Lip Slugging Is the Cure For Dry, Cracked Lips This Winter

Treat your lips to a little extra love thanks for this TikTok beauty trend.

To anyone who has ever dealt with the dry wrath of winter, having well-moisturized lips at this time of year feels as imperative as sunscreen on a blistering summer’s day. But do you ever feel like no lip balm can quite keep dryness at bay? Thankfully, TikTok’s lip slugging resurgence has come to our rescue.

If you’re an avid #beautytok follower, then you probably recognize the term “slugging” from the viral facial slugging trend — that is, lathering your visage with layers of petroleum jelly as an overnight face mask. Targeting the dryness, splitting, and cracking that can plague our pouts during the cold winter months, lip slugging applies the same concept to our mouths.

Here, we break down everything to know about lip slugging and the products you’ll need to get started.

What is lip slugging?

Similar to its facial slugging counterpart, lip slugging is an overnight moisturizing and conditioning treatment that remedies dry, cracked lips in a few foolproof steps. Think of your skincare routine — you’ve got your daily holy grail products and standard practices, but the uninvited arrival of a budding blemish or the scarred remainder of said blemish may demand a little extra attention here and there. So, you take a dedicated evening (or full day!) to luxuriate and address your skincare dilemmas as needed with topical treatments and masks for that extra dose of self-care. Lip slugging is the extra step you’ll take in your lip care routine when winter has dried your pout out.

@charlotteparler Lips have no sebaceous glands and the skin is thin and youre constantly licking them so do a solid and try #lipslugging #skincare #skincareroutine #beauty ♬ original sound – Charlotte Palermino

What are the benefits of lip slugging?

Lips are particularly prone to dryness. “Lips have no sebaceous glands and the skin is thin and you’re constantly licking them so do a solid and try #lipslugging,” TikTok’s “skincare fairy godmother” and licensed aesthetician Charlotte Palermino tells her followers. The aforementioned sebaceous glands are microscopic skin glands that secrete oils (sebum) to lubricate our hair and skin — that’s where lip slugging comes in. The best part? This is one skincare trend that, much to our relief, won’t break the bank. In fact, TikTok “Derm Doctor” Dr. Muneeb Shah says even drugstore Vaseline is lip slugging-approved. “But put a regular moisturizer under your Vaseline to get that extra boost,” he writes in a TikTok comment beneath his viral slugging video.

@dermdoctor dry lip hack 👄 #dermdoctor #drylips #chappedlips #drunkelephant #cerave ♬ HANDSOMER OPEN VERSE CHALLENGE RUSS – RUSS

How to lip slug and what you’ll need

The road to plump, moisturized and sufficiently slugged lips is surprisingly easy — and only requires a few items that are likely living on your skincare shelf or in your purse already. Palermino tells her followers that all you’ll need to partake in #lipslugging is water (or an essence), a fragrance-free moisturizer, and petroleum jelly or a lip ointment.

Once you’ve gathered up the essentials, it’s a simple three-step process from there. First, Palermino suggests dampening the lips with your water or essence. “This is because your skin absorbs product better when it’s a little bit damp,” she explains in her video. Over the damp base, apply your moisturizer and allow it to sit for a moment before moving on to your third and final step. To complete your slugging session, you’ll want to seal in all of that moisture with an occlusive ointment and steer clear of water-based ingredients. “You don’t need water in the formula, the whole point of this is to lock in the water that you just put on and trap it so it has nowhere to go but your mouth,” Palermino shares.

If you’ve been officially influenced by #lipslugging, shop moisture-packed products to get you through the winter below.