MAC Makeup

MAC Unsung Heroes: This Cremesheen Glass Is a Veritable Deelight

July 15th, 2011 by Karen 21 Comments

MAC Deelight Cremesheen Glass

Ever since our big company meeting with work-friendly Spite Lipglass (LOVE!) earlier this week, I’ve had other work-friendly MAC lip colors on my mind. Colors like the upwardly mobile subject of today’s Unsung Heroes post, MAC Cremesheen Glass in Deelight ($18.50).

I’ve kept this creamy, mid-tone neutral pink close for a few months. We met through the MAC Girl Next Door Kit and quickly hit it off, thanks to Deelight’s pigmented, hydrating formula, smooth, non-sticky texture and light vanilla flavor and scent (Side note: Deelight’s available by itself at MAC stores and counters; you don’t have to purchase the kit).

Deelight’s what I like to think of as an “everything” gloss — easy to work into almost every look, from sexy, sooty smokey eyes to things like the everyday neutral eye I’m wearing here. Whenever I want to wear pink, but not a warm pink like I get from my go-to’s, Nympehtte and Evolution Revolution, it totally fits the bill.

mac deelight cremesheen glass

mac deelight cremesheen glass
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These MAC Semi Precious Mineralize Blushes Are 100% Great

July 12th, 2011 by Karen 37 Comments

MAC Semi Precious Mineralize Blushes from the left: Feeling Flush, Pressed Amber and Warmth of Coral

If you haven’t popped by a MAC counter to try the three new MAC Mineralize Blushes ($23) from the Semi Precious Collection, try to pencil in a trip if you can. I think they’re all kinds of awesome, especially if you like a natural-looking cheek flush and blushes that are easy to apply.

I’ve been reaching for Feeling Flush (a marbleized mix of pink, blue and brown), Pressed Amber (a mix of beige, nude and brown) and Warmth of Coral (a mix with a coral and a peach) regularly since last week. All three spread like warm butter on bread, applying smoothly on cheeks and giving them a gorgeous, just-pinched look with one or two layers.

Mineralize Blush swatches from the left with the flash: Feeling Flush, Pressed Amber and Warmth of Coral

Mineralize Blush swatches from the left without the flash: Feeling Flush, Pressed Amber and Warmth of Coral

Feeling Flush on cheeks
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MAC Unsung Heroes: Lipglass in Spite

July 11th, 2011 by Karen 75 Comments

mac spite lipglass

So, I totally had a Joey Lawrence-style “WHOA!” moment at the MAC store last weekend. I was there picking up my umpteenth tube of today’s Unsung Hero, MAC Lipglass in Spite ($14.50), when I realized, holy crap! — I’ve been wearing this Lipglass longer than some of the girls shopping in this store have been alive!

Seriously, I’ve been wearing Spite for roughly 12 years. Assuming an average of two tubes per year — yes, I like it that much — that’s 24 tubes.

TWENTY-FOUR TUBES!

I started wearing Spite shortly after I took a job as a legal assistant at a law firm in 1999. I was in my early 20s, but I probably looked a little younger than that at the time. People would stop me in the halls, assuming I was one of the high school interns, and ask things like, “Oh, are you someone’s daughter?”

“Um…yes?” I’d say, a little confused. “How about you?”

Or, “Is this your summer job?”

“Well…sort of, but I would really like to keep it through winter.”

Pretty soon I was trying to look older, which for me meant putting my hair up in a bun, wearing my glasses instead of contacts and slicking my lips with MAC Spite.

While I love nude-ish pink and peach glosses with a flirty, casual, playful vibe, I prefer something like Spite’s plummy brown when I want to convey more of a sense of restraint, maturity and confident control (but don’t want to look stuffy or boring at the same time).

mac spite lipglass tube

mac spite lipglass swatch
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MAC Colourizations Collection: This Dramatic Double Feature Stars a Teal and Brown Eye

July 7th, 2011 by Karen 81 Comments

MAC Colourizations Double Feature 3

Okay, so you how when you’re in the mood to do a dramatic eyeshadow look, and you start with just a few colors, but the next thing you know you’ve got, like, 10 different shades all up on your lids?

Welcome to my world, chica.

MAC Colourizations Double Feature 3

I don’t know what it is, but when I see all of those lonely pans looking up at me hopefully, I can’t help myself. A little bit of this one here, a tiny bit of that one there. OOH! A dash of this one to accentuate everything else. 🙂

Sometimes I wonder if I have some kind of medical makeup condition that compels me to use four different browns in the crease.

While it’s fun to get carried away doing complicated eye looks while completely ignoring the clock, I think it’s also fun (and usually more practical) to see what drama can be had with one or two shades, tops. The funky colors in the new MAC Eye Shadow X 2 Duos ($25 each) from the upcoming Colourizations collection are here to help.

Today I took Double Feature 3’s matte teal and chocolate satin out for a spin…

mac colourizations double feature 3

MAC Colourizations Double Feature 3
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MAC Colourizations Pro Palette Eye Shadow X 2: You Can’t Easily Pop In and Out of This Double Feature

July 5th, 2011 by Karen 45 Comments

mac colourizations

The very first time I walked up to a MAC eyeshadow display case, my eyes rolled back in my head. Not because of eyeshadow ecstasy, mind you; this was years ago, and at the time I didn’t know Soft Brown from chocolate delight. No, looking down at those rows of sleek, little pots, as beads of perspiration formed on my brow, I was utterly and completely overwhelmed.

What I could have used back then was something like the new MAC Pro Palette Eye Shadows X 2 ($25 each US; $30 in Canada). Designed to take the guesswork out of choosing which eyeshadows to pair by teaming two coordinating colors together in a cute lil’ palette (and eliminating what was a major source of makeup stress for me way back when), these eight duos dance onto MAC counters with the new Colourizations Collection August 4 in North America, and internationally, some time next month.

mac colourizations

MAC calls them, “daring pairings,” and from the six palettes I’ve seen so far, some of the couplings, like the orange and navy in Double Feature 8, appear more adventurous than others (even if it isn’t that risky, I still really like Double Feature 5’s pairing of that frosty peach and the duochrome brown with green pearl).

mac colourizations double feature 1
Double Feature 1

mac colourizations double feature 3
Double Feature 3
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MAC Unsung Heroes: Impassioned Lipstick (and Watermelon)

July 1st, 2011 by Karen 39 Comments

mac impassioned lipstick

It’s official: I am in food lust with watermelon. That one from the other day? Completely gone. And it was ginormous, too! — like bigger than Tabs, and I ate it all by myself in, like, two days. On the one hand (and I’m thrilled about this) I’m not having any, um, fiber issues, but on the other hand, I’m a little afraid I might be overdoing it.

So sweet, so juicy!

Gotta swing by Trader Joe’s to get another one ASAP.

I’m obsessed… I’ve got watermelon on the brain. It’s even creeping into my makeup. Just the other day, I was looking at Impassioned ($14.50), one of my favorite MAC Lipsticks, when it hit me…

No, not the watermelon (silly). 🙂 It occurred to me that Impassioned is a perfect watermelon pink.

MAC describes it as a full-throttle fuchsia, but on me it’s more of an intense, warmish hot pink. I’ve been wearing it a lot lately because, ya know, the whole watermelon thing, and also because I love the way it lights up my face. I think it looks fantabulous with summery gold, teal and bronze eye looks.

Impassioned and the other MAC Amplified lipsticks are famous for long-lasting, rich color (all day wear). That’s a lot longer than it takes to devour a plate of watermelon slices.

Watermelon…

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MAC Glitter and Ice for Holiday 2011: Johnny Weir to Star in the Upcoming Holiday Campaign

June 28th, 2011 by Karen 27 Comments

Color me thrilled, MACaholics! We have some early holiday news. MAC plans to feature Olympic skater and three-time U.S. champion Johnny Weir in their upcoming Glitter and Ice Holiday Collection (LOVE HIM!).

According to the New York Post, Johnny just wrapped up a shoot in Miami for Glitter and Ice, and all I have to say about that: there better be sequins in the house; otherwise, Tabs will throw a fit!

MAC loves offbeat collaborations with guys and gals (hello, Dame Edna!), and Johnny, with his funky fashion sense and sassy performances on the ice, sounds like a good fit.

He’s also a major MAC fan and makeup maven. We spoke last year about some of his MAC must-haves and tips…

Q: What are your top three tricks to getting your skin looking flawless on camera?

A: Conceal everything you don’t want the world to notice, like blemishes or dark circles, with an amazing concealer like Cle de Peau or MAC concealers.Â 2) Blot away your shine and oil with MAC’s Blot Powder and Bronzing Powders.Â 3) Take care of your skin.Â If your skin feels beautiful and healthy, it will look beautiful and healthy.

Q: What’s a makeup lesson you learned the hard way?

A: When I first started wearing makeup to perform I learned that you need to apply bronzer very evenly.Â You can’t go out with a mocha face, latte neck and custard ears. I saw a photo of myself and was horrified; needless to say, I never made that mistake again.Â For men, the important thing is to look like yourself but one hundred times better with the help of makeup… it defeats the purpose when everyone can see how much you’ve got caked on.

Q: What are your three favorite MAC products to use before a performance?

A: MAC Blot Powder, MAC Bronzing Powder [and] MAC Tinted Lip Conditioner in Soothing Beige.

Work that Glitter and Ice, Johnny!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

MAC Semi Precious Lip Swatches and a Pre-Weekend Check-In

June 24th, 2011 by Karen 27 Comments

Completely and totally random (what else is new?), but this afternoon while I was doing these lip swatches of a few Cremesheens Glasses and Lipsticks from the new MAC Semi Precious Collection, that Adele song, Rolling in the Deep, started to play on the radio, but for some strange reason, the chorus sounded different to me…

We could have had it all,
Rolling with the sheep,
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling with the sheep)
You had my heart inside of your hand,
(You’re gonna wish you never had met me)
And you played it to the beat.
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling with the sheep)

LOL! Yes, I think I’ve lost my mind. 🙂 It’s been a long week — a good one, for sure — but a long one, and I’m really looking forward to this weekend.

Tomorrow I’m meeting my BFF Cindy at the de Young Museum in the city to check out an exhibit I’ve been wanting to catch called Balenciaga and Spain. After that, I’ve got a few errands to run, maybe work out, do some cleaning around the house — oh, and fool around with makeup, of course. That almost doesn’t need to be said, ha!

Do you have any plans? Whatever you’re doing, I hope you’re able to sneak in some time for yourself. It’s important, you know?

And speaking of important things, what do ya think of these MAC Semi Precious lip colors? They arrive on MAC counters and in stores July 7 in North America, and internationally some time next month.

Cremesheen Glass in Geo Pink

Cremesheen Glass in Looks Like Sin
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