Hello friends!
It’s been a little while since I’ve done a review of something that is 1) not a liquid lipstick, and 2) drugstore pricing!
Back in the day (AKA like 2014 and earlier), the Revlon balms were all the rage! Since then, the popularity has really died down and it seems like Revlon has decided to no longer continue with manufacturing despite the rave reviews. I’ll discuss this more in the “where you can purchase” section.
Color: Enchanting is a light peach with warm undertones. Since there isn’t a website that I can compare my observations to, you’ll just have to trust me and your own eyes!
Finish: Matte balm sounds a bit like a contraction, but the actual finish of the product is surprisingly, actually matte.
Packaging: The packaging is a simple plastic that matches the color of the product. The back of the lip crayon twists, which is how the product comes out when you need more. The tip sticks out of the actual tube.
Applicator: With this being a lip crayon, the applicator is just the product in a pointed shape. This works fine when it’s fresh, but as you continue to wear the product it will eventually wear down into a flat top, so you’ll have to adjust the way you apply it. This may mean trying to sharpen it somehow or just putting up with a flattened top instead of a point.
Application: With the product being fresh and pointy, application is pretty simple; I use the side instead of the tip of the product for applying since that speeds up the application process. If you have smaller lips, I’d suggest lining them with the tip of the product and then filling in the rest with the side to preserve the shape longer.
The color isn’t especially opaque, so I do have to go over my lips a few times to get full coverage; I have pigmented lips, so that doesn’t help. Even after going over a few times, I feel like you can still see my lip color underneath.
There is a very strong minty smell when applying. This does go away pretty quickly, but if you don’t like that smell I’d recommend passing on this.
Transfer: There is quite a bit of transfer with this product – it’s really not the type of formula meant to stay put, even with matte in the name. Drinking or eating anything will cause significant transfer and depending on how much you eat/drink you’ll probably need to reapply it after the fact.
Fading: Unsurprisingly, with the formula being a balm, the wear time on this product isn’t especially high. I’d say it lasts for a few hours if you’re not doing anything, but as soon as you drink or eat food, you’ll need to remove whatever’s left and reapply it, or put more over the top (depending on the amount left on).
Comfort: I don’t feel like this being a matte balm does anything beneficial for the product. When I put on a balm I would expect it to be comfortable, but I don’t feel like I get any hydration from this. While it doesn’t necessarily dry out my lips the way that a regular matte product might, I’d prefer wearing this like any other balm and have the comfort without needing amazing color payoff.
Overall: If the color were closer to my actual lip color and not so light on me, and the formula more comfortable, I might be willing to keep giving this a chance to work into my collection. The problem is that this is a really high maintenance product for me, and I just don’t want to spend the time to build it up and then make sure it doesn’t make me look ridiculous when it wears off. Because of all of that, and the fact that my lip product collection is beyond massive, I’ll be passing this on to someone else.
Where you can purchase: It looks like Revlon actually stopped manufacturing their balm stain line a few years ago, but leftover stock can still be purchased from various places. They do also have a couple shades of the matte balm on their website for $9.99, but neither are this particular shade. I could find Enchanting on Walmart, however it was on their website where they allow for 3rd party resellers and I do not trust that.
I also found Enchanting on Amazon, however I’m not sure I trust that the Revlon store listed there is actually connected to Revlon, so once again I would not trust them. I found other Revlon Balm Stains on BuyMeBeauty, however I’ve never shopped there or heard of it so once again I wouldn’t recommend trying it. Your best bet if you do love this particular formula/shade would be to just try to find a good formula and color dupe!
Karissa Talks Beauty 