This Christmas my best friend gifted me a lip balm from The Body Shop's new Holiday collection. I had been wanting this lip balm ever since I saw it featured in magazines, but The Body Shop would never have it whenever I visited their stores. But finally I got my hands on it, thanks to my best friend! So here is my review on The Body Shop's Cranberry Joy Lip Balm.
WHAT THE BODY SHOP SAYS: Get mistletoe-ready with a non-sticky balm that quickly hydrates lips and has a fresh berry flavour. The key ingredient is Cranberry seed oil.
PRICE: Rs. 325 (incl. of tax).
PACKAGING: The 15ml lip balm comes in a little metallic tin. I personally love tins as they have a very vintage charm. The Cranberry Joy lip balm's tin is red in colour, with the brand name and product name printed on the lid in white. There are also little festive graphics surrounding all the typed info that look like a wreath. Cute.
TEXTURE: As The Body Shop claims, the lip balm is not at all sticky. It is very smooth and creamy, more like their range of lip butters. Dunking your fingers into pots of lip balms is not something everyone likes, but the lip balm is so non-sticky that it barely remains on your fingers after you apply it to your lips. It feels extremely light weight on your lips and is very moisturizing.
COLOUR: When I first saw the Cranberry range of the Holiday collection, I honestly thought the lip balm would be that bright cranberry red in colour. But I was really surprised when I saw that it is actually the palest of pinks, almost white. It is also a bit shimmery and to me it looks like snow! However, this is not one of my favourite pinks so I was a bit disappointed. On applying the lip balm does give your lips a pale pink-white colour, along with shimmer and looks very matte. The other variant available is Spiced Vanilla.
SMELL & FLAVOUR: The smell is absolutely amazing! I love anything cranberry, and I could go on smelling this lip balm forever. It is quite a strong fragrance, because I could smell the lip balm even before I opened all the packaging! However, it is not one of those sickly sweet smells. Like it says on the lid, it has a 'fresh berry flavour'. It has a very subtle sweet taste, and it is quite hard for me to keep licking it off!
LASTING POWER: The colour lasts for about 2 hours without you eating or drinking anything. The moisturizing goes on for a bit longer than the colour. Although you might have to reapply it after every few hours, it is a good, hydrating product for winters.
SOMETHING EXTRA: Like all Body Shop products, this one too has a Community Trade ingredient. The beeswax used in it has been supplied from bee keepers from the remote Adamaoua region in Cameroon.
CONCLUSION: I love, love, love the packaging. The wreath on the lid, the snowy effect with the actual balm makes it the perfect holiday product! I love how it feels on my lips, and it is extremely hydrating. My only glitch is the colour. I don't like how it pales out my lips. Other than that, this is a really nice buy!
RATING: 4 out of 5
