Clinique launched a new lip product for spring, the Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm. While the name is a complicated mouthful, this product looks to be about as easy as it gets. One of our favorite 2010 launches was Tarte’s LipSurgence Natural Lip Stain, due to the moisturizing properties and ease of application. This packaging reminds us of Tarte’s, and the formula, while not technically a stain, also bears resemblence.

Clinique packed these Chubbies with mango and shea butters to ensure they’re ultra hydrating on dry winter lips. They’re available in eight colors that span the spectrum. Can’t wait to give these a try!

Clinque’s new Smoothie Kisses set stopped me in my tracks at Macy’s today. Isn’t it adorable? And it sure is a value at $25. This contains four shades of Clinque’s Vitamin C Lip Smoothie Antioxidant Lip Color in:

• Pink Me Up
• Goodness Grapecious
• Nudetritrous
• Mango-thon

Each smoothie contains .03 oz. of product, which is a great value considering the regular sized smoothies (at $17.50 apiece) contain .05 oz. I saw this in store at Macy’s, but it’s also available on Nordstrom.com.

Breaking news folks. It *finally* feels like spring in Chicago – at least for a few days. We’re pushing 60 degrees today and it is amazing. I’m totally in the mood for spring beauty, courtesy of Clinique. I am loving the look featured in their spring collection, Juiced Up Beauty. To me, it’s actually very summery. Don’t you think? At least the promo is!

The collection features a beautiful shade of All Over Color and new shades of the Vitamin C Lip Smoothie, but the real standouts for me are the eyes! It feels fresh – a light wash of color, defined brows and lashes.

Juiced Up includes two new  “Fresh Picked” Eye Shadows in Berry and Pear. While I don’t think the colors are particularly unique, I’m totally loving the fruit patterns – especially the Pear! It actually reminds me a little bit of NARS Eyeshadow Duo in Taiga but I think I might like the Pear better. And while I’m at it with NARS comparisons, the creamy shade in Pear reminds me of my beloved NARS Abyssinia. And at $17.50, the Clinique option certainly is more friendly for the wallet.

Clinique also released a new product for brows, the Instant Lift, which houses a two-in-one brow pencil and highlighter to give dimension and precision to your brows. I think this has promise.

Did anything catch your eye in this collection? It’s still on counters if you haven’t had a chance to scout it out!

Clinique has been stepping up their gift with purchase game in a big way! Check out this beautiful bag designed by Milly for Clinique. I absolutely adore Milly dresses and think she has a second calling in makeup bags. This gift with purchase, valued at $75, is currently available at Bloomingdales free with any $25 Clinique purchase.

In addition to the adorable bag, you’ll receive:

• Redness Solutions Instant Relief Mineral Powder with Brush
• High Impact Mascara in Black
• Even Better Skin Tone Correcting Moisturizer SPF 20
• Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion
• Rinse-Off Eye Makeup Solvent
• Clinique Foldover Mirror
• Clinique Key Chain with Long Last Lipstick Mini in A Different Grape and Long Last Glosswear SPF 15 in Clearly Pink

To my disappointment, I just saw on Bloomingdales.com that this is not available in Chicago Bloomingdales locations (way to single out Chi-town!) Good think it’s online – I may need this Milly makeup bag in my life.

Clinique’s Black Tie Violets holiday collection is all about the purple. It feels festive – very sugar plum fairy. Don’t you think?  One thing is for sure – if shades of purple are your thing, then there is a very good chance that you will love this collection.

Here’s what we’re working with from Black Tie Violets:

• Shimmering Stripes Powder Blusher in Tuxedo Plums ($29.50)
• Powder Brush ($30)
• Colour Surge Eye Shadow Quad in Black Tie Violets ($25)
• Brush-On Cream Liner in Violet Luxe ($14.50)
• High Impact Lip Colour SPF 15 in Extreme Pink ($14)
• Different Lipstick in A Different Grape ($14)
• Full Potential Lips Plump and Shine in Bloomberry (limited edition), Double Plum (limited edition) and Luscious Lilac. ($17.50)
• Defining Liner for Lips in Pomengranate ($14)

I love the Violet Luxe cream liner!  This was the first cream liner I ever tried (back in the day – smoke grey was my “first”) and I attribute my gel liner addiction to this very product. Another area that I think Clinique excels in is lips – and I’m ALL OVER the Extreme Pink High Impact. I like the formula and the color is a cool pink. You know I’m obsessed with pinks by now right?!

Does Black Tie Violets bring out the sugar plum fairy in you? Are you digging it?

Clinique is launching their Summer 2008 collection in April and it has some interesting products in it. The collection is called Long-Last Bronze and the products in it are all meant to meant to help you get as much wear as possible during the day. As they say “from the beach to a BBQ”.

The stars in this collection are the Shimmering Tones Powder Quad (limited edition) in Golden Bronze, Brush-On Cream Liner in Bronze (also limited edition), the introduction of Quick Eyes Cream Shadow (l-l-l-love them!) and new Long Last Glosswear lipglosses. I received some samples from this collection and so far, I like what I’ve tried. The quad is going to be perfect for summer with it’s low sheen and shades will look great on all all skin tones… there’s something for everyone in this quad for eyes and cheeks. My small 188 brush really comes in handy here, the shades don’t mix. This collection also includes Clinique’s Touch of Bronze Moisturizing Body Lotion for a self-tanning color.

What’s interesting about this new Long Last Glosswear is that it claims to provide long-lasting shine, up to 8 hours worth. I can’t attest to that but I can definitely say that this gloss made it through 2 lattes, a smoke break and lunch. After all of that, I still had some color and shine on my lips. I can’t even imagine how it would perform if I didn’t drink or eat anything during the day. If someone ends up putting this lipgloss to the test, I’d love to hear your results. The texture is a teensy bit sticky but I would expect a gloss that tries to hang on for dear life to be that way, even just a little. The shades vary from sheer to fuller coverage in varying intensities from cream to pearl. Shades include:

Nudes: Goldspun, Brandy Twist, Knockout Nude, Sunset
Taupes: Cabana Crush, Juicy Apple, Bonfire, Guavagold
Pinks: Clearly Pink, Fireberry, Bamboo Pink, Air Kiss, Kissyfit
Violets: Mystic, Whisper, Tenderheart, Stellar Plum, Rock Violet

These have to be my favorite part of this collection. I’m drawn to anything “long lasting” and these shadows have are certainly that. I stopped paying attention after I realized I was about to enter the 14th hour and I still had eyeshadow on. These Quick Eyes Cream Shadows are going to be very good friends with my favorite new base. They have a light texture to them so the color is sheer at first but it’s completely buildable. I have 2 shades so far but I know I’ll be buying some more once the collection hits counters. Shades include Cocoa Shimmer, Sparkling Nude, Sunlit Palm, Lucky Penny, Starlit Pink, Muffin, Rock Violet, Truffle and Sea Shell.

Clinique is also including their Lash Power Mascara as part of this collection. With this, you have everything you need this summer for makeup that stays put.

Very soon on Clinique.com will be introducing a mascara that until recently was only sold in Asian markets and it’s called Lash Power.

You’re probably noticing that this mascara’s wand is quite a bit smaller than in other mascaras now on the market. I like this new smaller wand, it’s almost as if I put on my mascara this morning with more confidence that usual. This wand made it easier for me to control the application without fear of smudging. I was able to get in close and be more precise.

As for the mascara’s wear, it’s meant to stand up to the elements and remove easily with warm water. I haven’t put the mascara through the gym or rain test yet but I was really happy with how it performed. I put it on in the morning before work and it was still on without flaking or sliding into my under eye area by the time I went to wash my face before bed. My two coats held up and my lashes still looked defined and lusciously long.

Removing the mascara wasn’t quite what I expected though. The formula of this product, which I don’t know much about at this time, seems to be like that of Blinc’s Kiss Me Mascara where it coats lashes in what seems like little tubes. Only this seems to be a bit easier to remove than Blinc’s. I didn’t have to tug at my lashes as much, just a bit of rubbing and the mascara started coming off.

You can get a 2-week sample of Lash Power now with any $50 purchase on Clinique.com, just use offer code LASH08 at checkout. You can also find it at Nordstrom’s now (thanks Lauren).

Clinique’s new fall collection is titled “Play in the Darks” and it’s rich with color. This collection includes new and limited Colour Surge eyeshadow trios (which we love) in gorgeous colors, an assortment of mascaras for all your lash needs, cream eyeliner and best of all, new limited edition Almost Lipstick shades. You can see the entire collection here.

The eyeshadows are just beautiful. The trios include Black Truffle (Limited Edition), Crème Brulée (Limited Edition), Totally Neutral, Blushing Nude, Ebb and Flow and Come Heather. The Ebb and Flow and Come Heather trios are part of the violet family but all of these other trios are right up my alley.. gorgeous wearable shades that you can wear to work and mix to create a great evening look. You can find them all here.

I was most excited about the Almost Lipstick part of this collection. It introduced new shades such as Black Raisin, Black Raspberry and Black Plum. I’ve been wearing Black Plum almost non-stop since I got it. Like many people, since this is a iconic beauty product, I love this product in Black Honey and I was very happy to see new shades in this collection. However, they won’t stick around so stock up on this while you can, that’s what I will be doing.

Given my last experience with Clinique’s eyeshadow, I wouldn’t normally be interested in their eyeshadow but I saw the words “Colour Surge” and remembered how much I like this lipstick.

Clinique’s Colour Surge Eye Shadow Quads come in 6 gorgeous palettes. The one pictured here is Spicy, which is the one I picked up. The quad colors range from nude, tawnie to violet based shades and pictures do not do these shades justice. I tend to reach for matte eyeshadow for everyday wear but the quads in the nude and tawnie ranges would be great as well, the shimmer is not overwelming. I was happy to find that the shadow was well pigmented and blended well, all while leaving a soft shimmer on the eyes. The eyeshadow is soft enough to provide a sheer wash of color and rich enough to really pack on the color for a bolder look, which is fun to do from time to time. This eyeshadow quad certainly meets my eyeshadow criteria. Pigmentation? Check. Texture? Check. Long Lasting? Check.