Carmex

I would buy this again if I ever saw it. I got it off Ebay 1 for me & 1 for my Momma $4 ea compared to $1 for the pot at Kroger. I don’t know what Mother did w hers—she’s not much on cosmetics not withstanding but she always had a jar of DHC I think it’s called it’s a Carmex type product but she into’d me to Carmex when I got my first fever blister pre pubescent to try in vain to heal it faster to avoid classmates’ merciless ridicule. Oh it helps & then some!

My normal lipbalm has been MAC Lip Conditioner for the past 2 years but after recently getting a cold sore w sinusitis I picked this stuff back up in the Lime stick && Original In The Pot living in my bag & cherry stick lives on my nightstand. & the Lime is amazing.

Unfortunately the SPF (I think I’ve isolated it to SPF—this happens in other non-medicated lipbalms) makes my body chemistry turn it bitter. It doesn’t start bitter but this familiar bitterness comes after about 30 seconds. It’s only certain SPF bcoz the 1 MAC uses I do not react to but I react to the Lime/Cherry Carmex, coppertone lipbalm, wetnwild had some jumbo lipbalms w spf etc I never reacted to chapstick (brand), bonne Bell lipsmackers, EOS/Revo; maybelline baby lips (except for medicated I react to), Burt’s bees, rosebuds [all], & Carmex In The Pot are all good! It’s some ingredient not the medication in the balm because coppertone is high spf & not medicated & I react, and Carmex In The Pot is medicated and I don’t react. Capeesh ? Got it? It’s a shame because I wanted to like Lime Carmex & im still rating it:
5/5 generally
1/5 price (good deal! But the pots are $0.99USD)
4/5 packaging some of it oozes out that’s extra when you cap it if it’s at all twisted up extra.
I would “probably” buy this again esp if I need spf for an occasion like a horse show or the pool/beach.

I’m concerned I wouldn’t be able to find Lime again thou, I haven’t been to the lip care aisle in Kroger in a few weeks. I buy my Carmex pots In bunches of 4 or 5 so I always have 1 in case i get a fever blister coming on & i can’t get to a store they tend to have little legs causing them to “walk off” LOL but this bitter taste isn’t something I want to use w regularity so when this fever blister is over with (it’s drying up sorry graphic TMI but there are stages), I will relegate this to my bed stand table & keep the pot stuff in my bag.

I want to start using Carmex more reg basis as an empirical experiment. I know what my lips condition is in currently w using MAC so I’m going to quit MAC for like, a month, & only use cosmetics (lipstick/gloss) & Carmex & see if my lips state improves. If so then I’ll have my answer on which is better, a $0.99 pot of drugstore lipbalm or a high end $16USD lip conditioner. It will be interesting to see.

I signed up for Carmex.com’s mailing list too they have 1, yes, read their FAQ...they claim your lips cannot become “addicted” to Carmex which was 1 of my real concerns but, um, no your lips can’t become addicted which is a relief to know, their FAQ contains a lot of great useful info I highly recommend going to carmex.com & poking around the site. Like for instance I did not know they had new flavors or had pulled the plug on the lotions; I try to learn something new daily. They wanted to concentrate on lip care it says.

Carmex isn’t just for fever blisters/cold sores whatever you call them they are caused by HSV-1 & cause a lesion, call it what you will a Rose by any other name is just as sweet (lol nothing sweet about having a herpes outbreak lol), I also use it as cuticle cream, on small cuts (eg paper cuts), burns/blistering, sunburnt lips & the blistered skin around lips from sun, wind burnt & severely chapped lips, small dry patches of skin on my face, & 1 of the best uses I can think of when you have been wiping your nose a lot is apply to the red skin that’s dry around my nostrils it heals it so much faster.

I use handkerchiefs not Kleenex since I switched it’s been better since I switched & better for the environment but I’m not lazy but it was annoying having to get up & throw away Kleenexes. My new parsons jack Russell terrier likes to chew up Kleenex esp used ones she particularly favors so those aren’t good for her to ingest eat. My daddy uses handkerchiefs too my mom still uses Kleenex & guests & I use Kleenex to clean out the water from my shower in ears/eyes/nose & occasionally to clean my glasses if I can’t find my glasses cleaning cloth & I’m in a hurry but that’s confined to the bathroom far out of my 7 week old puppy’s reach. I feel like I’m doing something good for the environment using a frilly handkerchief instead of a Kleenex & they are a fashion accessory/convo starter.

Anyways back to Carmex I will report back in a few weeks & let you know how my Carmex-as-my-only-Lip-balm experiment & let y’all know how it worked. I’m doing all mouth breathing right now due to sinusitis so I’m applying it more often than if I wasn’t sick. Mouth breathing chaps my lips something fierce so

Carmex has got some big shoes to fill w MAC I was happy w MAC but it does nothing for fever blisters & I like doing Beauty experiments I want to know if there’s something out there better then more power to ya it wouldn’t break my heart if a 99 cent product were to zip circles around a $16 MAC product in fact it wouldn’t surprise me & I predict it to happen. In MAC’s defense it is a good product that had served me VERY WELL when I had sun poisoning (helped tremendously).

C U!!

I have this in the tube variant. Tube packaging is my favourite as opposed to pots which are unhygienic and sticks which tend to be drier.

Product feels good and performs well upon first application - I love that tingling sensation. I'm not so much a fan of the shiny look, which is mainly caused by over-application; however, even though I've learned to control how much product I'm using, I still find that it's very easy for this lip balm to turn into a gloss, even if you use a small amount. This is what you get with tube balms, though, because of the nature of the packaging - it has to be squeezable, not completely solid, so the tube balm obviously has more give than the other variants because of this.

If you apply well (i.e. sparingly), this product does sink in and leave your lips plumper and a little softer. That effect wears off quickly, though, and you're back where you started, and you're stuck in the cycle of reapplying every hour or so depending on your habits and activities (rubbing lips together a lot, talking a lot, eating/drinking etc etc will of course mean the balm wears off more quickly). I haven't noticed any positive long-term effects on my lips despite using this every night before bed (will try the Kiehl's Lip Balm #1 soon and see how it compares in this regard).

I've resolved to using this in the mornings as a prep for my lipstick: I apply after cleansing and moisturising, do my makeup, and then blot off any excess Carmex before lip product application. My lips are smooth and supple and ready for my matte lipsticks.

TL;DR: Works well, but not for what I initially purchased it for. Good for prepping lips for lipstick.

I have a few spare tubes lying around, so I'll use them up. I'll probably purchase again - not out of necessity, but because it's so cheap and has a nice short-term effect. Still searching for a lip balm that has a positive effect in the long term and/or as an overnight treatment.

I do love this and so does my boyfriend. It is not my holy grail however. Bite beauty Lip Mask is my HG 😍😍 But I love the convenience of the squeeze tube. I love the tingle, the flavor, and the taste. It’s easy to just toss in my purse and go.

When I was taking roacutan this miracle helped me a lot with my lips. I really love this lip balm y don’t love the taste and the packaging but I think that’s not important.

Love the winter mint version! It doesn't have that medicated smell to it and it keeps my lips hydrated. I like to stock up when these come out.