A million thank yous, MAC Lightness of Being, for lightening my metaphorical makeup load and reminding me that I don’t actually need six separate pans of eyeshadow up in the mix to have fun.
Look for the 29-piece MAC Lightness of Being collection online at maccosmetics.com starting Dec. 23, 2014, and in stores Dec. 26, 2014, through Feb. 6, 2015.
GIRL, you know how it goes. Sometimes I just get so caught up in the process (Why, yes! That third transition shade in the crease is a perfectly sane idea!) that I forget that uncomplicated makeup can be just as much fun.
The more I play with this collection (also got some swatches here), the more I see the point of these pastel shades.
Since the values don’t vary that much from each other, I find that I’m not having to spend forever and a day blending them together.
And to quote the great Tony the Tiger, that’s grrrrrreat!
The shimmery finishes have also been pretty agreeable. The frosts and pearls haven’t needed as much blending and babying as mattes often do.
For this look here, I’m only using two shadows, one of them, shimmery brown Mineralize Eye Shadow in Force of Nature, from the collection, and the other a permanent collection fave.
While it comes in a single pan, Force of Nature is sort of like a two-for-one, because it’s divided into two shades — a light brown with a pearl finish, and a slightly darker, more taupe-ish brown with a frost finish.
What an interesting shade… Depending on your skin tone, Force of Nature could display as a cool-toned brown, or a purplish brown/taupe. On my NC42 epidermis, I get the latter, and I’m looking forward to layering it with grayish and chocolate browns.
The permanent collection shadow I also used here was matte brown MAC Paint Pot in Quite Natural, a cream shadow, which I buffed from lash line up to brow bone, feathering/diffusing as I moved up.
Following that, I wet a tapered eye brush with MAC Fix+, and blended the pearl side of Force of Nature on the lids.
Then I smudged the dark brown liner from the collection, the Eye Pencil in Taupe, along my lower lash lines, rimmed my water lines with the always-reliable MAC Smolder, and finished with a pair of falsies. 🙂
For my cheeks, drama! — in the form of peachy orange Mineralize Blush in Uplifting.
While I could easily spend all day staring at Uplifting’s embossed pan, its secrets elude me… When I buff it on the apples of my cheeks, I mostly just see frost, and hardly any of the peach color.
And my pores? BAH! Too big. Sailors can probably see them from across the Bay.
Unless your cheeks are naturally smoother than a cherub’s bottom, you could have trubs with this blush.
Seeing as the sheer pastel glosses in the collection look more or less the same on my pigmented pout, I lined and filled in my lips first with MAC Staunchly Stylish Lip Pencil (a great one to amplify peach and/or pink lip shades) to boost the sheer, peachy orange Mineralize Glass in Loose & Lively I then applied all over my lips.
As for unexpected stars from the collection that I’m liking more than I thought, pale lavender Studio Nail Lacquer in Modern Movement took me by surprise. It may look like a standard-issue gray in the bottle, but it turns into a lovely grayed-out lavender on nails.
I’m liking Modern Movement much more than I thought I would, but I wouldn’t suggest skipping your base and top coats.
I only used a base coat (no top), and after two days, I already notice two small chips on the nails of my right hand. Of the two polishes in the Lightness of Being collection (the other one, sheer creamy beige Lightness of Being, is easily dupable almost anywhere), Modern Movement takes the cake for me.
Is anyone else out there wearing shimmer today?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
I love this look on you. The eye look looks gorgeous.
Soft, elegant look that’s easy?!
Girl, you are filling up the MAC Wish List!
So happy to see your happy Lightness of Being while I sit by the fire to drain the sinuses (sinii?). Force of Nature looks a bit too frosty for me but I am willing to swatch in-store.
And, thank you, for that lip pencil post! Staunchly Stylish fills a big hole in the liner lineup. Pink liner + corally lipsticks = bad.
Beautiful look! You’re making me want like everything lol
You looking stunning Karen.. Love ur eye makeup with just two shades… U making me crave for these eyeshaows as well..:-*
i am super pale and i really appreciate all these light colors that have good pigmentation and aren’t chalky! and the sweater pattern is so nice
Yup, now I am concinved, I should have gotten Force of Nature instead of Leap. Pretty!
That look has pretty much dimension given that there are just two colors on your lid, I like that a lot!
And yes, shimmer on the lids here, one of my Color Tattoos. Nothing like a lazy swipe of this over the lid and a bold lip to distract!
Force of Nature is so pretty. Not sure I’d buy it for myself but I’m loving it on most people I’m seeing review it.
My shopping list may fluctuate, but Force of Nature is the only thing that’s ALWAYS on there. It’s such a gorgeous taupe shade, I die.
Idk if this will help, Karen, but I’m an NC30 and found that the best way to use Uplifting (if you don’t have poreless skin and a porcelain complexion) is as a highlight. When I use it that way, it’s very similar to the BB Shimmer Bricks.
I can’t wait for this collection!
Hi Estefania,
I tried it that way and it was still crazy shimmery! You are lucky that you can pull all the glitter off. On me it was crazy sparkly!
It really is Sparkle City. I wonder why they didn’t go with a more universally flattering tone?? With the overall laid back vibe in the collection, I was picturing something like Seduced At Sea, from Alluring Aquatic.