This $8 Do-It-All Salve Deserves a Permanent Spot in Your Winter Skin-Care Routine

Around this time of year, there are only a handful of products that you can rely on for dry lips, lids, knuckles, and every other inch of skin that gets a little parched. Lucas’ Papaw Ointment ($13), which hails from Australia, has been called the “duct tape of beauty products,” due to its ability to multi-task. The very same tube is heralded by pros for solving dry skin woes, becoming a makeup mainstay, and fixing flyaways all in one go.

The key ingredient is fermented papaya, which is blended with petroleum jelly and wax to form an ointment that melts into skin without ever feeling tacky or overly heavy. Dermatologists who live stateside frequently recommend petroleum jelly-based ointments like Vaseline or Aquaphor for dry skin because they create an occlusive barrier that prevents water from evaporating out of the complexion. The papaw ointment takes things to the next level, by keeping skin hydrated, and also dousing skin with study-backed like vitamins A, C, and E, iron, potassium, and magnesium that come from the papaya itself.

Shop now: Lucas’ Papaw Ointment ($13)

Shop now: Lucas’ Pawpaw Ointment ($13)

With over 1,000 five-star reviews on Amazon, you can buy the ointment in a 15-gram or 25-gram tube as well as a 75-gram tub. TBH, while the tubes are great to throw in your bag for on-the-go skin mending since most of us are parked at home in front of skin-stripping heaters as COVID-19 cases rise, it might not be a bad idea to spring for the tub. And don’t just take my word for it! Miranda Kerr and Cate Blanchett swear by the product.

While the skin benefits are evident, makeup and haircare pros can also be found with tubes of this stuff in their kit. By adding just a dab of lipstick onto the back of your hand and mixing it with the Papaw ointment, you can have a tailor-made tinted balm. Or alternatively, at the end of the night, you can massage the balm into the most stubborn waterproof eyeliners to help the inky remnants come off. To fix frizz, spread the ointment to fingertips until there’s a super-thin layer that’s almost invisible to the eye; then, touch up flyaways around the hairline by smoothing them into your other strands.

TLDR: Whatever your beauty need, this red tube gets a million gold stars.

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