Review: Mentholatum Sugar Lip Lipbalm in 02 Dancing Pink & 04 Rock'n Pink

♫ Bebe Rexha - No Broken Hearts (ft. Nicki Minaj)

Well, it's been a while since I last used a lip balm, so I was rather interested to find these Mentholatum Sugar Lip lip balms at my doorstep a couple months back.


Its formulation features brown sugar in the recipe, which works to nourish and smoothen your lips. It also acts as a natural humectant that seals in moisture and keeps lips feeling hydrated. Makes sense, as most - if not all - homemade lip scrubs have brown sugar as the main ingredient. I received two out of the four shades available in Malaysia: 02 Dancing Pink and 04 Rock'n Pink.

Mentholatum Sugar Lip in 02 Dancing Pink & 04 Rock'n Pink
Packaging-wise, the Sugar Lips come in fairly generic plastic black lip balm tubes, which can be easily twisted up and retracted as needed. It's very lightweight and won't take up too much space in your bag, but if you have more than one of these, it's next to impossible to distinguish one from the other, as there are no visible indicators of individual shades on the tube. The bottom of the lipstick also doesn't visibly label the corresponding shade by name; you'll have to squint to see the tiny numbers at the bottom row to figure out which shade it is. It'll probably be faster and easier to pull off the cover to check.


Design flaw notwithstanding, the Sugar Lip lip balms have no discernible scent or taste, which is okay by me and great if you're not a fan of scented lip products. There are 4 colours in total for the Sugar Lip range, and each shade differs in tone and intensity, from the lightest (01) to most vibrant (04).

Sugar Lip 02 Dancing Pink
First up is 02 Dancing Pink, a cool medium pink shade. From the colour chart on the backing card and in the tube, it looks really pretty. Alas, I was soon to discover that not only did it have very noticeable shimmer (which reminded me of those lip balms I had back during my high school days), it was not a flattering shade on my pigmented lips, as it pulled too cool on my yellow-undertone skin. After wiping it off with a tissue, I was further dismayed to find that the shimmer still remained on my lips.

Sugar Lip 04 Rock'n Pink
Next is 04 Rock'n Pink, a glossy reddish pink that thankfully showed no signs of shimmer. This is the most vibrant shade in the Sugar Lip range, and although it swatched sheer on my arm, a couple of layers on my lips showed it to be a nice rosy red that looks natural yet slightly glossy. Its warm tone also suits my skin tone much better. I like it.

Sugar Lip swatches
You can see from the swatches above that these are sheer balms that provide a soft hint of pink to the lips. I'd say the moisturizing factor for these two are just average; to me, 04 Rock'n Pink fares better in terms of hydration compared to 02 Dancing Pink, most likely because the latter has noticeable shimmer. Out of the two, I can safely say that 04 Rock'n Pink is the one I'd reach for, as it has better colour payoff (without the shimmer), looks more glossy and feels more hydrating.


Besides the two shades featured here, these Sugar Lip lip balms (3g) are also available in 01 Vintage Pink and 03 Kissy Pink. They retail at RM15.80 each, and are sold at all leading pharmacies and major supermarkets nationwide.

*Disclaimer: PR sample.  All opinions expressed are completely honest and strictly my own.

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