This is my first lipstick review; I am more of a gloss girl but having been shopping in John Lewis during one of the Clinique Bonus time I managed to get hold of one of these High Impact Lip Colour sticks and decided to try it out.

As this was a sample of the product it comes in a slightly less appealing compartment to the silver full priced version being Clinique's classic pale green colour in a plastic tube. The tube has a silver band around the middle where the lid slides off and clicks back on again. The lipstick sits protected in here with a turn able base to adjust the amount of lipstick that comes out of the base.

The lipstick has the usual cylindrical profile with a shaped end that is cut at a 120 degree angle to make application easier and to give fuller strokes on use. I found the lipstick to be surprisingly firm during application; as it looks very moisture rich and soft at a glance. I worry that lipsticks will simply snap or completely lose they shape after a while but this does neither. Although it feels firm to the touch it spreads onto your lips beautifully and evenly, leaving a nice layer of the colour over your lips, that is neither too heavy or clogged nor thin and translucent.

This lipstick like most of Clinique's recent products contains SPF15 in its ingredients to protect your lips from outside elements such as the sun, as well as harsh winds and temperatures. The lipstick comes in a multitude of colours including;

Pure Posh

In a Nutshell

Very Currant

Sassy Spice

My colour is named Extreme Pink, which because it was a sample I did not actually pick. I really like the shade, it is not in fact as bright as the title suggests and gives off a lovely rosey pink glow to your lips. I have tended to add some Vaseline over the top once I have applied the lipstick to enhance the shininess and protect the colour more. The lipstick does feel very moisturising on my lips and doesn't go dry or crackly during wear. Clinique state that this lipstick will last up to 8 hours wear; it is obviously not at its optimum after a few hours of daywear but as a whole does last well. I would say I top it up after about four hours but this is my personal preference to get that fresh and vibrant colour.

The full sized and full priced lipstick contains 3.8g of lipstick; my sample has approximately half of that amount and has been very long lasting. At £16 full price it would have to be really! This is available at Clinique stocking department stores and online too.

Overally I really like this lipstick, it is vibrant, light feeling and moisturising and I am certainly going to be buying another shade once this has gone.