Review: Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Red Velvet

UPDATE: for official information and swatches of additional shades, please click here.

There's no doubt that the new Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters have received lots of buzz, so I couldn't resist picking one up recently when the display surfaced at my local Rite Aid. I LOVE lip balms and lip tints and I'm pretty picky about them, so now that I've had a chance to wear this product for going on two weeks, I'd love to share my thoughts with you.

 Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Red Velvet

(retail: $7.49, 0.09 oz)

I love that they essentially took the design of the original Revlon Colorburst lipsticks and altered it a bit by making the case frosted and translucent. I also love that the lid resembles the actually shade of the lip color.

Another thing I love is the clear window on the top of the lid; while you're in the store, you can actually see the color before buying it:

One thing I did find a tiny bit odd was that the label on this tube has sparkles on it (sorry, my camera didn't quite pick that up):

 Usually when the label has sparkles on it, it indicates that the lipcolor itself is going to be sparkly. But I assure you, there is NO sparkle (or shimmer or glitter) in Red Velvet. It's a true creme. So yeah, that was a little bit strange, so I just wanted to warn you about it in case you tend to use the label as an indicator of the finish.

The ingredients list indicates that this product contains jojoba seed oil, shea butter, mango butter and coconut oil (in that order). I would prefer to see those ingredients a little bit higher up on the list, but that's not a deal-breaker for me. Also, there are no parabens in this formula.

I love that the stick itself is flush with the tube, as opposed to some lip products where the stick protrudes out a bit.

Red Velvet is true to its name; it's a deep, rich red that resembles red velvet cake. I think it would work for a variety of skintones since it's a pretty neutral red (not too orange and not too blue).

The above swatches (taken with flash and then in natural light) were done on the back of my hand, and after just ONE swipe. As you can see, the color payoff is impressive for something that calls itself a "lip butter". Two swipes produces a near-opaque color, but I thought it was important to show you one swipe to get a real sense of the pigmentation.

On the lips, this lip color is pretty darned amazing. Here's what it looks like after one light application:

The pigmentation is pretty incredible for a light application, huh? And here's what it looked like when I went back over my lips for a second application:

I was surprised to see that it actually looks like a lipstick after the second coat!

 The best way I can describe Red Velvet to is you this: if you took a slick (as opposed to a dry) lip balm, and infused it with a TON of pigmentation, you'd get Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Red Velvet. For me, the only thing that separates it from a traditional lipstick is the feel of it on your lips. It feels the way a nice lip balm feels. It's moisturizing yet not too heavy, but it does "hug" the lips. When I wear this, it feels like I have a protective coating on my lips, but not in a claustrophobic way.

A word about the fragrance and flavor: I've heard from some of you that detected a strong fragrance from Revlon Lip Butters, but I do NOT detect that at all. To me, it's a very faint vanilla fragrance that I barely detect at all upon application. Also, the vanilla flavor is very faint as well--I can barely taste anything at all when I'm wearing this product.

FINAL VERDICT: If you love the feel of a lip balm but you crave intense pigmentation, Red Velvet might be the best of both worlds for you. I can't speak to the other shades in this range because I haven't tried them (yet!), but Red Velvet is insanely pigmented and far exceeded my expectations. I love that it feels like a moisturizing lip balm yet looks like a lipstick on the lips. I can get about three hours of wear from this product, and I like that it fades to a subtle red stain. If I have the same luck with other shades, I might declare this a better product than the Colorburst lipsticks, because the color payoff seems to be the same yet it  feels better on the lips.

Have you tried the Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters yet? If so, what shades do you own and how to you like them? Do you find them as insanely-pigmented as I do?