I Tried the Viral Olive Young Lip Tint Everyone's Talking About
I Tried the Viral Olive Young Lip Tint Everyone's Talking About
I have a complicated relationship with lip tints.
On one hand, I love the idea — a sheer wash of color that looks effortless and lasts through coffee and lunch. On the other hand, I've been burned so many times by lip tints that either peel off in patches, dry out my lips until they crack, or fade unevenly in a way that makes it look like you've been eating red popsicles for hours.
So when the rom&nd Juicy Lasting Tint started showing up everywhere — on K-beauty TikTok, in every Olive Young store display, in the hands of seemingly every person I walked past on Hongdae's main drag — I was curious, but skeptical.
I've been testing it for about three weeks now. Let me tell you what's actually going on.
What Even Is a Lip Tint?
For anyone new to Korean lip products: a lip tint is not a lipstick. It's not a gloss. It's somewhere in between, but also kind of its own thing.
Traditional Korean lip tints are water-based and designed to stain your lips rather than coat them. The idea is that even after the product wears off, there's a residual flush of color. Think of it like dying fabric versus painting it — a stain goes deeper.
The rom&nd Juicy Lasting Tint is a slightly different format. It's a water-tint hybrid with a glossy finish — so you get the staining effect plus a bit of shine. And it comes in approximately 40 shades (I'm not exaggerating, it's close to that), which is part of why it became a thing.
First Impressions
I picked mine up at the Olive Young near Sinchon station, along with approximately ₩45,000 of other things I didn't plan to buy. Classic.
rom&nd Juicy Lasting Tint shades
The packaging is a small tube with a doe-foot applicator — nothing fancy, but it feels substantial enough. Not cheaply made. The color I got is #22 "Prune Juice," which is a deep berry that leans plum on my lips.
Opening it, the scent hits immediately. It smells like actual fruit candy. Specifically, it smells like the inside of a Korean convenience store candy aisle — sweet, slightly artificial, but not unpleasant. Actually kind of fun. But if you're sensitive to fragrance in lip products, take note. This is definitely scented.
The formula looks glossy in the tube. Almost gel-like.
The Application
The doe-foot applicator is finer than I expected, which actually helps with precision. I did a swipe across the center of my lips and blended it out — the texture is somewhere between a jelly and a thin gloss. It goes on smooth. No drag, no sticky immediately-dry feeling.
The color payoff is decent but sheer. One coat gives you a tinted flush, two coats gives you something more defined. For the plum shade I got, one coat looked like a natural "my lips but better" color and two coats looked more intentional and makeup-like.
It does have a slight tack to it when first applied — the kind of sticky that makes you want to keep your lips slightly parted for the first thirty seconds. That settles down after about a minute and leaves a comfortable, not-too-glossy finish.
The weight is almost nothing. You genuinely forget you're wearing it. And that, honestly, is probably the biggest reason people love this.
Wear Test
Here's where I got honest with myself.
Day 1: I put it on at 8am and tested it through my morning coffee (with a lid, which I know changes everything), a convenience store kimbap at noon, and an afternoon of generally existing. By 2pm the gloss was gone but the stain was very much there. The plum color had settled into my lips as a natural-looking berry flush. Actually really pretty.
Day 2: I tried it on dry lips without lip balm first. This is where the downsides showed up. The formula emphasized every dry bit of texture on my lips and started to look patchy within two hours. Lesson learned.
Day 3: I prepped with a thin layer of lip balm, let it sink in for a minute, then applied the tint. Much better. Smooth, even, and the wear time was genuinely impressive.
So the verdict on wear: it's good, but it doesn't forgive dehydrated lips. You have to prep.
Comparison to Western Products
The closest thing in Western drugstores is probably the NYX Lip Lingerie XXL Matte Liquid Lipstick — but the rom&nd is lighter, glossier, and feels way more comfortable. It's also less opaque, which is either a downside (less dramatic) or an upside (easier to wear daily) depending on what you're going for.
If you're used to the Benefit Benetint (the classic rose cheek and lip stain in the little bottle), this is a more modern take on that concept — more comfortable, better color range, and with a finishes that doesn't look quite as... retro.
The Shades
Okay I have to mention this because it's actually impressive.
rom&nd Juicy Lasting Tint color swatches
rom&nd has so many shades of this tint, organized into different finish categories. The "Juicy Lasting Tint" range covers nudes, corals, pinks, berries, and reds. The "Blur Water Tint" gives a diffused finish. The "Glasting Water Tint" is the glazed lips version. They've really built out an entire lip universe around this formula.
My personal recommendations based on what I've seen in-store and swatched on my own hand:
- For a nude-pink everyday look: #05 or #20
- For a classic Korean MLBB (my lips but better): #01 or #14
- For a bold berry moment: #22 (my current one)
- For a warm coral: #11
Price per tube: about ₩12,000 / ~$9 at Olive Young. Amazon → YesStyle →
The Honest Verdict
Would I buy it again? Yes. It's become my go-to on days when I want some color without the commitment of a full lip look. The staining effect is real, the formula is genuinely comfortable (with lip prep), and the shade range is one of the better ones at this price point.
But it's not perfect. The fragrance is noticeable, dry lips need prepping, and if you're looking for something opaque and matte, this isn't it.
Is it worth all the TikTok hype? Mostly, yeah. The hype is a little much — it's a good lip tint, not a life-changing experience — but as a ₩12,000 impulse buy, it's one of the better ones I've made.
One last thing: the mini size (about 3ml) is sold at Olive Young for around ₩5,000 (~$3.50). If you want to try before committing to the full tube, the mini is a very smart move.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I've personally tried and genuinely like.