The Clinique Almost lipsticks have gained popularity on social media the last few years.
They go for $25 which is on the higher end for what is essentially a tinted lip balm. Back in 2022, I watched so many reviews and tick tocks on them. At first I was mostly looking for reviews for Black Honey as that is the one that has had the revival after several decades of being sold by Clinique. The shade Black Honey goes back to 1971. And it’s Almost Lipstick formulation was first released in the Black Honey shade in 1989. It is marketed as a shade that fit every skin tone. I’ve seen it swatched on multiple skin tones and undertones and it did look good on all of them. So it hadn’t gone viral for nothing. And in most reviews I came across people loved it and there were very few negative reviews.

Product Claims

• Can be layered
• Fragrance free
• Soft shine finish
• Can be worn under over lipstick or alone and built up for more “drama”

Black Honey

Deeper skinned reviewers all seemed to gravitate towards this one a lot . So that influenced my choice quite a bit.  When I tried it out for myself I didn’t  love it and didn’t hate it. I wore it very occasionally. It’s a sheer deep warm berry that can be built up to a bit deeper of a sheer berry. And the colors I usually gravitate towards are not that. But this year I tried it out again and applied it lightly and I’ve been liking it. It makes you look pulled together without a dramatic bold color. To me it is a “mature” color. Don’t be fooled by how it looks in the tube. It seems like it would be very dark. But it goes on sheer. In the picture below it is applied a bit more heavily than I usually would so that my camera would capture the color. But as you can it is still very sheer even when it is built up.

Pink Honey

I like pink and tend to lean more towards sheer or medium neutral pinks in my “everyday” makeup. So this year I bought Pink Honey to satisfy my curiosity of what the color would look like on me. And I like it better than Black Honey so far. It seems more me. It is a sheer warm medium pink . In the same silver twist up tube as Black Honey. In reviews and on websites where it is sold it seems like Pink honey is marketed more towards lighter skin. But it looks just fine on me. And I’ve seen a review or two of it on a deeper skin tone and I think it looks great. So if you’re deeper and interested in trying it I wouldn’t shy away from it just because of how it’s marketed. It is just a sheer color that adds a wash of pink to your look. And when I’ve seen it on brown skin it is flattering just the same as Black Honey.

Swatches

Both of these swatches show the color built up quite a bit. My camera doesn’t pick them up as vivid as they actually are but it is a sheer tint so there isn’t much color to capture. They are just a tad more pigmented in real life after several swipes. They have no scent no flavor just a sheer balm-y lip product. They are moisturizing and comfortable to wear. And like the claims say they can be worn lightly and built up for a little more color. There is no color drama with building the product its just a little more color while still being sheer. They are great products for everyday wear. They are the types of lip products you can apply quickly without looking. And they don’t need lip liner or any other products. Even if it is kept simple and worn alone you just can’t mess it up. I’d say they are worth the price.

In June Clinique launched a new Almost lipstick shade called Nude Honey. And that’s what I’d like to try next. It might seem like a waste of money for sheer color payoff but for a makeup enthusiast, it just looks like a brand new temptation. So I will be getting that one at some point and writing a review on it. I haven’t read any reviews quite yet. But it seems like a flattering everyday sheer nude. Let the researching madness begin. 😆

Have you tried any of the almost lipsticks? Do you enjoy them? Let me know below.

Thanks for reading

Amber ❤