Althea Korea Watercolor Cream Tint (01 Plum Cream) Review, Swatch, Price

Althea Korea Watercolor Cream Tint (01 Plum Cream) Review

Althea Korea Watercolor Cream Tints were among the first of many Althea releases. The K-beauty retail behemoth has thankfully dabbled into its own label, as they have churned quite a lot of impressive releases across makeup and skincare. These tints are creamy and watercolor-like, which is unique as most Korean tints are transparent and jelly-like. The creamy color pigmentation means more versatility in usage and a more natural-looking result on the lips and cheeks. This review is for the shade 01 Plum Cream.

Product Information:

Product Name
Althea Korea Watercolor Cream Tint
Pricing and Availability
Php490 per 4.5mL tube, exclusive at Althea. Also sold in sets.
Shade Selection
4 shades: crimson, chili red, brown peach, and mauve The shades are nicely varied for different skintones, needs, and occasions, even if there are only 4 shades!
Scent (If Any)
Has a faint peach fragrance.
Opacity
Transparent	Translucent	Opaque (color is buildable from translucent to opaque)
Pigmentation
Unpigmented	Pigmented	Highly Pigmented
Finish
Matte	Satin	Glossy
Comfort
Uncomfortable	Comfortable	Very Comfortable
Lasting Power
Short (0-2 hours)	Medium (2-5 hours)	Long (≥5 hours)

Texture Scale:

Watery	X	X	X	X	X	Mousse Like
Thick	X	X	X	X	X	Thin
Sticky	X	X	X	X	X	Not Sticky
Moves	X	X	X	X	X	Dries and Sets

Overall Feedback:

Althea Watercolor Cream Tints are highly pigmented and can be used as a translucent tint or layered thickly as a sophisticated lip lacquer. I have reviewed these before, but wanted to break it down to individual posts so that I could showcase the photos more.

Like its namesake, it has a blendable creamy texture and buildable watercolor opacity. The texture is similar to Korean cheek tint wherein it’s watery and far from being a mousse, but it has some structure to it (i.e. not runny). These are creamy and easy to use, and these can be used for the cheeks quite easily as it doesn’t dry out in patches during application. It’s also buildable like watercolor, as it can be applied thinly or over lip balm as a light tint, or layered thickly to full opacity.

I personally love all the shades as they look good on plenty of skin tones, unlike really red Korean tints. There was a slight warm undertone to each shade, which is why they will look good on Southeast Asians very well. There are only 4 shades, but I actually like how they worked on 4 very different looking shades for different kinds of people, instead of the usual brand that will churn out 10 shades for one kind of pale skin tone!

These tints feel comfortable to use alone, with no sticky sensation nor any stinging. The creamy texture and opaque coloration also make it more forgiving in hiding the dry patches on my lips at times. Of course, mousse tints will do better on dry lips, but amongst liquid tints, this is among the more forgiving ones. This lasts fairly well at about 3-5 hours at full intensity on the lips and fades into a slight tint that stays put all day.

At Php490 for each 4.5mL tube, it’s a bit pricey now relative to the introductory price. However, there are always sales and discounts, so it’s not hard to snag these babies at a good price. Also, since you only need to use so little tint each time, each tube goes a long way.

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01 Plum Cream

A deep crimson with a touch of blue. Not the usual electrifying red we think of when bluish-red comes to mind, but instead is this more wearable deep plum red.