Review: Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain

The Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains are chubby sticks that promises to provide the wear of a stain and the comfort of a lip balm. I feel that most lip stains can be very drying and I was really curious to try out a stain that promises to moisturize my lips as well as a lip balm.

The chubby sticks come in a twist-up tube which is great because you don't have to sharpen them. I find that chubby sticks are very easy to work with and you don't need to be as careful as you would be with a pigmented lipstick. However, you may encounter a little trouble when trying to apply the product to the edge of your lips when the sharpened tip wears down. 

I'm really impressed by the color payoff of the Balm Stains. All three colors that I have are very pigmented and they can be built-up to achieve full opacity. They leave a nice subtle sheen on your lips when first applied but the shine wears off very quickly even without much lip movement. The color itself does stain pretty well and it doesn't wear off much when you talk or drink. However, it can get pretty disastrous when I eat, especially when I wear the more pigmented colors like Lovesick. The lip stain tends to wear off the most on the inner part of my lip, leaving me with a weird and ghastly looking rim of lip color. It was absolutely mortifying and I think this moment will haunt me for the rest of my life. 

These Balm Stains definitely do not have the moisturizing properties of a lip balm. The sheen that it imparts during application can fool you into thinking that it is moisturizing but that quickly disappears and the stain can be rather drying. You can apply a lip balm on top of the stain to provide more moisture but the stain will transfer to your lip balm and if you're OCD like me, you'll probably wouldn't want to do that. I do get dry and flaky lips at times and these Balm Stains will morph from a disappointment to an absolute nightmare. The product itself can be rather drying and I find that my lips can get flaky when I wear this. The stain will cling onto every flake and I will have to peel the flakes off and reapply the product on those areas. The Balm Stain is very long-wearing but as someone who snacks a lot, I have to touch up my lip color repeatedly throughout the day and I find that it defeats the purpose of wearing a stain.

The most wearable shade for me is Honey. It's a dusty rose that is very flattering and suitable for everyday wear. The color is rather neutral and I find that it wears off much better than the darker and brighter shades. It doesn't leave me with that unsightly rim described above so I get the most use out of this color.

Cherish is my least favorite shade out of the three that I have. It is a bright blue based pink that reminds me of a highlighter (the stationery kind) pink. I find that the Balm Stains do change color on my lips after awhile and Cherish has the most obvious color change out of the three. It gets really bright after awhile and the color just doesn't look good on me.

Lovesick is a fuchsia that is very pigmented and you can build it up to a bright fuchsia that is fully opaque. I don't usually wear bright lips so this is more of a statement lip color for me. I will never wear this on a long day or when eating is on my agenda but I will still wear it for night outs.

I've read so much rave reviews about the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains and I really wanted to like them as much as everyone else. The Balm Stains are really long-wearing and there are some great colors in the range but they are just too high maintenance for me and I don't want to have to constantly check on my lips throughout the day. What is your experience with the Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stains?