No werewolves were harmed in the making of this lip balm (Johnson's Lipcare Moon Care Intensive Balm)

Member Name: Sarah_Unity

Product:	Johnson's Lipcare Moon Care Intensive Balm
Date:	15/05/09 (71 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Softens cracked and painful lips with one application

Disadvantages: Just don't try snacking on it!

Every winter, my lips let me down. As soon as the first cold hits, they become sore and chapped, and no amount of lipbalm, Blisteeze or begging will soothe them to smooth again. So when I saw MoonCare on the shelves I was skeptical (a lip mask? That you can only wear at night? Why - does it need to be kept dark, or do the stars have some mystical effect on it?! Come on!), but desperate. Moon Care claims to work like a mask overnight, to help improve the condition of dry lips and make them "soft and supple again".

That night, slathering on a layer, my first finding was that it does feel more substantial than plain old lipbalm. It's thicker, stickier, and tastes much, much worse. While the scent is quite nice, this is not one of those products you'll sneakily lick your lips for - it's a chemical taste you'll be quite happy to keep on the outside. This is unsurprising when it has an ingredient list that includes the not-so-glamorous sounding panthenol and bisabolol.

The second thing I noticed about the balm was a slight tingling in my lips, not unpleasant, but slightly surprising for a product meant to be calming. But, unlike plain lip balm, the cream stayed put as I got ready for bed and curled up to sleep, although I applied another layer when I got up during the night, just after biting off a large chuck for loose dry skin (mmm, more glamour!).

I'm generally not one to rave about products. I generally don't need to, because nothing lives up to my expectations. But I have to give all credit to Moon Care. When I woke up, for the first time in months, I had smooth, soft lips. They didn't crack when I smiled or rasp against eachother. They didn't hurt. For the first time in months, they weren't so dry as to make me look like I was in the middle of a heavy cold when I wasn't. I'm thoroughly impressed - while permanently dry lips isn't the sort of complaint you'd go to your doctor about, they're annoying and do impact on small day-to-day decisions, like "can I wear lip makeup?". Now, the answer is yes - I can now wear lipstick without it looking like I've painted over a particularly rough plaster wall. I can apply lipbalm during the day and have it actually soften my lips instead of just sitting on top of the skin and not sink in. I'm impressed.

I've continued to use Moon Care (during the day as well - don't tell Johnson and Johnson, their world might implode!), and I've pulled off more layers of that lovely dry skin. I feel much happier with my lips and am surprised at the impact that changing that one niggling problem has made, both in terms of comfort and confidence. So please, if like me you have sore, cracked lips that won't clear up, no matter how much lip balm you use, fall for the hype. Moon Care *is* more expensive than bog-standard balm, but it's worth every penny to correct the problem.

Summary: A soothing balm the really solves a problem