Revlon Whimsical Set: Colorburst Matte & Lacquer Balms Swatches & Review

Purchased by me/Contains affiliate links

Hey lovelies,

Here's an awesome set I really wanted to get reviewed before Christmas, but an epic double betrayal by my lips via back to back coldsores left me unable to. Gah. If I never get another, it'll be too soon.
The Revlon Whimsical set contains two shades of their popular Colorburst Matte Balms and three of the Colorburst Lacquer Balms. All of the shades included are available in Revlon's permanent line, but if you can find this set still, this is a huge saving on buying them separately! The Whimsical set was retailing for $44.99 at Farmers and selected pharmacies, while a single Colorburst Balm is $20.50 at my local pharmacy and a few dollars more at Farmers, so you're getting five shades for a little more than the price of two.
I did see this set still in stock at my local Farmers just a few days ago so if you're after a bargain I recommend picking this up asap! You probably want to see swatches first though, huh? :D

Swatched on bare skin in natural light

The Lacquer Balms and Matte Balms come in a twist-up 'chubby stick' style pen with colour co-ordinated packaging. I love that the finish is also matched to the formula - matte for the Matte Balms and shiny metallic for the Lacquer Balms. They all have a mint scent which leaves lips with a slight cooling sensation for the first few minutes of wear and both formulas are intended to be moisturising.

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Elusive

Elusive is one of the Matte Balms and is a fairly neutral, super wearable pink. I love this kind of pink, it goes with so much! Elusive applies smoothly and is comfortable to wear but wear the lasting power was disappointing, particularly for a matte, with it only managing to hang on for two and a half hours. 

See the rest of this makeup look here

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Sultry

Sultry is the other Matte Balm in this set and it's a deep rose with a hint of brown. As with Elusive, I only managed two and a half hours of wear, which surprised me more as it is a darker shade. The formula was smooth and non-drying at least. It's worth noting that I do have a few other Matte Balms and they do wear quite a bit longer than Elusive and Sultry do, so I don't think it's a dud formula. Just be prepared for touch ups with these - if you're not keen on the maintenance, these two aren't for you.

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Provocateur

Provocateur is a coral-red Lacquer Balm. This is my first experience with the Lacquer Balms and as someone who doesn't usually go for glossy lipsticks, I'm both surprised and pleased with them! Provocateur applies smoothly and evenly and wears for four hours with a barely noticeable amount of feathering after the first couple of hours. After the four hours, there was a ring of leftover colour but most of the product had disappeared from the center of my lips. It was neither hydrating nor drying.

See the rest of this makeup look here

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Demure

Demure is another Lacquer Balm and it's a sheer peachy nude with sparse shimmer and just enough colour pay off to even out my lip colour. The Lacquer Balms really do feel very balmy going on! Demure did emphasise uneven texture a little bit, but that wasn't visible from a distance. It had a predictably short wear time for such a light, sheer shade, clocking in two hours, during which it was lightly hydrating.

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Whimsical

Whimsical is the final Lacquer Balm. This one is a grapey-fuchsia with subtle silver shimmer. It applies smoothly, is somewhat hydrating and last for three hours.  

As I mentioned, all of these shades are permanent so you can get them any time of the year. I probably wouldn't have tried the Lacquer Balms if not for this set so I'm really glad I picked it up, as I really like them! One thing I need to nitpick is that both the Matte and Lacquer Balms are described as hydrating formulas, and I really only found two shades (Whimsical and Demure) provided any additional moisture. 

What I liked:

• All of the shades had good, even colour pay off
• None of them were drying
• Demure, Whimsical, Sultry and Elusive did not feather, bleed or migrate
• Minty scent (may be a con for some though!)
• They all apply smoothly, gliding across lips

What I didn't like:

• Provocateur had a minimal amount of feathering
• Most shades had a short wear time - between two and four hours
• The formula is described as moisturising, but most didn't provide any additional moisture (although they didn't dry lips out either)
• Demure emphasised lip flakes a little

Where to buy:

• Selected pharmacies (NZ)
• Farmers (NZ)
• Amazon

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Lani