MAC Cosmetics

The MAC Fashion Pack Collection! The Lipsticks

May 26th, 2016 by Adia Goss 24 Comments

For me, these MAC Fashion Pack Lipsticks are a reminder that MAC still makes some of the best lipsticks around, in my opinion. MAC is still my first stop when I want a new lipstick because of their wide range of colors, and because some of their formulas, like Amplified and Frost, are amazing.

MAC Fashion Pack
Available online June 9, 2016
Available in-store June 23 through July 28, 2016
#MACFashionPack

“Lead the way with a new wave of front-row worthy hues. Fuchsia, violet, emerald, deepest plum, midnight…ready to wear, any way we dare! So, be a doll and show us how — the Fashion Pack is always in the know.” -MAC

The four lipsticks in the launch — Pressed & Ready (a soft whitened nude with a Lustre finish), Aim For Gorgeous (a bright fuchsia with a Matte finish), By Special Order (a deep reddened fuchsia with an Amplified finish) and Stylist’s Tip (a deep violet with an Amplified finish) — are all incredibly smooth and pigmented, and the darker colors absolutely LAST.

You can check out the new MAC Fashion Pack Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x9 and Fluidline Pens here.

I applied Stylist’s Tip one morning before work, and when I got home at the end of the day, it looked good! — and this was with my near-constant eating and drinking, and without a single touchup.

Here are some swatches…

And photos of me wearing them…

Alright…Pressed & Ready is very light, but it feels smooth and comfortable. I was tempted to doctor it up with a brown lip liner but thought that would be against my ethical duties as a beauty blogger, LOL.

This one just doesn’t quite work for me, but it is a pretty pink-toned nude.

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The MAC Fashion Pack Collection! New Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x 9 and Fluidline Pens

May 25th, 2016 by Adia Goss 14 Comments

fashion pack eyes — Wearing pieces from the new MAC Fashion Pack collection

Another day, another MAC release!

While the last MAC collection I reviewed was full of soft, sparkly shadows, the new MAC Fashion Pack collection, which arrives online June 9, 2016 and in stores June 23 through July 28, has bangin’ bold, vibrant colors.

We usually get lots of pastels this time of year, so these deep purples and saturated pinks are a nice departure.

MAC Fashion Pack
Available online June 9, 2016
Available in-store June 23 through July 28, 2016
#MACFashionPack

“Lead the way with a new wave of front-row worthy hues. Fuchsia, violet, emerald, deepest plum, midnight…ready to wear, any way we dare! So, be a doll and show us how — the Fashion Pack is always in the know.” -MAC

Here’s a look at the Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x 9 and the Fluidline Pens from the collection! Stay tuned for the lipsticks coming up next.

First up, the Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x 9 ($32), a mostly cool-toned palette with purple, pink, gray and mauve tones.

MAC Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x 9 shades

Runway Worthy (soft frosty white – Veluxe Pearl)

Dress Me Up (dirty pink – Satin)

Frock Talk (blackened cherry – Veluxe Pearl)

Paradise Island (soft warm pink – Satin)

Available in Petite (frosty raspberry – Velvet)

Snappy Style (deepened black plum – Satin)

Hypnotizing (frosted greyed mauve – Frost)

Zip Me Up (mid-tone violet – Satin)

Nice Fit (blackened blackberry – Frost)

mac fashion pack eyeshadow palette — MAC Cosmetics Runway Worthy Eye Shadow x 9

Most of the shadows are Satins or Frosts, but there is a smile-inducing 🙂 glittery pink right in the middle called Available in Petite.

Here’s a comparison between the Runway Worthy palette and a single MAC Eye Shadow…

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It Cosmetics Universal Contouring Palette for Face and Body: I Sculpt, You Sculpt, We Can All Sculpt With It Cosmetics

May 20th, 2016 by Nicole Fraser-Herron 24 Comments

Sometimes the best beauty days are the ones where you don’t really try at all. Today I wanted to play with the new It Cosmetics Universal Contouring Palette for Face and Body ($40), but I didn’t want to spend more than 30 seconds on each eye. I also decided to channel my inner Pebbles Flintstone. Days like these are made for bold lips. It’s called deflecting!

Anyway, while It Cosmetics has created quite a lovely palette, I find the brand’s marketing description kind of off putting. The mention of plastic surgery and fillers sets the wrong tone for me and makes me feel like the goal with contouring should be to actually change your features instead of enhance them. Of course, there are times when the goal is to change facial features, but I think for your average cosmetic consumer (not makeup artist), that’s not what it’s about.

From It Cosmetics:

“Developed with plastic surgeons, the leading experts in contouring and aesthetics, each powder shade is formulated with proprietary Perfect Lighting™ Technology to mimic real facial contouring and provide a foolproof alternative to fillers. While the four contour shades absorb light and minimize the areas to which you apply them, the two highlighters enhance features you want to pull forward, creating the appearance of more volume. Talc-free, and perfect for all skin types and skin tones, these shades are infused with anti-aging collagen, silk and peptides to blend effortlessly and deliver smooth, natural-looking coverage that lasts all day.”

I just don’t want to be made to think that there’s something wrong with my face. I have to look at this mug every day! Makeup is heaps of fun and makes me happy, but I really try to only wear it to express myself, not cover up my insecurities. Also, I’m pretty sure that Perfect Lighting™ Technology is, like, matte vs. shimmer powders.

_MG_3176_web — It Cosmetics Universal Contouring Palette for Face and Body ($40)

Apart from my philosophical grievances with this palette, the formula is soft, pigmented, and soo easy to blend. I’ve been using it with this Contour & Highlighting Brush ($34.50 and also from It Cosmetics), and it does pretty much all the work for me. There is some dust that kicks up when loading up your brush, and the packaging is silver cardboard. It gets messy; I got contour powder in the highlighter pans more than once.

_MG_3122_web — Top: Soft Contour, Light Contour, Matte Highlight Bottom: Medium Contour, Deep Contour, Radiance Highlight

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These MAC Soft Serve Shadows Are Sooo My Cup of…Ice Cream!

May 19th, 2016 by Adia Goss 27 Comments

Seriously, sparkly cream eyeshadows are my go-to shadows most mornings (if I’m wearing eyeshadow at all), and I LOVE this cushiony cream-to-powder formula. I am 100% completely onboard with these creamy new MAC Soft Serve Shadows. There are 11 of them in the new Soft Serve collection with lots of pretty shimmer!

I think you’ll love these if you also like the Dior Fusion Mono or Chanel Illusion D’Ombre cream eyeshadows because the formulas are very similar. I like applying them with my fingers because they’re easy to build up and blend, but once they set, they stay put.

Basically, these are my dream eyeshadows.

The 11 shades

Bounce Around (Light, cool taupey silver)
Cushy Life (Light warm golden beige)
Best Make Up (Light golden highlighter)
Plead Gilty (Vibrant sparkling gold)
Quite Yummy! (Light pink)
So So Saucy (Mid-tone peach)
Put Me to Shame (Mid-tone dirty taupe)
Softened Up (Mid-tone warm brown)
Girls, Girls! (Soft pastel purple)
Big Bad Blue (Soft pastel blue)
Jealous Girl (Mint green)

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Would You Rock Pastel Brows? Introducing the MAC Soft Serve Collection Dare Hue! Brow Pencils

May 18th, 2016 by Adia Goss 29 Comments

mac soft serve brows — Introducing the new MAC Soft Serve Eyebrow Pencils!

Well…this collection is definitely outside my comfort zone. The first time I saw the new Dare Hue! Brow Pencils from the MAC Soft Serve collection ($16.50 each, available online May 26, 2016; in stores June 2 through July 14), I kept asking myself, “Are these definitely brow pencils? Because maybe these are really supposed to be eyeliners.” But, no, these are definitely brow pencils.

These six pastel-hued eyebrow pencils are pretty impossible for me to pull off with my coloring, but I gotta hand it to MAC for totally stepping outside the box. This is the kind of crazy-unique product that I expect from MAC, and I think it’s cool that the brand is still staying true to its non-traditional roots!

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How I Rock Pink Eyeshadow (A Collaboration With Jen and Adia)

May 6th, 2016 by Anna Oh 17 Comments

fotd-pink-makeup2 — Wearing Ardency Inn Rose Gold Eyeshadow, Becca Rose Gold Pressed Eyeshadow, and MAC Finally Free Lipstick

A friend and I recently had a photography date in a charming neighborhood, snacking on amazing salted caramel “cake” donuts (they are as good as they sound). It was a picture perfect weekend, so I decided to take advantage of the amazing weather to wear pink.

This week Jen, Adia and I are showcasing our favorite way to rock pink eyeshadow, and I call this look “Rose Gold Eyeshadow for a Day of Donuts and Photoshoots.”

Here are a few of my favorite pink-toned pieces…

fotd — FOTD Makeup Menu: Nars Concealer, MAC Mascara, Kat Von D Tattoo Liner, MAC Finally Free Lipstick, and Becca Rose Gold

ardency inn rose gold — Ardency Inn “Rose Gold” — the singles pop out from the magnet!

naked 3 palette — Urban Decay Naked 3. I used this palette to blend

What I used:

Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer ($29): I have the shade called Honey, and I’m joining the bandwagon… It’s an awesome concealer. I use it to target my problem areas, and I can skip the foundation step on good days.
MAC Charged Black Mineralize Multi-Effect Lash ($22): From the MAC Future Collection, this mascara is lightweight and lengthening. No crazy volume here. but I have been using this for weeks.
Kat Von D Tattoo Liner ($19): There are 2 types of people in this world — those who love the Tattoo Liner, and those who prefer the Ink Liner. I always come back to the Tattoo because I love the flexible soft brush pen.
MAC x Caitlyn Jenner Finally Free Lipstick ($17): This is with me in my minimal makeup bag, and I can’t recommend this color enough. SO pretty and perfect. I didn’t re-apply after the donuts, though, so it’s not present in the outdoor images.
Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed ($38): As the only Shimmering Skin Perfector I own, this deserves a special place on my vanity. Rose Gold is a highlighting blush or a blush-topper for the lighter skinned girls.
Ardency Inn Modster Manuka Honey Enriched Pigments ($21): The star of my look, Rose Gold is the creamiest, most nuanced rose-taupe eyeshadow I’ve seen. A perfect pick for anyone interested in getting into pinks.
Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette ($54): I use the darker shades in this palette constantly for many of my looks. They blend perfectly, and I love the matte colors in particular. I used some of the darker shades to quickly shade in my eyebrows too.

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Are the MAC Brooke Candy Eye Glosses Your Cup o’ Tea?

May 3rd, 2016 by Jen Clark 17 Comments

Eye look using MAC Brooke Candy White-Yin Eye Gloss ($23)

The lion’s share of the MAC Brooke Candy collection are definitely the amazing lippies, but the other items that sparked my interest were the eye glosses. I’d never used an eye gloss before, but I’d seen them floating around the YouTube-o-sphere, and they always looked so interesting to me.

There are two in this collection — White-Yin and Black-Yang.

Brooke Candy MAC Eye Gloss — White-Yin MAC Eye Gloss ($23; a clear gloss with multicolored micro-shimmer)

MAC Brooke Candy Eye Gloss in Black Yang — Black-Yang MAC Eye Gloss ($23; a black/blue gloss with red and blue micro-shimmer)

Not gonna lie, I’m not quite sure what to think of these… I think they’re made for a very specific kind of look and a very specific kind of person.

I love what Jessica did with some of the other MAC Eye Glosses to create a cool, editiorial, grunge-y look, but no matter what you do, you’ll end up with creased, oily-looking eye makeup, which, obviously, isn’t everyone’s cup o’ tea.

They are also crazy sticky, which I guess makes sense for what they are, but they feel so weird on my eyelids. I just can’t deal with it. As you open your eyes and blink, things just stick together.

White-Yin MAC Eye Gloss (a clear gloss with multi colored micro-shimmer) — White-Yin MAC Eye Gloss ($23; a clear gloss with multicolored micro-shimmer)

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A Closer Look at the MAC Chris Chang of Poesia Lipsticks: The Blue and Yellow Can Be Wearable??

April 29th, 2016 by Jen Clark 21 Comments

Chris Chang x MAC Lipstick in Cloud Gait — MAC Cloud Gait Lipstick from the MAC x Chris Chang collection

My favorite part of the MAC Chris Chang collection has to be the lipsticks…or maybe the eyeshadows… Wait, but I love the Cream Colour Bases too! But for now, let’s just talk about the lipsticks. Every color is unique and different in some way and, in typical MAC style, the formulas are spot on.

I started out excited by three of the colors and a little perplexed by two. How on earth am I, or anyone really, supposed to wear a sheer blue and a sheer yellow lipstick?? If they were opaque, that would be one thing, but they’re really sheer, which didn’t make sense to me. They just don’t look right on my lips!

MAC Chris Chang Cloud Gait Lipstick — MAC Cloud Gait Lipstick

Chris Chang x MAC Lipstick in Gold XIXI — MAC Gold XIXI Lipstick

Chris Chang x MAC Lipstick in Chris Chang x MAC Lipstick in Gold XIXI — MAC Gold XIXI Lipstick

I think I figured it out, though. I remember learning from someone on YouTube that most makeup artists keep a yellow lipstick in their kit, and the reason is because you can layer it on top of other lip colors to create a custom hue! Aha! That’s how you can use it. You can use Gold XIXI to add warmth to another lip color, and Cloud Gait to cool it.

Let me show you what I’m talking about…

Here’s MAC DDDevilish Lipstick from the collection:

Chris Chang x MAC Lipstick in MAC DDDevilish — MAC DDDevilish Lipstick

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