I am always happy to buy anything interesting from drugstore and if its a Canadian beauty brand, the appeal is a tad bit higher :) So when I saw that Annabelle had these new lip balm crayons for just $4.99 at Shoppers Drug Mart - well, how can I resist!
Its a glossy lip balm in a crayon format - that itself is enough to make me grab this. There were around 8 shades [weirdly enough one was green! :)] and except for Grape, most of them were pretty common shades - pink, coral, red and coral-orange. There was a nude shade, but after trying the tester [which was a cherry shade] I didn't think the Nude shade would do anything for me as the tint was pretty sheer. They don't have testers for all colors, but I think the green one should be either a 'magic-color' kinda color changing one or a clear balm.
My Experience:
I think that I am pretty tolerant when it comes to setting my expectations for a product- its in a way purely based on price & product claims. I don't expect a product which claims to be moisturizing to be a long wearing product - cos well duh! Also, I don't expect a $5, $10, $15 product all to perform at the same level - that would be unfair. So, I am going to judge these Lipsies on if they are worth the $5 price tag and if they meet the claims they make - i.e.
1. Retractable Lip Color Balm - well, unless they dont twist up n done, I think this claim is fairly well met 2. Sheer Colors - so, if you are expecting great color pigmentation, well, don't ! 3. Hydrating Non-sticky glossy balm - notice that Annabelle doesn't make any outrageous claims like 16hr stay blah blah- I respect you, Annabelle, for that!
And here is my verdict - Annabelle is bang on target with their claims. This product does all that it says it will do. It gives a sheer wash of color, it hydrates though not for very long - I got around 2-3 hours, it is not sticky [which I didn't anyways think it would be] and it gives a glossy finish for the 1st 30-45mins after which it gives more of a tinted balm-y look.
The tint lasts for around 2-3 hours as well, but to be honest I didn't really test it out much for longevity cos - well read on to know why!
This has a light fruity taste, somewhat strong fruity scent -I don't mind both, so I am good with that. There is no irritation, no drying out, applies very smoothly and feels light on lips.
Now, did you expect a However, somewhere? Well, here it is -
1. I hate this color. It is too cool toned. I didn't think that a lip color could make me 5 yrs older, but this one does. Grape is a very cool toned purple shade that just depresses me - I cannot wear it alone, so I usually wear this under a warmer glossy shade if I am going out. I couldn't really test it out in depth cos I couldn't wear this alone.
Look at that creepy effect - gak, hate the color!
2. The packaging is super super cheap - it reminds me of some cheap candy covers. The plastic casing is cheap, the lettering is just plain YUCK and whats with the white stripes??? If you don't know how to make a color casing work, go for the safe Black casing. Look at NYX, look at Revlon's packaging - come on, Annabelle, you can do better here!
Since I liked the product, I may pick up another shade - may be the Cherry one which would be great for Summer :)
Overall: If you're in a mood for a nice pocket-friendly tinted balm & don't mind really yucky packaging, then may be this is something you can try. Don't set your expectations super high though - its just what it says & nothing more.
