Crazy Rumors: A La Mode

I was browsing the Internet one night while I was in Los Angeles a few weeks ago and stumbled upon a lip balm company that I had never heard of before. I was amazed by how attractive and well done their website was from their "mascot" to the different names for their different lines of lip balm. I then noticed their very unique and unusual flavors and could not decide on just a select few to try; this was definitely not your ordinary lip balm company. I was so engulfed by their website and overwhelmed by the variety of flavors that I ended up buying three complete lines of their lip balms and a handful of single lip balms from a mixture of their other lines. For now, I'll start with just one of their branches of flavors: A La Mode.

Company: Crazy Rumors

Flavors: Orange Creamsicle, Raspberry Sherbet, Mint Chocolate, and Banana Split. I CANNOT describe how delicious all of these flavors smell! The Raspberry Sherbet was so crisp and fruity, it was as if I had just opened up a pint of the actual thing. Also, I've tried other Banana Split lip balms since discovering my banana flavored balm and this one definitely takes the cake! I can smell the hot fudge, nuts, and banana; I was practically drooling when I took just a small whiff of it. The Mint Chocolate was also the perfect mash up of mint and chocolate, with neither being too overwhelming or stronger than the other. I found that the Orange Creamsicle was more citrus-y and orange than it had creamy vanilla, but it was still quite enjoyable.

Wear: As I always say, it's hard to find a natural balm that glides on beautifully and man I have never had one go on as smooth as these ones! As soon as you try to apply it, it's soft and goes on wonderfully. You get full coverage and my lips definitely feel softer. It feels thinner than most other balms when it goes on, but definitely doesn't feel like you need more to get the job done. It also lasted more than an hour, which was fabulous!

Packaging: The size of these balms are your average lip balm size, but have really cool labels attached to them. Each label has a classic old-fashioned feel to them (and I truly mean that in the best way possible) and have a banner that is color coded to match the flavor that states the flavor of the balm. They have clear caps which are pretty unusual but definitely compliment the look of the balm.

Price: $3.49 plus shipping, this is a pretty good price for a 100% natural, vegan, and cruelty-free balm.

Overall:
Pros: Flavors, flavors, flavors! Price, Packaging, Application
Cons: Nothing that I can see

Rating: 5 out of 5 twists, I highly recommend trying this brand!

Softlips: "Best of" Classics 5-pack + Raspberry

It seems just about time to do another post about one of my favorite lip balm brands, Softlips! I've decided to break up the sections according to their "Best of" packs on their website and then do their other special balms that don't fit into those categories in their own post. Of course I will also have to do a separate post on the Canadian flavors and lines of lip balm that I've got mixed into my collection. It's probably a little unhealthy to have as many Softlips tubes as I do, but I can't help it! With so many flavors and options, it's hard not to acquire so many! I suppose we should get right to it:

Company:Softlips

Flavors: Cherry, Mint with a Hint of Vanilla, Vanilla, Strawberry, and Wildberry. True to the majority of their flavors, these balms smell absolutely delicious! My personal favorite from this bunch is Mint with a Hint of Vanilla, it's a pleasant mint (by now you should all know I love mint balms) with a refreshing splash of Vanilla. It is such a lovely and interesting combination, perfect for any day. Next would probably be Strawberry, it's got a great scent and has a little different spin on Strawberry. It feels a little tingly on my lips after application but I like it. The Vanilla (another one of my favorite flavors) is also a light vanilla flavor and scent and great on it's own or mixed with another flavor. Wildberry I feel like has the best scent out of any of the others in this 5-pack, it smells just like fresh berries! The Cherry is probably my least favorite just because I am not a huge fan of Cherry flavored lip balms, but I've had many friends who actually think of it as their favorite. Another flavor I'm going to include in here, although it's not part of the "Best of" Classics 5-pack, is Raspberry with Green Tea Extract because I feel like it's another one of those "everyday" flavors that they carry. This one is probably the second best smelling out of the six flavors listed here and it is definitely my boyfriend's favorite Softlips flavor. All in all, every balm listed here is a winner. You can't really go wrong with any of these.

Wear: Like every tube of Softlips, every one glides on with ease right from the start. The smaller diameter allows for precise application onto your lips without fear that it will spread over around your mouth (unless that's how you want to put it on, by all means, please go ahead). The smaller diameter does mean that extra swipes are necessary to get full coverage but the scents are so delightful and they go on so smoothly, I doubt anyone would truly consider this a downfall to the application. Each tube also has an SPF of 20 which is always a fabulous bonus.

Packaging: Thin, long white tubes with colors of the company name and flavor matching the flavor of the balm. The tubes look very pleasant and are cute to carry around.

Price: Around $3 for a pack of two which is great for getting two balms, sometimes you can also find packs with two different flavors. However the tubes are about half the size of a usual tube so in comparison you're paying about the same amount for two tubes of Softlips as you pay for one tube of your average lip balm. I don't see any downside to this since I'm not paying any more money for them than I usually would.

Overall:
Pros: Flavors, Price, Packaging, Smooth Application
Cons:More swipes for proper coverage(?)

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 twists

Green by Nature

One day while in a Target I happened to be doing my usual perusing the cold and flu isle for lip balm and stumbled upon this neat pack containing three lip balms that I had not owned yet. I saw that it was a natural and organic and contained a new flavor I hadn't owned yet, Banana! I had to give it a shot!

Company: green by nature

Flavors: Banana, Beeswax, and Coconut. The Banana is dead on! It's fragrant of sweet banana, it's quite pleasant. Coconut of course is also dead on, very wonderful. I've never been a fan of beeswax lip balms so I'm sure that one is good as well. They definitely know what they're doing in the flavor department. Banana is definitely a very unique flavor and you can't usually find it in stores.

Wear: It goes on SO smooth from the start! Its a little slick but not too terrible and you never have to fight with it. It covers great and a little goes a long way. It's great to find those balms that are organic and natural and go on so great. They also last a good amount of time but sometimes I find myself licking my lips which means I have to reapply but still, it's such a pleasant experience I don't mind doing so. My lips definitely feel moisturized after I put this on.

Packaging: It is a standard lip balm tube that is white with a picture of the fruit that the balm is flavored after and a small green banner with the company's name. It's a pretty simple enough tube and it's got its own edge to it since it uses a font that usually isn't found much on the labels of lip balms. Also the three pack came in a neat box that allowed me to view the three balms through it. Overall, great packaging.

Price: $9.99 from Target, this isn't so bad since you get three balms and they're natural and organic. They're just a little bit above my usual $3 average price but definitely worth it!

Overall:
Pros:Price, wear, flavors, packaging
Cons:Not enough flavors in store, usually out of stock online

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 twists, I really love this balm but I wish I could find more flavors in store and for some reason they don't really have a company website so the only place you can really buy them is from other stores online. I once saw a list of their flavors and they had a ton but now I can't find any of them.

eos (Evolution of Smooth)

If you've ever stood in line at a Walmart check out you've probably noticed these brightly colored spheres next to the lip balms in the impulse section. I had always noticed them and never knew what they were, simply passed them by every time I saw them. One day I decided to pick one up and realized it was a lip balm! As soon as I picked up one flavor, a friend suggested two other flavors which of course I picked up as well and before you knew it I was completely hooked on these cute little spheres! I now have basically every flavor (including their stick options). It took me a long while and a trip to San Francisco but I have successfully acquired all of the spheres (including some limited edition ones). 

Company: eos (Evolution of Smooth) 

Flavors: Lemon Drop (SPF 15), Summer Fruit, Honeysuckle Honeydew, Sweet Mint, Tangerine (Medicated), Strawberry Sorbet, and Passion fruit. The Lemon Drop flavor is my absolute favorite, I've never had a lemon lip balm before this one and I absolutely loved the flavor and scent. My friends saw me constantly putting it on (the sphere on the inside is no longer a sphere, it was almost completely flat by the end of the first two weeks of owning it). Its sweet and fresh. The Tangerine is my next favorite, you can't really tell that it's Tangerine but there's something about it that I just love. Sweet mint is in 3rd place, I love anything mint so this was definitely going to make my top three. It's a subtle mint and not at all overbearing. The scents on all of these balms are light and fragrant and not at all obnoxious. The rest of the flavors are good as well, not my favorites but still pretty good. Passion fruit and Strawberry Sorbet were the limited edition flavors last summer and I was really excited to find them finally in store in San Francisco but was disappointed that past a nice, light scent there was no flavor and no real "oomph" or anything spectacular about it. They also carry Vanilla Bean, Pomegranate Raspberry, and Sweet Mint in their tube forms. I was not a fan at all of the Vanilla Bean but I didn't mind the Pomegranate Raspberry. It may have been the sticks I received but the scents/flavors didn't compare to the spheres. I'll try them again but for now, I'm sticking to the spheres.

Wear: The sphere takes a second to get warmed up and quickly does and goes on great. It's not a slick application, it's always a little stiff but if it weren't the sphere would most likely not hold its shape at all. The coverage is great, using the sphere is much different from the usual lip balms you find in stores. The round shape of the sphere allows you to place balm where you want it, but once you get to a flat state like mine, balm can stray off the lips but that's only if you decide to forgo maintaining the spherical shape of the balm. My lips always feel really smooth after application and it usually lasts at least an hour.

Packaging: The balms come in cute colorful spheres, each color coded to match their flavor. Very original packaging, not your usual drugstore tube. It definitely makes you stand out but the sphere is harder to carry around than your usual tube if you're trying to fit it into your jeans pocket. What else is there to say, the packaging is awesome and unique!

Price: The price varies depending on where you buy. You can get them at Walmart for about $2.96 which is a great price for what you get, but if you buy from other places you may pay anywhere from $3.25-$4. You also get 0.25oz for around the same price as an average tube of lip balm which is only 0.15oz, which means this balm lasts you longer than your normal lip balm for about the same price. Wonderful!

Overall:
Pros: Packaging, Price, Variety in Flavors, Wear, Long Lasting, Most Organic
Cons: Only one flavor has SPF, Can't fit in jean pocket


Rating: 5 out of 5 twists, there isn't enough good stuff I can say about this balm. If you haven't tried them yet, you are definitely missing out!

Here's what's coming up soon!

I thought I'd go ahead and give you all a sneak peak at what's to come:

My Lip Stuff

Crazy Rumors

eos (Evolution of Smooth)

Mountain Sky Love thy Lips

green by nature

As well as everything else in here:

New Reviews in a Few Days!

I realize I haven't done a review in a couple days and I apologize for that. I've been working on taking pictures of all the next balms I'll be reviewing and keeping tallies on my collection. I also just picked up two packages last night which totaled about 40 tubes of balm from two companies, so I'll need some time to gather my thoughts on these. 


Hopefully by the weekend I will have another review or two for you!


-The Chapstick Wrangler