I'm a bit of a lip balm hoarder in that I estimate that I've probably got about six or seven different lip balms on the go at the moment. I'm also a complete lip balm addict and find the whole process of applying lip balm strangely calming! I also get really irritated when I have cracked or dry lips and so try to avoid them at all costs now! The main reason for my rather extreme collection of lip balms is, not that I'm an impulsive buyer and will buy any lip balm on offer, but rather that because they're normally so small in size I seem to misplace them rather easily... only to discover them a couple of weeks later in the bottom of a bag or down the back of my sofa. As such I consider myself to be something of a pro when it comes to lip balms...

My latest acquisition to my ever expanding collection of lip balms is Dermalogica's Renewal Lip Complex. Now before you start thinking I must have money to burn I'd like to point out that I don't make a habit of blowing half a week's worth of grocery shopping on a lip balm but I received one as a promotional gift when I bought other items. This product is advertised as a daily lip treatment that helps to restore delicate lip tissue, minimise any lines or wrinkles and also helps to prevent the size of aging. It's also advertised as containing no artificial fragrances or colour either which makes it very similar to the rest of the Dermalogica range.

The Renewal Lip Complex comes in a matt silver tube, although this sounds a bit gaudy it isn't a metallic silver like a mirror. The tube is about three inches in terms of height with the upper half or the lid being around two inches and the base being about one inch. The lid is easily removed by gently pulling it off the base. The tube itself is rather minimalistic and only has some basic information on it including the brand and the name of the product. When you pull the lid off you'll see the base is actually much taller than it looks when the silver top is on it and that the top of the base has a plastic pump on it which dispenses the lip complex.

To dispense the product you simply press down very gently on the pump, literally one pump down is enough to dispense about a half pea sized amount of the product which is more than enough to coat my lips. The product itself is a creamy white colour and is similar to a thick cream in terms of consistency, it smells quite rich and cocoa butter is evident in the scent. There's not really a lot that makes this stand out in terms of looks or scent, but both are pleasant! I then simply apply the lip complex evenly over my lips where it seems to soak in within about a minute, there's no need to rub it in and it doesn't leave any white residue on the surface.

It's recommended that you apply it to your lips at least twice a day to maintain your lip's health and moisture levels. It can also be applied more frequently if need be, so in periods of dryness or environmental exposure. As I've already mentioned I'm a bit of an addict which means I tend to apply it whenever I come across it in my bag so I don't really have a particular regime with it. I've found that it provides instant relief in times of chapped or dry lips and that by applying it every hour or so for a few hours it can get rid of chapped or dry lips too. It's very moisturising and soothing, with my lips feeling much softer every time I use this lip complex.

The Renewal Lip Complex contains vitamin rich emollients such as cocoa butter, shea butter, avocado and wheat germ which not only moisturise your lips but help to prevent dehydration by forming a barrier of sorts on the surface of your lips. It's also advertised as being part of Dermalogica's "Age Smart" range which focuses on preventing / slowing down the effects of aging and therefore it contains an "exclusive peptide" (which is so exclusive that the name isn't shown on their website)! Finally it contains palmitoyl oligopeptide (try saying that after a bottle of wine) which conditions lips and helps to stimulate the formation of collagen too.

The Dermalogica Renewal Lip Complex is currently priced at around £18.00 for 1.75ml of the product. This price does seem to vary somewhat depending why you buy it but that's what it's priced at my local beauty salon where I tend to pick up my Dermalogica products. It's currently priced at £16.88 on Look Fantastic which is the cheapest I've come across. In reflection the price is astronomically high for what is basically a "rather posh lip balm," there's certainly no doubting that. It leaves my lips feeling really moisturised and soft but that alone doesn't really warrant the price tag when lip balms priced at £3 or £4 do the exact same job.

The one thing that sets this lip balm apart from others is what it promises in terms of how it targets aging or rather anti-aging. I've never had any particular fears about my lips aging, I'm more bothered about the rest of my face! As I've only been using this lip balm for a Few weeks I can't comment on how it measures up against its aging claims, certainly for the price I'd be expecting young looking lips for evermore if I continued to use this! All in all I'm giving this three stars, it would get the full five stars but I can't justify spending so much on a lip balm... I can't even really justify spending half as much on a lip balm so it looses a second star!

Thanks for reading.