rom&nd
If a lip tint, a melting balm or a shade you saw numbered online brought you here: what those shade codes actually mean, why muted colours suit some people and not others, and the picks we send.
About
rom&nd is a Korean colour cosmetics brand, operated from Gangnam-gu, Seoul by iFamilySC Co., Ltd. Its range covers face, eyes, cheeks and lips, and it names its lines rather than numbering them: Zero Velvet Tint, Zero Layer Lipstick and Foundation, Juicy Lasting Tint, See-Through Matte Tint, Glasting Melting Balm, Better Than Eyes.
Three things the brand says about its own lip products are worth holding onto. The Zero Velvet Tint is sold as knit-like lips in a light 0g lipstick — a matte that claims to weigh nothing. The Color Lip Matte is described as filling vertical lip lines like a primer and adding only a blurred colour, applied with a flat lip spreader tip designed for even gradients. And Lip Matter is pitched as moist underneath and powder-dry on top, a layer that turns any lipstick you already own matte.
Open any line and the numbers run 01, 02, 03 down that line's own list, each paired with a name — Joyful, Burnt Heart, Peach Puff.
Weightless matte, a lip primer, and a shade code: each is worth unpacking.
Recommended
MyMood Velvet Base Lipstick - Mood Mocha
QUA-T$35.993.0 (1)
The lip base job, and the pick to read if muted shades never look right on you. A velvet matte base that evens out natural lip pigmentation and blurs fine lines, so colour over it reads true. Mood Mocha is the shade made for deeper skin tones.
Dew Tint 01 La Vie En Coral
AMUSE$193.8 (82)
The glossy tint job, and the warm-toned pick. A 35% water tint that lays a fresh coral under a clear, high-shine coating, so it reads dewy rather than heavy. One swipe is bright, a second builds it. Best on warm tones, easy on neutral ones.
AOU GLOWY TINT BALM 07 Bubble Balm
AOU$19.99
The melting balm job, and the cool-toned pick. A water-tint balm that melts on contact for a glassy finish, built on apple seed oil and shea butter over hyaluronic acid. Sheer in one coat, richer layered. A soft daily pink that doubles as cream blush.
Vegan lip butter #15 Dirty Pink
melixir$154.1 (63)
For days you want a wash of colour rather than a stain. A sheer, buildable berry-pink lip butter that melts on contact and blends without patchiness or waxiness. Shea butter with sunflower, sweet almond and green tea seed oils keep it comfortable. One swipe, or two.
Ready To Wear Eye Palette 02 Mood Blush
BBIA$244.2 (51)
Six neutral shades for the soft eye that goes under a lip-led face: creamy beige, milky mauve-beige, coconut brown, soft cocoa, rich dark brown, and one champagne diamond glitter. Five mattes do the shaping, the glitter lifts it. Contour with the deeper shades, glitter last.
Worth it?
Take the primer claim first. Muted and dusty shades sit close to your natural lip colour rather than covering it, so what shows up depends on what is underneath — which is why the same tint reads clean on one person and muddy on another. A layer underneath fixes more than another tint will. The velvet base below is that step.
The 0g claim is a texture promise, not a wear promise. Korean velvet and matte formulas are built for comfort and a soft finish — that is the design goal. Our picks lean the other way on purpose: the water tint, the tint balm and the lip butter below are all built for shine rather than a hard matte edge.
A shade code is a position in one line, paired with a name. Undertone is what carries: warm skin takes the coral tint below, cooler skin the soft pink tint balm.
We don't carry rom&nd itself. For each of these jobs, though, we send an alternative we rate highly — the five picks below.
How to use
Color Lip Matte goes on before colour, filling vertical lip lines like a primer and adding only a blurred wash. Apply it with the flat lip spreader tip, which is shaped to lay an even gradient: start at the centre of the lip, press the flat of the tip down, and draw outward, easing off before the edge so the border stays soft. Lip Matter goes on last, over a lipstick you already own — moist underneath and powder-dry on top, it turns a creamy or glossy colour matte without shifting the shade. The picks above follow the same order: base first, colour second, eyes last.
The box
Five full-size Korean products, matched to your skin, every month.
Questions
What do the numbers in Korean lip shade names mean?
Positions in one brand's own line, paired with a name. A code carries no meaning across brands.
Why do muted or dusty shades suit some people and not others?
They sit close to your natural lip colour rather than covering it, so the result depends on what's underneath.
What does a lip base actually do?
It evens out lip pigmentation and blurs the edges, so colour over it reads closer to the tube shade.
What are Korean velvet and matte tints designed for?
Comfort and a soft, powdery finish that sits light on the lips all day. Lockdown wear is a different design goal, so top them up after meals.
Why does a shade look different on me than in a swatch online?
Swatches are lit, edited and applied to someone else's lip tone, and sheer formulas let your own colour through.
Full-size Korean beauty, curated for your skin, delivered every month.
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