Bare Minerals Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balm - Rose Passion [review]

Today I bring you a review of the new Bare Minerals Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balm in Rose Passion. I love trying out tinted lip balms, because my lips are always dry and they are work friendly. I chose the shade Rose Passion because it looked like a nice muted red rose pink and most of the line is made up of brighter shades. I bought mine for $16 at Ulta.

If the color Rose Passion doesn't float your boat, I swatched the entire line of Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balms here.

Packaging

The packaging is pretty nice - I like that the color of the tube shows the color of the product. The shape of the product and application reminded me a lot of the Revlon Lip Butter or the Maybelline Color Whisper.

Formula

Bare Minerals advertises the Lip Oil Balm formula as hydrating and nourishing with shiny color and a comfortable stain. I think it delivers on all counts - the stain lasted pretty well on me, similar to the Revlon balm stains but less than the YSL glossy stains. I found the formula to be moisturizing and the product had some shine on my lips.

My huge huge huge problem with this was that it didn't stain true to color. This product looks like a red tinted rosy pink at first, but the stain is a brighter pink that leans fuchsia instead of red. The bright pink wasn't unflattering or uneven, but it wasn't what I wanted. I have had this problem happen with other lip stain products, but it is disappointing, especially considering the price point. For $16, I expect a true to color stain.

Swatches

Below I have lip swatches and arm swatches, all with no primer or lip liner.

 Lip swatch: Bare Minerals Pop of Passion Lip Oil Balm - Rose Passion

L To R: Bare Minerals Rose Passion, Revlon Honey, Skin Food Rose Essence, NARS Rikugien, Too Faced La Creme Believe

As you can see comparing the swatch above with my lip swatch, the product wears more pink over time. By comparison, the closest shade I have to Bare Minerals Rose Passion is the limited edition Too Faced La Creme lipstick in Believe. Both Revlon Honey and NARS Rikugien are a little more brown, while the Revlon is more of a balm and Rikugien is a shine lipstick formula. On the lips the Skin Food Rose Essence lip balm is similar, but is more sheer, purple, and a little brighter.

Overall, I returned this product. I was extremely disappointed that the balm didn't stain true to color and none of the other shades in the line jumped out at me. I did like the hydration and shine, so I would recommend the formula if you like a shade in the line.

Bare Minerals makes another lightweight staining lip product, the Triple Take, that I like more. I have swatches of the shade Coral Pink here if you are interested in an alternative.