MAC Makeup

WOW! What a MAC-alicious week… And the hits keep coming, too. Mark your calendars for Feb. 18, MAC fans, because that’s the day MAC Riveting rock ‘n rolls into town.

It’ll be a small release compared to Spring Colour Forecast, with just 14 pieces for lips, eyes, cheeks and nails and a familiar ’80s rock goddess vibe that focuses on sculpted cheeks and lush lashes.

What Tabs wants to know is…

What would you get?

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Hi, ladies. 🙂 Question for you: Are there any MAC Trips in your future? Is an airport in your plans? If you have any trips lined up over the next few months, keep your eyes peeled for MAC’s latest Trip travel exclusives for spring/summer 2010.

WHAT’S A TRAVEL EXCLUSIVE?
Several of the bigger lines like MAC, Clinique and Estee Lauder periodically release limited-edition makeup collections for sale at airports and other travel hubs (domestic and international) that aren’t typically carried in their free-standing stores or counters.

Cremesheen Trio

I have a feeling the members of this neutral lipstick trio will make beautiful music with looks featuring smokey eyes.

• Creme de Nude (a pale, muted peachy beige)
• Speed Dial (a light blueish pink)
• Modesty (a muted neutral pink)

Dazzleglass Trio

Get glossy and *sparkle* with with these shimmery glosses.

• Like Venus (a light bubblegum pink with red pearl)
• Sugarrimmed (a milky pale pink with pearl)
• Smile (a light coral with pink and pearl)

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At the MAC Spring Colour Forecast release party last night, I stole a few minutes of a friendly MAC artist’s time to talk about the new Blush Ombres ($25) and Crush Metal Stacked Pigments ($32).

He (Jack) suggested a few ways to get more bang for your Colour Forecast-ing bucks.

Blush Ombre

Blush Ombre in Vintage Grape

What’s the deal with the newest members of the MAC blush family? What sets them apart? Well, each of the four moderately pigmented pressed powder blushes is really a combination of buildable colors in the same pan, a gradient that moves from light to dark tones, with a finish about halfway between shimmer and matte.

Tips and tricks

• To load a brush with a mix of tones from one of the pans, use a swirling action with a blush brush like the MAC 129.
• The lighter tones in each pan make great highlighters. For a look that glows, apply it with a blush brush like the MAC 116 along the tops of your cheekbones, down the bridge of your nose and on your temples.
• The darker (ooh, scary!) side of each pan can be used for contouring. For definition, load an angled face brush like the MAC 168, and sweep beneath the apples of your cheeks. 🙂

Blush Ombre in Ripe Peach

Blush Ombre in Azalea Blossom
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With more than 40 precious pieces of eye, lip and face makeup spread out among its four different color-themed collections, the new MAC Spring Colour Forecast release overwhelmed me at first. There’s *a lot* in it to digest, and when you’re prone to frequent bouts of makeup-related stimulus overload (like moi), it can be a bit much.

To explore the collection, I’ve been trying to bite off little bits at a time, my own Mini Makeup Missions. 🙂

It’s the approach I took last night at the San Francisco MAC Pro Store release party for Colour Forecast. I knew I wouldn’t be able to get hands-on time with everything, so I concentrated on products I knew I could use for a simple look I’d wear pretty often, in this case a neutral lip look with a little twist.

MAC Pro Store on Union Street, San Francisco

Like a lotta ya’ll, I usually reach for peach, pink or beige lip colors when I want to wear something conservative on my lips — something like shimmery golden peach/pink MAC Nymphette gloss, which I’m still deeply in love with.

Last night, though, I wanted to find something still neutral-ish, but with a little spice to shake things up.

I think I found it in these two purple Lipglasses ($14 each): Lavender Wind (a sheer purple with blue and gold shimmer) and Purple Rage (a shimmery, deep golden plum).

Purple Rage (left) and Lavender Wind (right)
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It looks like Ms. Bobbi Brown wasn’t the only one with the idea for a spring collection focused on a specific color theme (in her case coral). Today MAC released four of them! Four new collections, each one focussed on a different color theme, and all of them available now online.

Each of the four MAC Spring Colour Forecasts mini-collections highlights one of four colors — Pink, Coral, Plum and Amber.

The MAC crew filled each of the sets with a mix of makeup (including some limited edition items) for eyes, lips and cheeks in tones ranging from demure to bold, and to really spice things up they even threw in some nail polishes and a splash of fragrance, too. 🙂

I’m intrigued by the stackable Crush Metal Pigments ($32.50) that come with four jars filled with sparkly metallic loose eyeshadows… Talk about portable party makeup, hay!

I felt a wave of blush lust the first moment I saw the Blush Ombres ($25 each), four powder blushes with a gentle gradient of color in each pan. MAC says they apply with medium, buildable coverage. Yummy.
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Have any of you gals tried either the Grapefruit + Chamomile or Sweet Orange + Lavender MAC Care Blends Essential Oils ($20 each)?

They came out with the Warm & Cozy collection…

I have Sweet Orange + Lavender, and so far I’ve only used it on my hands, mixing in a few drops with my lotion before bed. I’m scared to death apprehensive about trying it on my face, though, where I have VERY sensitive skin.

I just have a weird feeling it’ll cause me to break out.

Am I worrying for nothing? Have you tried these yet? And if you have, have you used them on your face?

Inquiring minds want to know. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Tonight I stopped by the mall to get an up close and personal look at the rest of the two brand-spankin’ new MAC collections that arrived today, All Ages, All Races, All Sexes and MAC in Lillyland. 🙂

I set out to find my favorites and brainstorm with the makeup artists at the counter to find the best of the rest.

MAC in Lillyland: I’m blushing

Lillyland’s color palette takes me straight to the tropics, with glistening sparkles like droplets of rain on exotic flowers in shades of vibrant pink, orange and purple.

Cremeblend Blush in Florida ($19). Florida looks shockingly pink in her pan, but she applies like a semi-transparent hot pink on cheeks. My MAC buddy Rose loves Florida, which she called a dead ringer for MAC Dollymix powder blush (an all-time fave!). I’ve always wanted a cream blush version of Dollymix… I guess some dreams really do come true! 🙂

All four of the Cremeblend Blushes ($19 each). Don’t be scurred, holmes! They may look bright in their pans, but these creamy blushes, with their dewy finish, go on like transparent washes of color. Wear ’em on bare skin OR above your foundation and/or powder. So purty!

From left to right: Joie-De-Vivre; Optimistic Orange; So Sweet, So Easy and Florida

Pearlmatte Face Powder ($27). MAC artist Michelle called this pan of powder the Lillyland product that would wear best across the board. She suggested swirling the shimmery brown, peach, gold and pink shades together to create a golden brown. BONUS: Should work great as either a blush or a highlighter.
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