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Have you ever had a product haunt you for a while? Something you keep meaning to try but never actually order? For me, that’s exactly how it was with ETUDE Dear Darling Water Tint. It’s been on my mind for the last 5-6 years, but I never remember to add it to cart. Until now.
Perhaps one of the most iconic kbeauty lip products, the Dear Darling Water Tint is a bright, vivid, watery lip color. It is sold on Amazon, YesStyle (reward code KBHOBBIT), and Stylevana (code INF10KBH). YesStyle carries these in 5 colors; I chose Cherry Ade.
How to use
Apply from the inner part of the lips outwards for a gradient look
Reapply a few times if you want full coverage
Despite my best efforts a few years ago, I never mastered the popular gradient lip, so I do full coverage. As advertised, the tint is super watery and can be somewhat messy to apply if you don’t take your time. Squishing the applicator against the side of the bottle opening to get excess tint off really helps with that. The tint smells and tastes quite nice / fruity / sweet. Of course, I’m not suggesting you consume this, but it’s nice to know there’s no unpleasant flavor or scent.
My impressions
I’m glad I tried this, but ultimately it’s not for me. The color is vibrant and juicy, but it doesn’t look very good on my somewhat dry lips. It settles into the dryer patches and looks uneven a little while after application. Dear Darling tint isn’t sticky, but it’s also not hydrating (and hydration is one of the marketing claims). It’s not drying either, so it basically just amplifies whatever your lip condition is.
ETUDE Water Tint is my first ever lip product with this thin texture, and I discovered I don’t like that. I prefer lip tints and glosses that are thicker and look good right after application as well as for hours afterwards. I don’t need crazy longevity, but I want any lip product to wear off / fade evenly, without looking patchy or having to reapply.
Someone with well hydrated, moisturized lips will probably enjoy this and make it their daily staple.
At this price (below $7 on most sites), it’s still worth a try. You might be one of the many, many people who like this product.
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Dear Darling Cherry Ade ingredients: WATER / AQUA / EAU, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, TREHALOSE, PENTYLENE GLYCOL, 1,2-HEXANEDIOL, PEG-60 HYDROGENATED CASTOR OIL, RED 33 (CI 17200), YELLOW 6 (CI 15985), GLYCERYL CAPRYLATE, FRAGRANCE / PARFUM, GLYCERIN, PROPANEDIOL, PUNICA GRANATUM FRUIT JUICE, RUBUS IDAEUS (RASPBERRY) JUICE, VITIS VINIFERA (GRAPE) JUICE