CLINIQUE Almost Lipstick - Black Honey

I have been buying this for about 20 years! It is a beautiful, sheer plummy-berry-raisin lip tint and I always think it looks good no matter what I am wearing. I am crazy about lipstick and have a million, but this is definitely in my top five of all time. I always have one in my makeup bag. The only drawbacks are that it doesn't have great staying power and it costs about $20. But so pretty!

I received a sample of this, never bought the full size. Really I just tried it just to see what all of the commotion was about it. The jury is still out.

First of all, the sample packaging is more attractive to me than the full size. Lipstick is fun and the packaging should be too. I enjoy Clinique's style, very minimal but luxurious. The full size tube looks like a pen or a laser pointer and would be constantly lost in my purse. Frankly, it's boring. The sample tube is colored, perfect size, looks fresh and not boring.

As for it's performance, I was pleasantly surprised by the color and the way it made my lips look beautiful and healthy. It looks completely natural and great with makeup or bare face. No obnoxious fragrance.

The disappointments start after that. It wasn't very long lasting. I had to constantly reapply, and no moisturizing properties at all. I had the impression that it was a balm of sorts, but it's not. It's transparent lipstick. After an hour, it faded away and left pigment in my lip lines and the corners of my mouth. It clung to any dry skin on my lips. Dry skin I didn't know I had.

For over $19 with tax, it truly isn't worth it. I understand it is a "Cult Classic " but there are better out there. Maybe if it was longer lasting and better moisturizing, I'd consider spending the money.

I love this lipstick so much! I am about 30 years late trying this, but better late than never! I received a mini in my Sephora PlayBox and went through it quickly and purchased the full size immediately after. When I first saw this, I didn't think I would like it. It looks a lot darker in the tube than it does on the lips. It's a sheer, but very buildable berry red with a hint of brown. I can't decide if this is a warm shade or cool. My skin is neutral, but leaning more on the cooler side and this looks amazing on me. It has pretty good lasting power and it fades evenly, which I really appreciate. It is pretty moisturizing and goes on like a balm. Very easy to apply and I rarely even need a mirror. It has quickly became my everyday "go to" lip color. It provides that effortless French vibe that I absolutely love! I can see why this is a cult favorite and I hope they never discontinue this. It's my HG lip product.

This product is a mixture of a lip balm and a lipstick. It's pigmented strong enough to see it on your lips, but do not expect your lips to be as dark vampy red as the color in the tube. Once applied the color is a semi-sheer dark red-brown.
Due to the sheer consistency, it is universally flattering. Brownish reds never look good on me, but this one somehow does. Another plus side is that this lipstick can be applied without a mirror, it's difficult to screw it up.
But what I do not like about it the most is the formula. First, it doesn't go on very even and appears patchy if you look up close. Second, it isn't long wearing at all. On me, it lasts not more than an hour, though many other lipsticks last the same amount of time... Third, it doesn't feel like/applies like a modern product, more like something from the past... Not for me, but grandma would have loved it.

No this isn't "Almost Lipstick", this is a lipstick. It's sheer and glossy, but it's still very lipstick-y in appearance. And if you're looking for a not-quite-lipstick product, this isn't for you.

Black Honey is a classic and flattering shade of dark-ish, neutral, shiny brown-berry. Looks great, applies nicely. But like I said, Almost Lipstick it is not.

Nice, but this wasn't right for me. I wouldn't buy it again.

I like a really natural look but my lips are very pale and pasty looking and this livens them up but looks almost completely natural. Moistens without looking glossy or slick. The shade is perfect and it just fades out evenly when it's wearing and doesnt start to look patchy. I've tried a million lip glosses, tints and balms and this is the only one that works for me. LOVE IT.

I've been wearing this since 1977, and have rarely ever been without a tube of it. Doesn't matter the season or occasion, this is the "Almost Lipstick" that always looks right. It's definitely sheer and not very long lasting but, at least for me, it is a lovely wash of color without going overboard. Yes, it looks like a much deeper color than it ultimately is, and no - it doesn't have all sorts of added ingredients to make it good for my lips. But its dependable and hasn't changed in lo these many years. I love it.

I just don't get it.

I received a deluxe sample of this in a Sephora Play box this month, and was initially very excited. Clinique is an old-school brand that tends to do lip products very well and is somewhat underrated amongst Sephora brands. The color didn't scare me because I could tell just from looking at the lipstick that it would apply semi-sheer.

The formula is rather slippery yet not at all moisturizing; my lips were equally dry before and after using this. The color isn't bad, like I said- somewhat sheer with a wash of maroon berry color. The issue that guaranteed this would be no more than a 3-lippie rating (it's a 2-lippie because these cost $17 and that is way, way too much for what you're getting), is that the pigment in this settled into my lip lines like crazy and applied super patchy and uneven. I don't have wrinkly lips; I'm 28 and pretty much never have this problem. When I attempted to get an even spread of color, the pigment in this just kind of "moved around" and areas were darker than others.

Part of the problem, IMO, is that these deeper colors don't lend themselves well to balmy, semi-sheer formulas. If this were a lighter shade, it might have not been as issue. As it stands, I had to "watch" this because it wanted to get patchy on me.

Had this been a lighter color, or had it been a bit more moisturizing or opaque, it could have been a good product for me, but it just makes no sense to spend $17 on something that Maybelline Baby Lips probably has an identical dupe for (and no, I'm not crazy about Baby Lips either, but the formulas feel and look similar on the lips, so if you're fond of one, you may like the other).

I really really wanted to love this lipstick. I kept reading all over the internet that it is one of those cult classic shades that suits everyone, and I like to go for vampy shades anyway.

Unfortunately after one application it did not show up at all, so one more application and nope - not a shade that suits me.

It felt lovely on, but feathered and the colour did not stay (perhaps if it had left a light stain it might have looked better).

Also the stick broke after 2 or 3 uses, so it would no longer wind up & down. It's super thin so I used to keep it in my handbag for touching up or if I wanted to quickly add a wash of colour.

In the end I lost it after just a few uses but I would definitely not re-purchase.

Don't believe that one shade can suit everyone and buy something on a whim without trying it first.

This is a very wearable color for everyone. Its not an intense color which is why its called "almost lipstick". I got this when I was starting out with make-up and I still love it to this day. For people who want are intimidated from wearing a bold color lipstick, try Almost Lipstick.