The lip glosses of my youth — typically thick and formulated with sticky waxes — were absolute magnets for crumbs and hair and felt extremely gloopy on. Anyone who has worn a traditional lip gloss has most likely done so because of the high-shine pay off, not because the texture was particularly pleasant to wear.
However, lip oils are here to give the coveted shine of regular gloss, without all that notorious stickiness.
Like most viral beauty sensations, I first heard about lip oils on TikTok — particularly the famed Dior Lip Oil Glow, which gave users a shiny and healthy-looking pout. I initially imagined a product that would feel thin and slippery on my lips, but when I tried a few lip oils for myself, I was pleasantly surprised by how cushiony, soft and downright addictive they were to wear.
Lip oils combine the juicy and highly reflective finish of a gloss with the hydration and nourishing effects you might receive with a lip treatment, plus the comforting feeling of a balm. This means they can be great to wear on their own or even layered over your favorite lipstick.
Often lip oils are formulated with beneficial ingredients like antioxidant-rich vitamin E, hyaluronic acid, natural fruit extracts and, of course, a bevy of conditioning oils that leave lips genuinely soft. In some cases, you can even find lip oil infused with SPF.
If you’re interested in making the switch to lip oil, peruse the selection of shine-imparting products below that come in variety of shades, tints and price points.
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