Lipcare with Lanolin

Lanolin is a by-product of sheep’s wool. It’s a waxy, yellow substance that gets secreted from their skin to protect and condition their wool, which is why it’s often used in cosmetics, skincare, and haircare products.

This ingredient is also sometimes called ‘wool fat’, although this is technically inaccurate because it doesn’t contain any triglycerides.

Lanolin is extracted from raw wool after the sheep has been sheared by kneading it in hot water, or by treating it with a soap solution. No part of this process harms the sheep in any way, so lanolin is a cruelty-free ingredient.

There are a few different uses for lanolin, including haircare, cosmetics, and creams, but we use lanolin for lips, giving our lip products a nice thick consistency.

Lanolin reduces water loss from your skin, keeping your lips hydrated in much the same way that petroleum jelly does. However, it’s much lighter than petroleum jelly, so it feels much more pleasant on the lips.

Lanolin penetrates the surface of the skin and locks in moisture, allowing your skin to moisturise itself from within. This makes it ideal for chapped lips, as well as application on other parts of the body where you may be experiencing cracked skin.

Beyond locking in moisture, lanolin creates a better base, or a sort of primer, for applying lipstick – particularly in the colder months when you might be more prone to chapped lips.

Applying lipstick directly on top of broken lip skin can be sore and even make your lips worse, so applying some lanolin lip care beforehand not only prevents this irritation but also paves the way for a smoother, more even lipstick application.