Thursday, February 7, 2013

Clinique Chubby Stick Shadow Tint For Eyes

When Clinique's new Chubby Stick Shadow Tints For Eyes ($16) arrived at counters and online, I hesitated. I was trying to be frugal - not very successfully. I love my Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balms, so I don't know why I was holding out. I finally ordered four online.

As an aside, when did companies born and bred in the United States start spelling "color" as "colour," the European way? Does it strike you as a little pretentious? Am I weird to notice or think that?

There's nothing weird about these wonderful cream shadows in handy sticks.There's a lot to love, starting with the colors and ending with the extraordinary long wear. When I applied them for my swatch photos, I could not wash them off with soap and water. It took a long-wear eye makeup remover to remove every last trace. That is always my first tip that they will say on my eyelids all day - or more.

Sheer wash of lightweight, creamy color slips on. Layerable and long-wearing. Versatile, too. Glide one on for a swift wash of color. Contour with another to add depth, and yet another to highlight. There's no need to stop at just one.  Appropriate for sensitive eyes and contact lens-wearers.

You can apply these Chubby Sticks sheerly, but I find they give you a pop for your $16 - more color, less sheer. Now I'm wondering if I should stop by the Clinique counter and purchase a few more. Maybe during Neiman Marcus Beauty Week?

Here are the four I purchased, from left to right: 01, Bountiful Beige; 03 Fuller Fudge; 05 Whooping Willow; and 06 Mighty Moss. All four offer fabulous color.

I do have a bone to pick with Clinique's quality assurance. Look at the amount of product exposed above the tube. This is how they arrived - everyone different. There is no way to roll the excess back into the tube. Each tube has a different starting point. Not only that, the silver caps do not fit tightly, so they keep falling off. Whoever does Clinique's QA gets a fail.

It's a good thing the shadows are fabulous! I took swatch photo of these shades in full sunlight, applying them in the order shown above on my arm, top to bottom.

Bountiful Beige is a very pretty fleshy peach with a gleam. It's a perfect base shade or a color you can wear when you want to swipe and go. The sun hit it directly in my swatch photo, lighting it up. Fuller Fudge is a fabulous copper brown.

Whooping Willow is the color of moss. I love every shade of green, and I find this one particularly enticing. It's the one that should have been called Mighty Moss. The real Mighty Moss at the bottom of my arm is drop-dead gorgeous.  The shade is hard to describe. Here are some of my attempts: weathered emerald and green-tilt teal. I don't know what to call this shade, other than breathtaking. What would you call it?

Clinique groups the 12 shades into looks. Three of the four I purchased are members of "In the Nudes." Mighty Moss belongs to "Go for the Gold." as is Bountiful Beige. There is overlap in the groups.

I always liked Mighty Mouse, but at my age, I think Mighty Moss is a more appropriate crush. These are very cool eye shadows.

You can purchase them at Clinique's Web site, where you can buy two (for lips or eyes) and get free shipping with the code CHUBBY. They are also available at all Clinique counters (and their equivalent store online sites).

Photo at top courtesy of Clinique; other photos by Best Things in Beauty

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love those greens! Both of them are fantastic! I didn't expect any of them to have this much pigment! I think I sadly overlooked them at first, but I'm definitely going to go and look at these!

Catherine (@bcrueltyfree) said...

Love Fuller Fudge! Wish there were more browns and beiges, though

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Paintedladybeauty,

Aren't those greens gorgeous? I really think Clinique blew it on their name. They are not sheer. Maybe the lightest one, but in general, not at all.

Charlestongirl said...

Catherine,

Check out Lots o'Latte and Ample Amber in person. Don't rely on those online swatches. :)

Running with Scissors said...

Even though I loved the look of the Chubby Stick balms I didn't get one as they are $35 here.

These I would probably fork out for.... so pretty and so easy. I think they might make a nice base for some pigment shadows too...

thanks for another great review

Christy

Charlestongirl said...

Gosh, Christy, how can anyone afford makeup there?

tweenymama said...

I was wondering how these compare to the new Bobbi Brown eye sticks, which you covered a little while ago. $28 vs $16? Clinique is having a GWP at Bloomie's at least here in DC.

The pretentious spelling has been bothering me at least since 1970, when I began using Clinique!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi tweenymama,

I'd be checking them out at Bloomies. I think Clinique has a few more neutral shades, and two greens as opposed to one.

Brenda Penton said...

Oh they are so pretty! I just looked them up and I think I would really like Ample Amber and the Lots o' Latte. So nice!

Becca @ The Beauty Sample said...

That's interesting about the varying amount of product exposed at the opening. I've never seen such a huge, noticeable difference like this before!

The colors are certainly gorgeous though. I have been curious about these stick type cream shadows for a while but still haven't tried any of them (except the Nars Soft Touch, which I hated because it creased in about 5 mins flat). I was curious about this one and the new Bobbi Brown ones though. I really like these shades but I trust Bobbi Brown for a more long-wearing formula--I think because their Long Wear Cream Shadows are already so amazing!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Brenda,

I want those colors too. :)

Charlestongirl said...

Becca,

These are incredibly long lasting. Give one a try!

elizab-tch said...

I love these! I bought two, amber and coal. They blend so easily and lasted my entire work day.

On the topic of "color" vs "colour"... not pretentious at all! "Colour" is also the way Canadians spell it, and I wouldn't consider Canada (in general) to have a pretentious image :) I am, however, guilty of getting annoyed at work when ppl spell it the American way! Lol!

Running with Scissors said...

As you might have guessed, in Aust we use colour, labour, harbour and neighbour.... Embrace the U !!!

Mamavalveeta03 said...

I'm so glad that you like these, because I WANT to like them! And now that they've been "rehauled" by Clinique (didn't they always do that British spelling thing?), I have good reason to. I want Fudge and Willow. Great coverage and it sounds like lasting power!

Unknown said...

These are so good! Can't wait for them to be launched in India!!!

BooBooNinja said...

I'm with elizab-tch on the colour/colour spelling. I doubt anyone who knows me considers me pretentious, and I like good ol' Canadian spelling. :)

As for these chubby sticks -- I'm definitely swatching these the next time I go shopping for beauty.

Charlestongirl said...

Hi elizab-tch,

Yes, but I often think of Canada as a spin-off of Great Britain. Not that the U.S. wasn't.

With its HQ in New York, I find it odd - certainly not offensive - that the company uses "colour." If they were born and bred somewhere else, it would seem natural.

Charlestongirl said...

Christy,

I have to ditch the "U." Otherwise, I'd be accused of spelling incorrectly. :)

Charlestongirl said...

Yes, MamaVal, I think Clinique has been using the "U" from the get-go. I wonder why. I picture a large group sitting around a conference table weighing the advantages of the "U."

Charlestongirl said...

Hi Dollie,

Hope that's soon!

Charlestongirl said...

Hi BooBoo,

But aren't you FROM Canada? :)

When you adopt a foreign accent here (I know a silver dealer from Brooklyn who adopted an upper crust English accent), it's seen as pretentious. Just like Madonna was pretentious for suddenly adopting an accent. Wasn't she from Detroit or some Mid-Western town?

angusmum1 said...

As a Canadian I have sent lots of time arguing with spell check programs as there are actually quite a few words. My moher being from London and her family British and welsh I was always corrected from a young age, just like the letter Z ZEEEE isnt right its Zaid here in Canuck country. Anyway I wonder if the shipping promotion for these products aplys to Canada. Would be nice!

Anonymous said...

I love them too. I have hazel eyes and got the whooping willow shade. It looks great and stays on forever!