Why always review new stuff when there’re great classics to be rediscovered?! And y’all know that I love nothing better than sunscreen (duh!) and a great lip product. So here is a GREAT lip product that I’ve never seen any hype about – but would deserve it! (TikTok people, make it happen!) On to my Clarins Intense Lip Comfort Oil review!
Brand description
Clarins is a somewhat snoozy French company. It is actually family-owned, founded in 1954 by Jacques Courtin-Clarins (Wikipedia). It makes both skincare and makeup, and also owns some spas.
Clarins Intense Lip Comfort Oil review: What is it?
Clarins’ lip oils became famous around 2016. I’m not a lip oil person, because I either use balm (Paula’s Choice) when I don’t want colour, or I go for a hydrating lip gloss. Fast forward to last summer, when I was browsing the Duty Free before leaving for Iceland. I’ve been to Iceland a number of times, and let me tell you, it always does a number on my lips (and hands). The wind and the cold really do their best to turn you into a shriveled prune. I had stocked up on balms and such, but then, the Clarins lip oils caught my eye. Maybe it would be a good idea to try them under such extreme conditions?
I then realized that the lip oils nowadays come in an “intense” variety that actually imparts some colour.
In some markets and countries, at least: I browsed the different Clarins sites and can tell you that the Intense Lip Comfort Oil is an elusive animal. There’re different colours available in different markets, and the shade range is between 0 to 8 different colours. It depends. (Which is always frustrating to a reviewer, but I just tell you how it is. Complain at Clarins for not making a great product available everywhere.)
I chose Intense Rosewood, a muted pink with warm undertones.
Intense Lip Comfort Oil is a powerhouse of lip care, color and shine. Intense Lip Comfort Oil hydrates and softens your lips with three ultra-nourishing organic oils: hazelnut, jojoba and cranberry. Made with a mirror-shine formula. You can almost see your reflection!
Clarins
Intense color
Mirror-like shine
Soft texture
Cocktail of three botanical oils
Ingredients
AQUA/WATER/EAU · DIISOSTEARYL MALATE · ISODODECANE · POLYGLYCERYL-2 ISOSTEARATE/ DIMER DILINOLEATE COPOLYMER · GLYCERIN · PROPANEDIOL · CETYL PEG/PPG-10/1 DIMETHICONE · SILICA · CORYLUS AVELLANA (HAZEL) SEED OIL · MAGNESIUM STEARATE · MAGNESIUM SULFATE · SIMMONDSIA CHINENSIS (JOJOBA) SEED OIL · CI 77891/TITANIUM DIOXIDE · PHENOXYETHANOL · DISTEARDIMONIUM HECTORITE · PARFUM/ FRAGRANCE · HYDROXY ACETOPHENONE · VACCINIUM MACROCARPON ( CRANBERRY) SEED OIL · PROPYLENE CARBONATE · ETHYLHEXYL GLYCERIN · DISODIUM EDTA · TOCOPHERYL ACETATE · AMMONIUM GLYCYRRHIZATE · CI 16255 · CI 19140/YELLOW 5 · CI 77491/ IRON OXIDES · CI 45380/RED 22 · CI 77492/IRON OXIDES · CI 77499/IRON OXIDES · BUTYLENE GLYCOL · CI 42090/BLUE 1 · MARRUBIUM VULGARE EXTRACT · ALUMINA · CI 15850/RED 7 LAKE · PHENETHYL ALCOHOL · FURCELLARIA LUMBRICALIS EXTRACT · LAPSANA COMMUNIS FLOWER/LEAF/STEM EXTRACT · MARIS SAL/SEA SALT/SEL MARIN. [M3566A/01]
Clarins
Formula
The marketing blurb tells of three botanical oils (jojoba, hazelnut and cranberry). The formula has some silicone for that film-forming that you want in a gloss, and some moisturizing agents and antioxidants. Thumbs up. There’s also some faint fruity smell and a cooling feeling upon application: your lips feel very slick directly after application.
Application
I really like the very pointy applicator for the precise application it yields – and that’s absolutely necessary, because she is pigmented! Whoo boy. Don’t apply this one in the car ( I can tell you that from experience).
Finish – Wear – Longevity
Did I say pigmented? Yup. Did I also tell you that they weren’t kidding when they said high shine, because yes.
The effect is like a high vinyl shine with A LOT of pigment that feels very faintly sticky and creamy on the lips. Its worlds apart from a sticky Mac lipglass, and similarly worlds away from a lip oil. This feels cushiony and substantial on my lips. Of course, that feeling doesn’t last through a meal or drinks. What it leaves, though, is a persistent stain. This is something you have to love (I do), because you’ll be left with it for a few hours, through which your lips will still feel soft and hydrated. And this is all I want in a lip product, really.
Comparison
This is maybe most comparable to K-Beauty lip tints like the Etude House Dear Darling Tints and the OG Peripera peri’s ink when it comes to texture.
Colourwise, I’d call Intense Rosewood a “nude red”: it’s a warm, muted red that leans a smidge pink on me.
Clarins Intense Lip Comfort Oil review: Worth it?
When I bought it and wore it in Iceland last year, it was instant love. My tube lives in my handbag (which is a great indicator if I love or merely like lip products: loves I want to reapply when I’m on the go), and I’ve droned about them to my rl friends. If you see them somewhere: try them! (That is if you love intensely hydrating lip products with high shine that leave a stain.) Honestly, sooooooooooooo much better than those hyped Urban Decay Vice Lip Bond Glossy Liquid Lipstick and Maybelline Super Stay Vinyl Ink Liquid Lipcolor glossy stains!
Availability & Price
It’s $29 for 0.2 oz on Clarins USA. In Germany, depending on the site, it’s between 20,45€ and 25€ (6ml).
Please note that this post is not sponsored in any way. We buy products ourselves, with our own money, and don’t accept exchanging goods or money for reviews. We are completely independent, and our reviews reflect that.
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