Exclusive first look: City Color Spring 2012 Lip Balms

Tinted lip balms are all the rage right now with recent releases from Revlon, Jordana, Maybelline and others, and I for one am quite happy about this! Tinted lip balms are just so easy to wear, aren't they?

Today I'd like to give you a preview of the City Color Spring 2012 Lip Balm collection, which you'll be able to find at Rite Aid next year:

City Color Lip Balm Collection

I love that the product is fully retractable into the case--no nicking the stick with the cap when opening or closing the tube.

There are no shade names on these tubes, but as you can see there's a peachy-coral, a bubblegum pink, a tomato red and a mauvey-berry:

All four shades in the range have the exact same shimmery finish:

After wearing these off and on for a few weeks now, here are my thoughts:

Finish: as I said above, all four shades have the same shimmery finish. None of the shades turn frosty on the lips, and I've found that the shimmer that is visible upon initial application fades over time. After about 30 minutes of wear, the colors actually look more like traditional tinted lip balm on the lips--balmy and gel-like with medium pigmentation.

Texture: these are creamy and light-as-air. They glide across the lips like silk with no effort at all. For me, these feel and behave more like a very creamy lipstick, but they feel lighter on the lips than a standard lipstick. When I rub my lips together, they feel smooth and cushiony--no grittiness or waxiness.

Pigmentation: on the lips, the lighter shades (bubblegum pink and peachy-coral) are more sheer than the darker shades. However, the two lighter shades are not chalky and the pigment is visible on my lips--they're just not as intense as the mauvey-berry and the tomato red shades, which have better pigmentation. The tomato red shade in particular leaves a pretty, uniform stain on the lips.

Fragrance and flavor: the fragrance of these balms reminds me of cherry candy. The flavor is not cherry though; it's a generic sort of "lipstick" flavor that kind of reminds me of L'Oreal lipsticks but without the rose note. Both the fragrance and flavor fade after a few minutes on the lips.

Moisturization: Not as moisturizing as a standard lip balm, I would say these are comparable to a sheer lipstick in terms of how moisturized my lips feel.

Staying power: as to be expected for a product this light and creamy, the staying power is not incredible. I can get about 1-2 hours of wear before I feel the need to reapply.

FINAL VERDICT: These lip balms feel more like very creamy, sheer lipsticks to me, but the pigmentation of the darker shades is better than many sheer lipsticks I own. I find the mauvey-berry shade to be the most wearable color for me, and the tomato-red shade seems to have the best pigmentation. The shimmer that is visible upon initial application seems to fade away in about 30 minutes, leaving behind a nice color that looks more like a traditional tinted lip balm. If you love a lip color that feels light on the lips yet is very creamy, these are definitely something to keep an eye out for next year.

The City Color Lip Balm collection will hit Rite Aid stores Spring 2012.

A sample of this product was given to Nouveau Cheap for editorial purposes, either directly from the manufacturer or from the agency that works on behalf of the manufacturer. All reviews on NouveauCheap.blogspot.com are the honest opinion of its author and editorial samples do not, in any way, affect the outcome of product reviews.