Kiss This

With all the hearts and roses and love in the air, now seems like such an important time to pucker up. Unfortunately, this time of year can be hard on both your skin and the thinner skin on your lips. So, how do you make your lips feel soft and look kissable? I've got some ideas:

• Despite urban legends about lip balm addiction, it's really a fairly harmless habit. In fact, instead of reaching for something to snack on, try replacing that with adding a swipe of balm to your lips instead. Also, to help tackle fine lines around your lips, consider coloring outside the lines, or adding a slick of balm just above or below your lip line.
• While long lasting lip products tend to have a bad reputation for staining and bleeding into the lines around your lip, there's an easier way to give lips an extra color layer. Choose a shade of lipstick that's one or two shades deeper than your usual lipstick or gloss. Apply all over lips and then blot off the top layer with a tissue. Wait for a few beats and you'll notice a subtle tint of color still on your lips. Follow with your normal color or gloss, and you'll notice that even if lip color doesn't actually last longer, the color layering will give the impression of a subtle stain.
• Don't leave your mark. As much as I love my lippie, I know that those around me are less impressed. Try to perfect the subtle art of cleaning off your glass or water bottle after each sip. It's so much more elegant than leaving a bright pink imprint on every glass.
• If you don't have time to brush your teeth before your next hot date, use a mint flavored lip balm or gloss to fake a fresher mouth.