I’m not usually a big fan of lipsticks, and other than it being compulsory at work, or really special occasions, I mostly avoided the hassle of it. I have dry, peeling lips all year round and my lips are just naturally very wrinkly so most lip products will settle in all the fine lines and emphasise the dry, flaky patches.
The last few years I’ve been using the Relvon lip butters which are like a cross between a lipstick and a lip balm so they are moisturising, comfortable to wear, yet have good colour payoff. However they don’t last long at all and I don’t like rechecking in the mirror every couple hours and reapplying. That’s how I discovered tints are the way to go – in particular, I really like tint balms like this Aritaum Water Sliding Tint. These have ignited a love for lip products I never thought I’d have, and simultaneously have solved some problems I have with regular lipsticks.
So let’s get onto the review of these Aritaum Water Sliding Tints.
Features/benefits:
- Silky, lightweight and smooth texture
- Solidified liquid texture – which allows it to slide along the lips
- Formula contains highly refractive oil and high pigmentation for long lasting and vivid colour.
- Contains argan oil as well as peach, plum and apricot seed oil for long lasting, intensive moisture.
- Clog-free. Non-sticky, gloss and moisture. Comfortable texture.
These retail in South Korea for KRW 9,000 which is about £5. Extremely cheap for the quality of these. I bought mine from IBBI during the sale for about the same price.
I bought the following 5 shades:
- No.1 Pink Prism
- No.2 Sweet Heart
- No.9 Coral Fantasy
- No.12 Fruits Punch
- No.13 Cosmopolitan
It comes in a plastic tube with a click on cap that reflects the colour of the tint itself. You twist it up from the bottom and as you do, you can hear it clicking. You have to be careful not to overdo it because you CANNOT retract it. It recommends you twist up 1mm of the bullet for an application. If you extend it too much, you risk messing up the tint when you open and close the cap and also it’ll be more susceptible to melting in hot weather since it’s such a soft texture.
This product is great because it’s a combination of lipstick, tint and lip balm. It provides the colour payoff of a lipstick, stains the lips like a tint and is moisturising like a lip balm. As it’s a solidified liquid, it has the smoothest, softest texture. The first time I tried it I literally went wow. It seriously glides on like melted butter! You don’t even need to apply any pressure. No friction, or tugging on the skin and really lives up to its name as a water sliding tint. It immediately feels very moisturising and not sticky at all. It comes closer to feeling oily more than anything. It’s not thick or heavy like some lip glosses can be.
And the colour payoff. Wow. Even with a very light hand it imparts a great pop of colour. It’s very vivid and bright, highly pigmented and leaves a super glossy finish. 1 coat is enough but you can do 2 coats for a bolder look. I prefer my lips to look like they have colour yet be subtle, so I usually just dab it over my lips rather than slide it across to get a more natural finish.
The following are swatches of the 5 colours I own. They all show my lips bare, my lips with 1 coat of colour and then my lips with a 2nd coat.
No.1 Pink Prism
No.3 Sweet Heart
No. 9 Coral Fantasy
No. 12 Fruits Punch
No. 13 Cosmopolitan
Comparison swatches from left to right: bare lips, no.1, no.3, no.9, no.12 and no.13.
L to R: No.1, 3, 9, 12, 13
As you can probably tell, the real life colour swatches are quite different to the promotional shots and even the packaging. Judging from the promo picture, I thought I would like No.1 & 12 the most. Surprisingly no.12, although I like it, is probably my least favourite. It didn’t look anything like the picture which was disappointing and is a darker coral/red in real life than the pink it appeared to be. It is also the most pigmented out of them all, although I thought no.13 would be judging from its cap colour.
Also surprisingly, no.9 is my favourite colour of the bunch. I never usually get coral/orange colours because pinks and blue toned reds look better on me but it’s a beautiful subtle colour compared to its bright orange cap and goes really well with my coral blushers. I find myself reaching for no.9, no.1 and no.12 the most.
Thoughts:
I really like these because after you initially apply, I feel the glossy effect helps my lips look plumper and doesn’t emphasise all my fine lines – it’s so moisturising it seems to fill them in rather than sink into it. It’s also a lot more forgiving of dry patches than many other lipsticks I’ve tried and you only notice if you look right up close. This is good for me on the days I haven’t bothered to exfoliate my lips. It will cling to flaky skin and apply unevenly (more obvious especially for the darker colours), if your lips are dry/chapped so I still recommend exfoliating or applying lip balm beforehand.
I’d say the colour stays glossy for about 1-2 hours after applying, and then gradually softens and becomes a more muted natural colour as the tint gets left behind.
Some negatives to this water sliding tint is that because the texture is so buttery, it is actually quite difficult to apply. Especially for me since I have small lips and the tint is just round and flat, it is hard to get a precise and sharp edged lip look when the tint is slipping and sliding around the place. Also, while the tint remains glossy for the first hour or so, I find it best not to eat and drink because it tends to transfer easily as the tint hasn’t dried and set fully. Once the colour becomes stained on your lips however, it does remain for a good few hours (the darker shades last longer), and I can still see the tint even after eating and drinking (although it sometimes fades unevenly).
As with normal liquid tints, once it dries, this does also seem to make my lips feel drier and my lip wrinkles are slightly more pronounced but it’s nowhere near as bad as lipsticks cracking and peeling when they go dry. My lips still look and feel soft and smooth.
Overall though, I’m really happy with the Aritaum Water Sliding Tints. They’re the best lip products I’ve found so far for using on a daily basis and a great solution for those that aren’t too keen on the regular lipsticks or liquid tints. This takes the best of both. I personally find these easier and quicker to use than lip tints because I always struggle to get them to apply evenly and it’s very messy business too. These are fairly long-lasting because they stain your lips even after the shine has faded so I don’t need to worry about reapplying, they’re so comfortable to wear and have great colour payoff.
