm

Is the cold winter air starting to take a toll on your lips, making them burn or peel uncomfortably? Instead of dipping into a drugstore and stocking up on icky Chapstick, check out a pocket- and eco-friendly lip treatment from Las Vegas-based brand Buddha Balm. These soy-based lip balms are free of parabens and petroleums, instead relying on eco-friendly ingredients like: softening shea butter; moisturizing coconut oil; fatty acid-packed lanolin oil, which draws moisture to skin, sealing it in; antioxidant-rich Vitamin E, which protects lips from harmful UV rays and other free radicals; beeswax, which offers a protective barrier for lips; carnauba wax, which thickens the balm’s consistency and helps soothe and protect skin; and zinc oxide, which blocks UVA and UVB rays.

The Buddha Balm lip treatments are available in four exotic flavors: the fruity Lychee Pomegranate, the tropical, mojito-worthy Crushed Mint Pineapple, the invigorating and sightly spicy Mandarin Orange Ginger, and the decadently sweet Burnt Sugar Fig. After trying all four flavors, I’ve officially crowned the Burnt Sugar Fig Buddha Balm my favorite — it smells like the slightly crispy bottom of a slice of  Angel Food Cake, like a mix of syrup, vanilla and caramelized sugar, with just a hint of fig to balance the saccharin factor.

I found the Buddha Balms did a solid job in terms of protecting lips from environmental aggressors, keeping lips protected in less than favorable weather conditions. If you have particularly dry lips, however, you may need to start off with a deeply hydrating treatment first (try the Fresh Sugar Lip Balm or the La Mer Lip Balm) and then use Buddha Balm for maintenance as opposed to restoration.

My only complaint: I wish the balm’s consistency wasn’t quite so thick since it doesn’t melt easily onto lips, especially on the first few uses. Once you work past the top layers however, the texture starts feeling way more pleasant. And in terms of affordability, Buddha Balm is a great choice — a four-pack of lip balms will still cost less than a single tube of such cult faves as Fresh Sugar Lip Balm and Fusion Beauty LipFusion Conditioning Stick.

Buddha Balm 4-Pack, $13.28. Available at BuddhaBalm.com