Review: Clarins Moisture Replenishing Lip Balm

Another of my more recent purchases, and another positive review! I am new to Clarins products. I recently toured their website while looking for some new skin care products, and really enjoyed their online personal "Beauty Consultation" which recommends skin care products based on your skin type. Upon further browsing of their site, I came across this little guy and decided to read some further reviews, which were, for the most part, extremely positive.

Now, one thing you should know about me is that I have extremely chapped lips, especially in the winter time. This means I am constantly reapplying my lip moisturizer. I have been using Carmex multiple times daily for approximately 7 years now, and without fail it has always come through for me. However, I for some reason have been unable to find Carmex anywhere lately and I had just about squeezed out the last of my supply.

The Clarins website advertises this lip moisturizer as helping to heal dry, chapped, and weather-roughened lips, which was exactly what I was experiencing. It also boasted the benefits of the natural ingredients Rose Wax, Ceramide 3, Shea Butter and Natural Rice Oil, all combined to ultimately combat the grand canyon cracks in my lips.

I really don't like trying out lip products when I go to Shopper's or to Sephora, so I didn't really test this product out before purchasing. (Closet germaphobe here!) However, the sales assistant assured me that I would not be disappointed in this product.

The balm itself is a light rosy pink shade, which looks quite clear once you apply it. You can just smell a hint of rose when you open the tube, but it's not too strong. (I definitely prefer this scent over the icky smell of Carmex!) This also helps when you accidentally get some inside of your mouth, as it doesn't taste like anything toxic, but rather like any type of sweet lip gloss.

I don't like using this applicator right on my lips, so I squeeze some out onto my fingers to apply onto my lips. It has a bit of a sticky consistency, but overall it feels like a gloss on your lips. It has a really pretty sheen to it, and you definitely can't tell it's a lip balm.

When I first applied this product, my lips were extremely dry and chapped, and it felt like the product was sitting on top of my lips instead of penetrating them to remoisturize from within. I guess I shouldn't have expected any immediate results though, since my lips were in such a desperate condition. I reapplied before I went to bed, and to my amazement, when I woke up the next morning I felt like I had aquired a new set of lips. They were extremely smooth and felt hydrated. This has now replaced Carmex as my go-to lip moisturizer.

One downfall of this product is the price point. Whereas Carmex is extremely inexpensive, a 0.45oz tube of Clarins Moisture Replenishing Lip Balm will cost you around $28. I expect that this tube will last me a few months though, and I much prefer feeling as though I am wearing a gloss as opposed to a boring old lip balm. (I have to keep using lip moisturizers year round, so you can see where I could get bored of the continuity of lip balms.) I also feel like this treatment is great for blending with other lip products for when I'm sprucing up my makeup routine, where other lip treatments really don't. Overall, this is definitely going to be a product that I continue to repurchase. If you're looking to add this to your makeup bag, you can purchase at your local Shoppers Drug Mart, Sephora, or The Bay.