Lipstick lite: Why these tinted lip balms won’t have you missing lipstick at all

If you’ve consciously uncoupled with lipstick this season: who can blame you. Now that our new normal involves hours of face time wearing masks that often chafe and dehydrate our lips, it’s understandable that you might just not be into lipstick right now.

“Lipsticks are definitely on hold this season simply because of masks,” shares Singapore-based make-up artist, Andrea Claire who has worked with the likes of Henry Golding, Romee Strijd, and Indian-Canadian actress, Lisa Ray.

“Only the bold dare to put a lipstick on underneath their mask,” says make-up artist, Sahur Saleim who adds, “I can’t lie, that’s what I do!”

If you’re having withdrawals from a painted pout (we’re talkin’ the colour, the gesture, the whole ASMR sensorial ‘click’ as you cap your bullet), a tinted lip balm may just be the hybrid for you. It sits in the venn diagram of everything you need in this moment: there’s the pigment that lipstick lends to your face when you take your mask off at lunch plus the hydration, lip conditioning and SPF protection that a skincare product offers.

“Unlike lipsticks that are mainly aesthetic, tinted lip balms are formulated to be like skincare for your lips. Once the active, hydrating ingredients absorb, the tint stains the lip and is (usually) non-transferring, so our masks are unaffected,” says Claire.

“Lip balms offer offer hydration with a gorgeous flush of colour,” Saleim adds. “Perfect for chapped lips and people who find matte lipstick too uncomfortable. I definitely think of lip balm as an apply-and-take-along-with-you product. Because it’s so hydrating, it can get absorbed by your lips pretty fast and isn’t transfer proof.”

Additionally, today’s lip balms come in a mélange of shades which mean you’re not confined to a drawer of half-used, waxy-looking lip care products: there’s deep purples and juicy corals that are great for days you want to dip your toe in the water and experiment with wild and unexpected hues that spark joy.

“I do love Fresh Sugar Lip Balm (which also has SPF). Dior Lip Glow self-adjusts with your skin tone for the perfect, bespoke to you tint and Nars Afterglow Lip Balm in Dolce Vita is a fave of mine or the Orgasm which also self adjusts to your pH! Swoon!,” says Claire.