A Makeup & Beauty Blog – Lipglossiping

Ha!  It feels kinda old-skool to be reviewing this on the blog no?  MAC isn’t the force in the blogging community that it once was.  Anyway, I for one am delighted that there’s room for so many other brands nowadays – though I’m excited to be pulling out a trusty old MSF for today’s review nonetheless.

Pretty ain’t she?  Lightscapade is that delicate cousin that looks all willowy and ethereal when compared to your ruddy, more “sturdy” self.  If you can’t *be* her, then at least steal some of her daintyness by dusting your cheekbones and hoping that she’ll impart a ghostly, wispy beauty to your fizzog.

One of MAC’s more finely-milled mineralize skinfinishes, Lightscapade was hugely sought after until the brand re-promoted it last year.  The one I have above is from this re-promote and may or may not be less or more beautiful than its predecessor.  I don’t care enough to google.

Lightscapade is a glowing, almost-white highlight with enough of a warm sheen to prevent you from looking like the undead, madeup.  I apply this with the MAC 130 to keep the application area to a minimum cheekbone highlight, it’s easy to go overboard.

Obviously, what with MAC’s numerous releases and limited editions, you can’t currently purchase this from the store but keep an eye out on eBay as I imagine the prices will be less extortionate than they were before the re-promote.

Are you a fan of MAC Mineralize Skinfinishes?  Which is your favourite?

MAC’s Oh, Oh, Oh lustre lipstick was recently released in the brand’s 8438594th collection of the year.  Oh ok, it was released in their huge 51-piece MAC Me Over collection for Autumn.  Said collection included a total of eight lipsticks, I fell in love with one.

MAC Oh, Oh, Oh is an unlikely-looking contender in the tube with an overwhelming impression that you’re looking at a bronze/copper shade.  Not so my fellow lipstick-lovers, for Oh, Oh, Oh is infact a beautiful plum with vibrant gold shimmer, rendering it absolutely perfect for Autumn.

Lustres are my favourite MAC lipstick finish, sheer (but not too sheer) and glossy with a softer texture than most.  Once warmed up, it glides on with no issues and imparts a healthy dose of colour to my naturally unpigmented lips.

I like to wear MAC Oh, Oh, Oh with a pink or plum blush, a slick of eyeliner and not much else.  The beauty in this lipstick lies in the golden shimmer that deserves to take the main stage.

Have you found your favourite Autumn lipstick yet?

MAC Oh, Oh, Oh Lustre Lipstick is still available on the MAC Website in the going-going-gone section priced at £13.50, if you wanted to snap up a great choice for Autumn, better be quick!

You may have noticed that I’m not a prolific MAC buyer… it’s not some conscious decision to avoid MAC, I just don’t have access to the brand in Southampton.  My nearest MAC store is a good 45 minute drive away and so I generally only pick up bits and bobs when I’m in London.

Last time I was in the MAC store in Covent Garden, I was enjoying the company of Katie from My Lips But Better and she pointed out this MAC Magically Cool Liquid Powder to me.  Well, actually… she kinda dragged me to the pot and insisted that I HAD to play with it.  It was love at first touch… a liquid/powder/uber cool thing?  Get. In. My. Bag.

I used the tip of a pen to pop some holes through the sticker covering the sifter but it doesn’t actually work that well as the powder is reluctant to dispense without a lot of tapping.  I think you’d be better off peeling back about a quarter of the sticker and snipping the excess.

So, what is this Magically Cool Liquid Powder thing all about anyway?  I’ll let MAC explain…

An alchemical fusion that charms water droplets into a loose powder while remaining over 50 percent H2O.

This feather-light silky powder goes on with the refreshing impact of an ocean mist.
What’s more, this magical melange contains just enough optical blurring via its light-diffusing pigments to render skin’s surface into line-softened, natural luminosity.

How magical is that?

Magical indeed… I’ve swatched it heavily below so you can see the shade.

I bought the palest shade of the three available, Truth & Light.  At the time of purchasing, I thought I was buying it as a highlighter… but I’m delighted to be able to wear it as a setting powder.  I think of it in the same way I think of my Guerlain Metorites.  A light dusting for an added dimension of luminosity.

A significant difference with the MAC Magically Cool Liquid Powder though is in its longevity.  The swatch above needed to be washed off, rubbing with my hand wouldn’t budge it!  This makes for an excellent setting powder but some tricky application issues.

I initially applied this with a normal powder brush and it transferred way too much product to my face.  If you apply too much, it balls up and will not blend, not to mention it sits there caked on your face looking pretty awful.  I’ve since started using my Sonia Kashuk stippling brush which deposits the perfect amount of product and delivers a wonderful cooling sensation!

Horrible photo but hopefully you can make out a bit of sheen (NO SPARKLE!) where the light hits my cheeks.

I’m really pleased with my purchase, one of my favourites MAC buys in a very long time!

MAC Magically Cool Liquid Powder is available on counter and online priced at £23.50 for 28g of product.

Last weekend saw VexintheCity and myself wandering the streets of Paris, city of lights and painfully stylish women.  What is it with Parisienne ladies anyway?  Do they teach eyeliner in schools?  I didn’t see a single pair of eyes that hadn’t been expertly rimmed with smudgy black kohl.  It was both refreshing and slightly intimidating.

Here’s some shots from the (very long) day out, starting with the Paris essentials:

A map, we looked at it blankly all day long.

Jaffa Cakes – Don’t attempt the Eurostar at 6.22am without copious amounts of sugar close at hand.

Papped – I swear to God I did not pose for this!  Red lipstick made me feel almost cultured enough to tread the cobbled streets though.

Undeniably Paris!  Napoleon’s rebuild of the great city renders it thoroughly iconic with it’s long, wide Boulevards and grand Avenues!

Ahhh Sephora!  My first ever visit!  This is the one on Champs Élysées, we arrived v. early and as you can see, it wasn’t too busy at all!

Makeup, makeup as far as the eye can see!

Can you believe we sat our bums down on the posh chairs in Ladurée only to be told that we were too early for cake?  Too early… for cake?  So we boycotted all things French and went to McDonalds instead.  No really… we were famished!

As night fell, we indulged in a little of Paris’ notorious cafe culture… I recommend the house Merlot at Café Kléber, though I was a bit squiffy after only two glasses!

As you can probably tell by this photo.

But not this one!  Oooh La la!  Je t’aime La Tour Eiffel!

So what did I buy in the capital of fashion, beauty and all things ladylike?  Not a lot actually.  I’m saving my pennies for this weekend at IMATS but I did pick up a couple of bits…

See?  How restrained was I?

Despite all your fabulous advice and words of temptation, (for which I was immensely grateful and will be relying on when I return later in the year!) I held back and only picked up a Bioderma cleanser (for Mr. L!), a MAC CCB (I know, sacrilege to go to Paris and buy MAC right?) and a Rouge Baiser Lipstick (described as the world’s first ‘kiss-proof’ lipstick!)

Did I do well?  I also played with some MUFE in Sephora and expanded my IMATS wishlist tenfold.  Oops.

The timing of MAC’s Wonder Woman collection seems a touch premature to me, with the long-awaited release of a Warner Bros movie slated for 2013, I’m surprised that they didn’t hold out a couple more years and ride that cash cow all the way to the bank!

Regardless, the new collection will be arriving in stores much sooner than that.  Temptalia has the lowdown on the collection which is due for an international (non-US) release of March 2011.

image courtesy of. Temptalia.com

The 32-piece collection (yes, I counted em – anyone wanna check my maths?!) is already kicking up a storm amongst beauty-loving MAC fans worldwide.  The biggest bone of contention?  The packaging…

Temptalia readers have been showing their contempt for the design with comments including:

“…reminds me of the toy makeup I used to beg for when I was a kid.” – source

“…this packaging is actually so horrible that I doubt I’ll be purchasing much (if anything) from this collection.” – source

“…I don’t like the packaging.  The packaging looks verry childish.  I’m gonna buy nothing.” – source

“…I wouldn’t be caught dead taking them out in public.” – source

Of course, there are many protesting in defence of the packaging too…

Me?  I’m not ashamed to admit that I love it.

Sure, I love my Guerlain palettes and the sleek lines of my Rouge D’Armani lippies which always make me feel a little bit posher than I really am when I flash them about infront of people (I totally do that).  But… I really think MAC have pulled the “Wonder Woman” theme off magnificently!

image courtesy of. Temptalia.com

Look at those contrast gold-rimmed pans!  Love. It.

I do understand people’s disappointment… if the theme isn’t for them, it simply isn’t for them and if we all shared the same tastes, wouldn’t the world be a boring place?  But I can totally appreciate that for the theme… this packaging is ticking ALL the right boxes.

As an aside, it’s something that I didn’t think MAC achieved with the Disney VV collection which left me feeling that they hadn’t put any real effort into doing Disney (and it’s fans) justice.  There’s no denying that if a brand can “plug-in” to a much-loved theme and capture it’s essence within the collection, then the tills won’t stop ringing until the last lipstick has been sold.  Easy money if you can get it right.

image courtesy of. Temptalia.com

Kudos.

What do you guys think of the packaging for MAC Wonder Woman collection?  Adorable or Deplorable?  Vote!

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Day 3 brings a classic – MAC Russian Red.

It’s the truest red of the lot so far… and the most matte.  I chose to break into it today simply because my lips are in good condition at the moment thanks to some extra special recent care when I decided I was going to be doing this series.

To wear this one, I made sure my lips were well-exfoliated with a flannel, then I applied a thin coat of Lanolips 101 to work it’s magic whilst I got ready and did the rest of my makeup.  A year ago, I wouldn’t have been able to wear this lipstick… my lips were always cracked.  They used to actually CATCH on my clothes when I undressed at night… such is the power of Lanolips.

I didn’t want to keep reapplying this one so I used my Jemma Kidd Lip Perfector to lock the colour into the lip line and prevent bleeding.  Then I used a lip brush to apply a thin coat of Russian Red… blotted and reapplied.  I was tempted to blot again, then do the tissue/powder trick before a final coat.  But I couldn’t be bothered.  L.A.Z.Y.

You need a lip brush with this one if you want clean edges.  It’s a faff… but if you get the application right, you’re rewarded with many, many hours of good, solid wear.  I managed around 6 hours before I grabbed the bullet and just swiped to reapply.

I think it’s my favourite… and you’re right… now that I compare this to Cockney, I think Cockney is a little too warm for me.  Perhaps a bit… clown-like by comparison.

Once I get to day 7, I’ll do an arm swatch of all the ones I’ve worn that week so that you can compare tones and I’ll be uploading the collage of all your lovely reds!

Thank you to those of you who have sent through pictures so far, looking GOOD ladies!  I’m not gonna do a Red Lips day tomorrow (I’m a bit sick of seeing my face tbh!)… but will be posting them up maybe every 2nd or 3rd day from now on.

So, I’m on to Day 2… I haven’t counted my lipsticks so I’m not sure how far this is going to take me and I’m praying that all the photos don’t just look identical otherwise it’s gonna get old, quickly.

Mr. L was a little less fazed today.  I didn’t get my usual morning compliment on my makeup that he knows he has to give unless he wants lots of vegetables for dinner…. so I made him cauliflower cheese for tea.

MAC Cockney is fairly sheer and can be worn by the less RED confident among us (which is why I own it).  I bought it when I went to MAC on the hunt for THE RED lipstick that I would be able to wear.  It wasn’t on my list of reds to check at the time.  My list consisted of only Russian Red and Ruby Woo… I’m not very MAC savvy to be honest.

I found this one lurking amongst the shades and when I swiped it on my hand I was really pleased with the glossy texture.  Far more wearable than those more ‘serious’ reds.  In the tube, Cockney has a beautiful red shimmer/glitter that reminds me of China Glaze Ruby Pumps… but this doesn’t really translate to the lips.

I’m gonna come back and update each of my Red Lip posts with a close up of the lip colours and a hand swatch as I think this is probably useful and I’m not sure why I overlooked it in the first place.

So…. how did I find MAC Cockney?  Well.. it was both easier and more difficult to wear.  Easier in terms of subtlety, it’s just not quite so pronounced in it’s brazen-ness.  Sure it’s red… but it wears down quite quickly to a slightly more subdued shade.  This could either be a positive OR a negative depending on your P.O.V.

The negative?  Longevity… a little less than the NYX from Day 1 which was surprising but I think mostly down to my application as I didn’t feel the need to blot this because I was intent on layering to build up the intensity.

MAC describe this lipstick as a Sheer yellow red with multi-dimensional pearl (Lustre) – I don’t really know what that means… (the yellow bit)… but I’m guessing that it must be warmer than neutral then right?

Thanks for all your tips and recommendations yesterday, I’m definitely looking into getting Chanel Dragon and probably Rimmel Diva Red and OCC NSFW too… you also might notice that I attempted some bronzer (still not enough!) and eyebrow powder (not too much!)

Do you own MAC Cockney?

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If anyone wants to join me on my red lip crusade, please email me a photo of your lovely selves rocking your favourite red lip – I’d love to post a collage with your photos!

Please keep your photos coming in – perhaps we can inspire each other to carry on rocking the reds over Christmas!

So, Nicki Minaj’s personally designed pepto-(a)bismol pink lipstick is up on the MAC website today… for one day only.  Until next Friday.  And the one after that…

And the one after that… until MAC have bled their fans dry not only of their money but also of their patience.

Buying stuff from MAC… it’s like the 12 labours of Hercules.

I’ll (unsurprisingly) be passing on this.  I can’t even make All Styled Up work for me so I have no hope with this one.  Plus, I don’t shop on Fridays.  It’s against my religion (as of today).

Will you be picking this one up?

As soon as I saw the veining in one of the latest Accessorize Merged Blushers… I knew I’d seen it before.  I didn’t even really want the shade but my curiosity got the better of me, so I picked it up along with the rest of my little haul yesterday afternoon.

On the way home, the penny dropped and I dug out my discontinued MAC Moon River mineralize Blush.

MAC Moon River mineralize blush was released as part of the Grand Duo collection in Spring ’09 and has recently been spotted in a few CCO’s up and down the country.  It’s a particular favourite amongst pale skin types who just want a hint of colour.

Compared to Accessorize’s Merged Blushed in #3 Pretty Pink, first impressions as a dupe possibility are promising.  The veining is simillar: Pink, Lilac and Soft Yellow.  Accessorize’s offering looks slightly less glittery in the pan and also just a hint warmer/peachier.

Accessorize gives us 8g of product for £5.50 compared to MAC’s 3.2g of product for around £17.50.

MAC on the left, Accessorize on the right.  Are you seeing dupes?

Obviously… Accessorize Pretty Pink isn’t a duo… the veining is consistent throughout the pan.  Do you agree that Pretty Pink looks a little warmer than Moon River?

As for texture…

Moon River feels a little softer and my brush picks up the powder more readily when swept over Moon River.  Despite this, pigmentation is pretty simillar.  I’d say that Moon River appears to be more glittery than Pretty Pink, though strangely the sheen on the Accessorize dupe is a little more apparent…. a touch more ‘metallic’ once on the skin.

The most important swatches are the two on the left.  I added the third just to show the marbled half of Moon River alone.

What do you think?

MAC Moon River vs. Accessorize #3 Pretty Pink – Dupe or no dupe?

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When my lips are in good enough shape for matte lipsticks, there’s one that I reach for over and over again.

It’s pink… but not too pink.  It’s girly, but not prissy.

It’s MAC Please Me!

I find it bright enough to be interesting without being one of those MAC shades that make me feel a bit myspace profile picture-y?  You know the ones I mean…. pink plaid, st. germain, snob etc.  Some people can wear those shades really well… me?  I just look OLD in them.

Having said that, I’m having a bit of a MAC revival at the minute… especially with the lippies.  I have a few on my shopping list including Sweetie, Faux and Milan Mode.

What are your favourite MAC lipsticks?  The ones that you reach for over and over for everyday wear?

I wanted to get these out quickly in the hope that the photos/swatches over my overspend haul may be useful to those still making up their minds on what they want to order.  But I failed…

I’m not gonna do any proper reviews, I’m just trying to put some shots out there that are as colour accurate as I can manage.

Without further ado…

The Haul!

Stereo Rose MSF – surprisingly wearable on my pale, cool-toned skin.

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I thought it might be useful if I did this post ahead of the upcoming MAC In The Groove Collection which is due for release on the 1st July.

The rather lovely Karleigh wanted a shot of my pale arse wearing it. Well, not my ‘arse’… that would be enough to send global MAC sales plummeting. I mean… oh, you know what I mean.

Anyway, I’m gonna show you my FOTD and then I’m gonna link you to one of my fav bloggers who’s got a fabulous shot showing the shimmer far better than I was able to… so read on!

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