Raise your hand if you like to haul around an infinite number of lip balms in your bag everyday. Yes, my hand is firmly up in the air. Now I don’t carry all the balms pictured above around with me daily (most of the time), but you can bet your bottom dollar there’s at least three swimming around in the depths of my handbag. But does one balm reign supreme? It’s time for lip balm smack-down.

The Dr Lipp Original Nipple Balm for Lips*, not only has a name that makes me chuckle but is very, very similar to the Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream. It’s a bit too thick and sticky for me to throw on during the day but it’s a nice and nourishing choice for the night. Another one I like to throw on at night time is the Blistex Intensive Moisturiser, which I guess is the budget buy out of the bunch. It goes on a little white but once massaged in it stays put for hours and moisturises well without being too oily  - I think this is my third tube of stuff which says a lot. The NUXE Rêve de Miel serves quite a specific function in my balm arsenal, as a base lip product. This is the perfect primer for lipstick as it’s practically matte yet nourishing at the same time. Very unique – still trying to get my head round it, but a good choice for lipstick lovers. If you want to know what lip product I’ve been reaching for in recent weeks then listen up to the next three. The KORRES Lip Butter in Jasmine is the most recent addition and pretty darn awesome. One, it smells of sweets, two, it’s tinted and comes out on the lips as a pinky nude, three, it smells of sweets – love. A great one to throw in your handbag for a swim as it’s a gloss, balm and tint in one. I’m very close to using up the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment even those it’s also quite a recent purchase. Strangely enough it’s the only balm I own in stick form so this is the easiest one to apply on-the-go. It’s very slippy (if that makes any kind of sense) and smells citrusy – I will definitely pick up another one when this runs out. Finally, I’ve saved the best till last. Is it an obvious choice? Yes. Is it ridicindonkulously expensive? Yes. But I bloody love it – By Terry Baume de Rose. I’m on my second tub of this and it really is just the best all rounder. It’s thick enough that it stays on the lips for hours making it great for applying before bed, tinted enough to leave a subtle nude hue on the lips and nourishing enough that a little goes a long way (thank God!).

So in answer to my previous question, yes one balm is the best for me, but I like to keep my options open. Plus with each application of the By Terry Baume de Rose averaging out at £1, I’m more than happy to mix it up with more affordable formulas.

*PR Sample