If you’re anything like me, then you are perpetually in search of the perfect lip balm. When I heard that Elizabeth Arden was launching not one, but two lip products based on their best-selling Eight Hour line, I knew I had to try them!
Some background from Elizabeth Arden:
Since its introduction in 1930, Elizabeth Arden’s original Eight Hour® Skin Protectant has been an international sensation that’s passed down from generation to generation. While the formula for the iconic “miracle” cream has remained virtually unchanged, the Eight Hour® collection has expanded to include multiple products for the face and body. Both Eight Hour® Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm and Nourishing Lip Balm SPF 20 leverage Elizabeth Arden’s spa science, the brand’s unique approach to beauty that merges 100 years of hands-on spa experience and product innovation with the latest scientific innovations.
The first product:
Eight Hour® Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm delivers intense, long-lasting moisture. The rich gel formula also helps strengthen lip’s delicate moisture barrier, leaving lips healthier-looking and more beautiful than ever before. Packaged in a portable jar with a twist off lid, Eight Hour® Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm imparts lips with subtle sheen and a refreshing eucalyptus-based fragrance. This balm’s ingredients and benefits include:
- Petrolatum, Shea Butter, Palm Tree Butter, Essential Fatty Acids complex and Honey Extract — high level mixture of emollients and moisturizers helps seal in moisture as it smoothes and softens lips
- Petrolatum and Arnica Flower Oil —helps heal dry, chapped lips and create a protective film to protect against future damage
- Vitamin E Acetate, Vitamin A Palmitate, Honey Extract and Watercress Extract replenish essential nutrients lost over time
- Menthol and Menthol Lactate– cooling agents provide immediate soothing relief
- Cardiospermum Halicacabum – botanical extract which help soothe and calm skin
The Eight Hour® Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm is the one I was most excited about trying as our Canadian winter wreaks havoc on the delicate lip skin. I use lip balms religiously, throughout the day and before bed, and even then, I sometimes end up with wind- or winter-chapped lips. I cannot bear having chapped lips, yikes! So in order to bring you a valuable review, I decided to give the Eight Hour Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm a month-long trial, using it daily at least once, in addition to every single night before bed. My findings:
- The product is buttery soft, the consistency of whipped, near-room-temperature butter.
- It is not greasy though: the gel-formula applies a barrier over your lips without being like petroleum jelly.
- It has the slightest scent of eucalyptus and honey, and leaves a hint of a cooling sensation when applied. I found this cooling effect to be more noticeable when your lips are chapped or dry, eg from wearing matte, drying lipstick.
- It leaves a delicious soft feeling on your lips when you go to bed with it, and also makes a wonderful base for your lipstick when heading out.
- While using this product, I have had softer lips every morning when I wake up. Even after a day of wearing lipstick or gloss, my lips are not dry.
I am absolutely obsessed with this Intensive Lip Repair Balm!! I was actually away, without my Lip Repair Balm for a couple of days, and came back with wind-burned lips. I don’t think I can go to bed wearing anything else.
For your day-to-day use, the Eight Hour® Cream Nourishing Lip Balm SPF 20 provides lips with the essential, daily moisture they need. This luxurious gloss is enriched with 8 vitamins, minerals and nutrients and minerals, and includes UVA and UVB broad-spectrum sun protection. Housed in a portable squeeze tube with a slanted lip applicator, Nourishing Lip Balm SPF 20 indulges lips with sheer shine and a neutral scent. This nourishing treatment’s ingredients and benefits include:
- Petrolatum, Lanolin, Shea Butter, Castor Oil, Palm Tree Butter, Essential Fatty Acids complex and Honey Extract — high level mixture of emollients and moisturizers helps seal in moisture, as it smoothes and softens lips
- Petrolatum and Lanolin — creates a protective film to protect against future damage
- UVA and UVB Filters — provides broad spectrum sun protection
- Vitamin E, Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Omega 6, Omega 3, Calcium, Zinc and Iron — replenishes 8 essential vitamins, minerals and nutrients lost over time
Working hand-in-hand with the Intensive Lip Repair Balm, the Nourishing Lip Balm with SPF 20 provides daily protection from the elements. I love the tube applicator that you can toss in your purse and carry with you! Here is what I found with this product:
- Has a nearly undetectable scent, and comes out in a pale pink cream that applies invisibly on your lips.
- Wore this daily under both lip gloss and lipstick. Used it under one of my favourite red matte lipsticks and it created a moisturizing canvas for the product. My new trick is to apply this over the matte lipstick as well, in order to prevent the drying, cracking effect of that lipstick. Works like a charm!
- The Nourishing Lip Balm is extremely nourishing, providing long-lasting relief from dryness.
- I decided to test this product’s moisture delivery by actually wearing it to bed, and even with its SPF, I woke up with incredibly soft lips the next morning!
Needless to say, Elizabeth Arden blew me away with this addition to their Eight Hour product line, and I am obsessed. I love the texture, the scent, and most importantly, the result of both these products.
In Canada, they are both available for purchase at The Bay, Sears, Shoppers Drug Mart, London Drugs and Pharma Plus Ltd. The Eight Hour® Cream Intensive Lip Repair Balm 15ml jar retails for $28.00 Cdn, and the Nourishing Lip Balm SPF 20 15ml tube is $23.00 Cdn.
Check out ElizabethArden.com for purchasing in the US.
(Products provided for consideration and review. All opinions are my own.)