Lip Primers
Description
November 1, 2022
By Lisa Petrison
While lip primers can be worn with any kind of lipstick or on their own, they seem to be especially helpful – or even necessary – when using traditional matte or satin lipsticks such as those offered by MAC.
Lip primers should provide some moisture to the lips and some evening-out of lines or other textural irregularities, in addition to providing a good base to help lipstick last longer.
While just plain lip balm can provide a little help here, I have found that a good lip primer has been much more effective for me.
TOP PICKS
♣ Living Clean Superstars:
+Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Primer ($16)
Aveda Pure Nourish-Mint Lip Primer ($25)
♦ Additional Possibilities:
MAC Prep + Prime ($20)
♥ Lisa’s Choice:
√ MAC Prep + Prime ($21)
Notes:
1) Living Clean Superstars – Products with high scores on both Performance Rating (5) as well as Ingredients Rating (4/5). + Clean Pick (Ingredients Rating = 5).
2) Lisa’s Choice – Products that I would purchase for my own personal use. √ Lisa’s Favorite
This section contains affiliate links, which means that Living Clean in a Dirty World may receive a commission if readers click on these links and then purchase products. Living Clean in a Dirty World also may accept product review samples but receives no other compensation from companies mentioned on this website.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Lip Primer – $16
♣ Living Clean Superstar
Overall Rating: 
(5 / 5)
Performance Rating: (5 / 5)
Ingredients Rating: (5 / 5)
Lisa Irritation Level: None
Processed Fragrance: None
Silicone Level: None
While Anastasia Beverly Hills’ products have tended to be hit-or-miss for me, this seems to me to be one of their best offerings.
This primer does not contain any silicones and has what EWG suggests is a very clean ingredient list.
(It is not listed as Clean at Sephora, but that seems to be only because Sephora requires that all products from a brand meet their criteria before giving the Clean at Sephora status to any of them.)
I have found this primer to feel really good on my lips, without any noticeable smell or taste.
It feels clean to me, to the point that I have not hesitated to reach for it.
It also has performed well under a variety of lipsticks, in terms of helping my lips to feel moisturized and my lipstick to last longer.
While I still like the MAC Prep + Prime Lip (which does contain silicone) a bit more, this one seems to me a very good product as well.
Size: 0.16 oz.
Sephora Rating: 4.1 Stars (262 reviews)
Credo Clean: Meets Criteria
Clean at Sephora: No (Meets Criteria)
Drunk Elephant Clean: Meets Criteria
EU Compliant: Meets Criteria
Pregnancy Pick: Yes
EWG Ingredient Rating: 1 (green)
EWG Problem Ingredients: None
Fragrance Ingredients: None
All Ingredients: Isotridecyl Isononanoate, Octyldodecanol, Silica, Ozokerite, Ceresin, Synthetic Wax, Quaternium-18 Bentonite, Ethylene/Propylene Copolymer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Caprylyl Glycol, Tocopheryl Acetate, 1,2 Hexanediol.
Buy From Anastasia Beverly Hills
Aveda Pure Nourish-Mint Lip Primer – $25
♣ Living Clean Superstar
Overall Rating: (5 / 5)
Performance Rating: (5 / 5)
Ingredients Rating: (5 / 5)
Lisa Irritation Level: None
Processed Fragrance: Natural Flavor, Eugenol, Linalool, Citronellol, Citral, Limonene, Cinnamal, Geraniol
Silicone Level: None
These Aveda primer pencils have a larger diameter than the company’s regular lip pencils (thus requiring a special sharpener) and have a slightly pinky-brown color that is close to the color of my own lips.
They serve as a nice base for other lip products and also provide a little hydration to my lips.
So far, I have not had any breakage problems with these lip pencils.
They contain a variety of botanical extracts (used for flavoring and aroma) that EWG does not like very much, thus resulting in a low EWG rating.
However, I have never had problems with those botanical extracts in small quantities and feel like the scent/flavor of this particular product is very mild and rather pleasant.
Size: 0.1 oz.
Aveda Rating: 4.7 Stars (7 reviews)
Credo Clean: Meets Criteria
Clean at Sephora: Meets Criteria
Drunk Elephant Clean: No
EU Compliant: Meets Criteria
Pregnancy Pick: Maybe (Natural Fragrance)
EWG Ingredient Rating: 5 (yellow)
EWG Problem Ingredients: Licorice root extract (4), Lactic acid (4), Eugenol (5), Linalool (3), Citronellol (4), Citral (5), Limonene (5), Cinnamal (5), Geraniol (5), Titanium dioxide (3)
Fragrance Ingredients: Flavor, eugenol, linalool, citronellol, citral, limonene, cinnamal, geraniol
All Ingredients: Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, Jojoba Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Hydroxystearic Acid, Candelilla Wax, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Stearic Acid, Licorice Root Extract, Sunflower Seed Oil, Tocopherol, Tribehenin, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Lactic Acid, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitic Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Flavor, Eugenol, Linalool, Citronellol, Citral, Limonene, Cinnamal, Geraniol. May Contain: Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Iron Oxides
MAC Prep + Prime Lip – $21
♥ Lisa’s Choice
Overall Rating: 
(4 / 5)
Performance Rating: (5 / 5)
Ingredients Rating: 
(3 / 5)
Lisa Irritation Level: None
Processed Fragrance: Vanillin
Silicone Level: High
This lip primer contains a cyclic silicone (cyclopentasiloxane) as its first ingredient, which would disqualify it from being sold by Credo.
However, EWG gives the product a 1 (green), and I have felt that it has been a good product for me and has not caused any irritation.
The lip primer is designed to be used with MAC lipsticks, including their popular matte ones.
I personally feel that those lipsticks are totally unwearable for me even if I wear lip balm under them – but that this lip primer has made all the difference in the world with them.
It has worked well for me with other lipsticks as well.
Although the product does contain vanillin (artificial vanilla), I have felt that the flavor/smell has been mild and non-objectionable to me.
I expect that I will be buying this product again.
Size: 0.05 oz.
Ulta Rating: 4.4 Stars (384 reviews)
Credo Clean: No
Clean at Sephora: Meets Criteria
Drunk Elephant Clean: No
EU Compliant: Meets Criteria
Pregnancy Pick: Maybe (Cyclic Silicone, Vanillin)
EWG Product Rating: 1 (green)
EWG Ingredient Rating: 1 (green)
EWG Problem Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane (3). (Also contains Vanillin.)
Fragrance Ingredients: Vanillin
All Ingredients: Cyclopentasiloxane, Paraffin, Polybutene, Ozokerite, Tocopherol, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Tribehenin, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Palmitoyl Oligopeptide, Vanillin.
About This Website
The Living Clean in a Dirty World shopping website is designed to provide guidance to those seeking out products that are relatively low in toxicity and that provide generally positive user experiences.
Although the skincare and makeup sections have a particular focus on products appropriate for women who are in their 40’s or beyond, the information provided may be useful for other people as well.
The products are curated by Lisa Petrison, who has been focused on helping people to improve their health by avoiding toxicity since 2008 and who heads the Paradigm Change organization.
Her Living Clean in a Dirty World blog site discusses a variety of topics of relevance to those who are working to pursue a more natural lifestyle with less exposure to harmful toxicity.
Lisa is the author of several books, including A Beginner’s Guide to Mold Avoidance (co-written with Erik Johnson).
She also runs the Paradigm Change website (focusing on issues related to toxic mold illness) and the Mold Avoiders Facebook group (designed for the discussion of all topics of interest to those pursuing the mold avoidance approach described in the “Beginner’s Guide” book).
Lisa was born in August 1964 and has yet to try cosmetic surgery, Botox or other cosmetic treatments requiring interactions with a physician, or beauty products containing retinoids.
In her former life, Lisa worked as a business school professor, as a marketing consultant to a variety of large companies, and as a reporter covering the advertising industry.
She holds a Ph.D. in marketing and social psychology from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University as well as B.S./M.S. degrees from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern.
Lisa would like to extend a special note of appreciation to Ellen Kleiman-Redden for her help in trying out products and discussing issues related to this project.
She also would like to thank the many members of the Mold Avoiders community who have shared suggestions of products to be included here.
A Note From Lisa
Products that I have tried or researched and that I have not found to be acceptable from a toxicity standpoint have been omitted entirely from the discussions on this website.
However, since a goal of this project is to introduce people to a range of options in terms of price and functionality, some products discussed on this site include ingredients that may not be appropriate for everyone.
It’s my hope that all individuals making their way to this site will find at least a few options from each product category that meet all of their own needs and wants from a variety of perspectives.
The vast majority of cosmetics marketers now offer affiliate programs in which Internet content creators may earn commissions if people who are referred to the companies’ sites by clicking on links end up making purchases.
I participate in quite a few individual affiliate programs as well as in the Sovrn/Viglinks program (which automatically converts regular links into revenue-generating links).
Links on this page that may result in affiliate income may include – but are not necessarily limited to – those from the following companies: Anastasia Beverly Hills, Aveda, MAC, Sephora, and Ulta.
Reader comments about products discussed on this website are very welcome.
Thoughts may be shared either by posting them in the comments section at the bottom of this page or by sending them directly to me at the following email address:
info at paradigmchange dot me
Companies that would like to offer me complimentary products to try out may contact me at this address as well.
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