Etude House Dear Darling Water Gel Tint

I know the days of glorious sunshine are pretty much over (for rainy, rainy Britain), but how about getting one last fling at summer with these adorable water gel tints from Etude House? These were released months ago when I was still in the UK, miles away from affordable Korean beauty brands.

dear darling water gel tint shark red watermelon red
Shark Red (L), Watermelon Red (R)

Today I’ll be reviewing the Dear Darling Water Gel Tint from Etude House– their Dear Darling tints have a huge range, but for these adorable popsicles, there are just six: 샤크레드 (Shark Red) , 통팥레드 (Red Bean Red), 수박레드 (Watermelon Red), 오피치레드 (Oh Peachy Red), 보석레드 (Jewel Red), and 살구레드(Apricot Red).

I found the tints very pigmented, like the rest of the Dear Darling range, and some of the shades ended up looking pretty similar when I swatched them instore! I decided to get the reddish tints since I look better in those hues (compared to pink).

dear darling water gel tint shark red watermelon red

I bought two tints (Shark Red, Watermelon Red) during a 1+1 event, from a store called Beauti Topping on a local Singapore shopping site, Qoo10 (SG). There is an alternate site called Qoo10 Global, for international shoppers- the tints are shipped direct from Korea, and are often marginally cheaper than getting them in brick and mortar stores.

I got it with the sale price of $8.70 (U.P. $10.99) with shipping $1.90 (total roughly £6) which was a steal considering it costs $9.90 in stores. I keep harping on the price but as a Singaporean, there’s nothing I love more than a good deal! Qoo10 does sales regularly so keep an eye out- the price will surely drop soon.

dear darling water gel tint shark red watermelon red
Watermelon Red (L), Shark Red (R)

dear darling water gel tint shark red watermelon red

 

You can apply several coats for a buildable look or apply in the center and blend outwards for a softer, ulzaang look. Bitten lips, right on trend!

I usually bring Shark Red with me- I just pop it into my purse and carry it around, it’s small and fits perfectly. It might be less convenient to pop into a pocket due to its thickness (my common gripe with the EOS lip balms) though.

dear darling water gel tint shark red watermelon red

I also purchased the normal Dear Darling tints in two shades- RD305 (L) and BR401 (R).

dear darling water gel tint

I got BR401 purely by accident- I placed the order assuming it was a deeper red, but this was from the soda pop range- also named BR401. Ach, online shopping is convenient, but it’s so much easier to mess up/ click something you didn’t mean to/ order something you didn’t intend to. Oh well.

BR401 has a matte formula and smells strongly of sweet soda. I profess to not being a fan of the colour- it is a very peachy pink and applies thickly. The chemical-y sweet smell irritates my nose (and lips! they burned)- I’m not overly sensitive to fragrances and don’t mind them, but this was overwhelming. I’ll probably sell it off on Depop or Carousell (both links will take you to my shop page).

RD305 is now my new everyday shade- despite how dark it looks on the official promotional pictures, it blends out to a very wearable shade! It is a lovely brick red shade with no orange undertones.

I use it with the NYX soft matte lip cream in Abu Dhabi and it looks gorgeous! I’ve never been a fan of full-on matte shades, since I’m often snacking throughout the day- matte lipsticks tend to wear off fastest in the center, giving that dreaded patchy look.

Lip tints are a lot more lightweight and easy to reapply- and you don’t have to take them off at all- they just wear off over the course of the day or come off easily during your regular face cleansing routine without any hassle or stain! I think it’s a great shame lip tints haven’t been brought to western countries like UK/ USA or publicised more.

It was only early this year that I’ve seen beauty sites like Beautybay start stocking Korean brands like Tonymoly (a favourite with such sites, since the packaging is adorable), and I’ve spotted a few Etude House products sold in T.K.Maxx (mostly older ranges).

Do any of you guys use makeup from Korean brands? I would recommend giving them a try- they are often comparable to huge, established beauty brands for a fraction of the price! I use a sheet mask from Innisfree to save my skin after a bad breakout- it is honestly such a lifesaver. While I’m still in Singapore, I’ll try to review more Asian beauty brands- it’s been too long since I’ve done a full review!

I purchased these products with my own money, and all opinions about the product are my own.