Product Reviews

Your Eyes, Now With Colour Added: The New MAC Colour Added Eye Shadow X 4

February 20th, 2012 by Karen 39 Comments

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Guilty pleasure No. 437: Butter sugar sandwiches

A layer of butter topped with sugar and sandwiched between two slices of soft, melt-in-your-mouth fresh Wonder Bread.

Oh, whatever! You know you loved those, too. 🙂

Loaded with fat, sugar and other carbs, they’re the perfect junk food trifecta (although not exactly the healthiest snack in town). Buttery manna from heaven.

When I was a kid, every afternoon when I got home from school, my babysitter would make one for me, and I’d eat it while watching Scooby Doo.

Ah, memories…

Gosh, I just got so hungry all of a sudden. Why don’t I fix us both a butter sugar sandwich (they really are quite good), and then we’ll play with the buttery yellow eyeshadow in the new MAC Eye Shadow X 4 quad in Colour Added ($38).

It’s the yellow pan in the picture below, and the color shares the same name as the quad.

I think it’s my favorite of these four shadows…

Doesn’t it remind you of a golden pat of butter with grains of sugar melting on top? Or is that just me? 🙂

Wait until you see it on skin! It does this shifty thing in the light, one minute going from a satiny, light yellow butter color, to a richer yellow gold, to a golden beige. It’s kinda neat, and I don’t think I have anything quite like it in my eyeshadow collection.

Believe it or not, it’s even pretty wearable, too, just like the rest of the colors in this limited edition eyeshadow quad (one of three in the new Shop MAC collection).

In the quad, light yellow Colour Added is joined by a satiny neutral called Laundry Daze (essentially a beige), a slate gray called Self-Serve and a shimmery turquoise called Pre-Packaged.

The turquoise and yellow shades are generous with pigment but don’t throw their weight around, and I really like the effect.

By putting together two neutrals with two user-friendly brights, MAC’s created a quad for makeup lovers who crave a little color, but don’t necessarily want to wear LOUD NEON BRIGHTS!

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It Looks Like NYX Got Crafty With Their New Multicolored, Multitalented Blotting Papers

February 19th, 2012 by Karen 15 Comments

I remember a time, intrepid makeup moppets and whippersnappers, when blotting papers were rare, or at least before they hit it really big and went mainstream.

That year was 1996. Or ’97. Thereabouts.

One of my coworkers and I were on our break when she pulled a powder blue packet of Shiseido blotting papers from her purse, and I was like, “Ooh! What’s that?”

She tore one in half and handed it to me. “Blotting paper,” she said, “for soaking up shiny oil.”

Brilliant! 🙂

I’ve been a regular user of blotting papers ever since, and now they’re carried practically everywhere, even at drugstores.

The newest ones I’ve tried hail from NYX. The budget line just released three themed packs for $6 each (100 papers apiece).

Each pack caters to a different skin care issue, like, the Blemish Control pack’s papers contain salicylic acid to help zap zits, the Green Tea papers contain antioxidant-rich green tea powder to soothe and nurture mature skin, and the Tea Tree papers help to prevent blemishes with (surprise!) tea tree oil.

They’re pretty straightforward to use, as you can imagine. Just remove one of the sheets from its packaging, and press it against your face to absorb excess oil and eliminate shine.

The papers are a good size for me and kind of delicate, like thin paper streamers, and one is usually enough to absorb all of the excess oil on my face.

The Green Tea and Blemish Control papers are unscented, while the Tea Tree papers have a fairly strong medicinal tea tree scent. I’ve been bouncing between all three packs and like them equally.

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You Look a Little Green, and That’s Good! LancÃ´me Color Fever Gloss in Green Petal

February 18th, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

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Green lipgloss? Sure, why not?

Part of me wishes that the new limited edition LancÃ´me Color Fever Gloss in Green Petal ($26) was, well, even greener than it is, but more on that in a few.

One of three Color Fever Glosses in LancÃ´me’s Roseraie des Delices collection for spring 2012, this sheer, sparkly gloss surprised me. Before I tried it on, I thought, “Really, it’s green. How wearable can it be?”

Quite wearable, it turns out.

Thick, but non-sticky, with a light lavender flavor and scent that I like, it glides across my lips, where it lasts about 90 minutes.

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These MAC Kissable Lipcolours Are Like Glosses With Superpowers

February 18th, 2012 by Karen 12 Comments

Wearing MAC Kissable Lipcolour in So Vain on my lips

OOH! I think I found my new/latest favorite (I use that word a lot, don’t I?) lip products to layer beneath the MAC Tendertones — the new Kissable Lipcolours ($19 each) from the Shop MAC collection.

If you remember the Kissable Lipcolours from last year’s Peacocky collection, they’re lightweight, pigmented glosses, kinda like MAC Cremesheen Glasses with super powers.

For me, because I have pretty pigmented lips, these Lipcolours are like motivational speakers for the super sheer MAC Tendertones, helping them reach their full potential. Starting with one of the Lipcolours, and then layering a Tendertone on top, gives the later more dimension and really keeps things interesting.

Not only do I like how well the Lipcolours layer, I think they also look lovely on their own, and since they pack plenty of pigment, I barely have to use any at all for excellent coverage. Just a little on my bottom lip, and then I smack both lips together to distribute the color.

The five new shades recently released with the Shop MAC collection feel just as hydrating, lightweight and non-sticky on my lips as their predecessors do, and all of them also have MAC’s trademark light vanilla flavor and scent.

I’ve been wearing Woo Me (a pinkish nude), So Vain (a coral) and Flaunting It (a grayish mauve) lately and get about two hours of wear time with each.

Kissable Lipcolours from the top to bottom: So Vain, Woo Me and Flaunting It, $19 each

Kissable Lipcolours from bottom to top: Flaunting It, So Vain and Woo Me

Woo Me
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The MAC Fluidlines Were Great Before, But Now There’s Added Goodness

February 17th, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

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As much as I and use the MAC Fluildine gel liners, I don’t think I’ve ever reached the bottom of one of them — not even my beloved pot of Blacktrack.

“Ultra-smooth, Fluidline’s gel formula provides the precision of a liquid liner with a silkier, softer finish. Goes on ‘foolproof’ with a brush in an easy dip-and-stroke action. Long-wearing. Smudge-proof. Lines up in a rich array of colours and finishes.”

–maccosmetics.com

Maybe that’s why I don’t get the urge to squirrel away multiple pots of the Fluidline colors, because each one lasts me so wondrously long.

Ah, but I did feel that urge today for the first time in ages — the urge to stock up on one (or two) spare pots of a new Fluidline — and the dang thing has such a perfect name!

They call it Added Goodness ($15), and for very good reason. MAC introduced this shimmery blackened mauve and two other limited edition Fluidlines, soft black Midnight Snack and blackened brown Wholesome, with the recently released Cook MAC collection.

Hark! — dost thou loins tremble? Don’t worry if they do. 🙂 Some products have that effect on people. I felt joy wash over me the first time I swept Added Goodness on my lids. Then, when I read the words, “coming soon,” on the MAC website, code for “temporarily out of stock,” I felt a tinge of sadness…

But it lifted the instant I spotted Added Goodness over at nordstrom.com.

It’s just such an interesting color (and it even shimmers!), that mix of mauve and black — rich enough for darker skin tones but not so intense that it appears harsh on lighter lasses.

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I’m Hungry for More From L’Oreal Magic Smooth SoufflÃ© Blush

February 17th, 2012 by Karen 14 Comments

Loreal Magic Smooth Souffle Blush

Depending on how ravenous I am at any given moment, I’m enjoying this trend of makeup that looks good enough to eat. Like the new L’Oreal Magic Smooth SoufflÃ© Blushes ($12.99 each). If I didn’t know better…I’d think they were dessert!

Available in four potted shades that look like mousse (the kind you order after dinner) in their serving platters/pots, they feel firm and dense when I tap them with a finger, and yet feel smooth, dry and something like silicone when I get them on my cheeks.

I’ve been wearing two of the four shades this week — Celestial, a cool matte pink, and Angelic, a light matte peach — and both produce a faint flush of very natural-looking cheek color, especially in pics.

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Celestial (left) and Angelic (right)

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Swatches of Angelic (left) and Celestial (right)
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MAC Cooked Up Something Special for These Four Tendertone Lip Balms

February 16th, 2012 by Karen 36 Comments

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Wearing MAC Tendertone Lip Balm in Hot ‘N’ Saucy

Life is filled with difficult decisions, like trying to figure out what you want to be when you grow up, or choosing between the hella cute but crazy uncomfortable shoes and the not-so-cute ones you can actually walk in…

Thankfully, some decisions are easy, like, if you’re wondering whether you should add a MAC Tendertone Lip Balm in your life, the short answer is “yes!” 🙂

Like makeup angels, these moisturizing lip balms float in and out of MAC’s limited edition lines every once in a while, bringing with them the benefits of SPF 12, and whenever they do, MAC mavens eagerly snatch them up.

This time, with the Cook MAC collection, there are four Tendertones on the menu — Tread Gently (a soft lime green with yellow pearl), Purring (a sheer tangerine with pearl), Hush Hush (a sheer gold golden pearl) and Hot â€˜n’ Saucy (a soft cherry red) — and each costs $15.

At the time of this writing, they’re shown as “sold out” on MAC’s website, but I do see three of the four shades online at nordstrom.com. They should also be available at local MAC stores and counters.

Now, my love affair with these lip balms runs deep. All the way back to a tropical paradise in 2007…

I was on a trip to Hawaii visiting family and brought a bunch of different lip balms with me, but the only one I wore the entire time was a mid-tone pink Tendertone named Take a Hint.

The new colors in Cook MAC represent everything I love about this line of moisturizing lip conditioners. They’re non-sticky, heroically hydrating and carry a faint strawberry flavor and fragrance I like (for the record, both fade fairly fast). The addition of SPF 12 is another nice touch.

And since they aren’t incredibly pigmented, I can apply them without needing the help of a mirror.

Tendertone Lip Balms clockwise from the orange shade on the left: Purring, Hot ‘n’ Saucy, Hush, Hush and Tread Gently, $15 each

Tendertones swatches from the left: Tread Gently, Purring, Hot ‘n’ Saucy and Hush Hush

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Purring
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MAC Eye Shadow X 4 in Call Me Bubbles: These Effervescent Corals Can Cure a Neutral Rut

February 16th, 2012 by Karen 28 Comments

MAC Call Me Bubbles

“Okay, can I just say that I’m in love with your eyeshadow?”

“Oh, this? Thanks! It’s from a limited edition quad over at MAC.”

“LOVE the satiny tan and frosty orange… They look like great alternatives to brown and beige.”

“They are! And I think the other two shades — there’s a matte coral and a frosty reddish copper — are just as fun and wearable as these.”

“OOH! I’ve been in a rut lately with neutrals and could use a little makeup inspiration. What’s it called?”

“Call Me Bubbles.”

“I’m sorry…?”

“Call Me Bubbles.”

“Okay… Bubbles, what’s the name of the quad?”

Haha! Sorry, I couldn’t resist. 🙂 The MAC Call Me Bubbles Eye Shadow X 4 quad ($38) specializes in breaking makeup lovers out of ruts. One of three quads in the new limited edition Shop MAC collection, it hosts four powder shadows in Call Me Bubbles (a light satiny tan), Fresh Daily (a frosty orange), Full of Flavour (a matte coral) and Brash (a frosty reddish copper).

At first glance, I thought these shades might not be very wearable, but I’ve totally changed my tune.

The colors have character and seem interesting to me — sort of conservative with an edge, like jeans and a t-shirt worn with a pair of crazy shoes.

Swatches from the left: Call Me Bubbles, Fresh Daily, Full of Flavour and Brash

Lately, they’ve been replacing my standby neutrals in a couple of different looks…

For an everyday eye look, I’ve been wearing Call Me Bubbles (the tan) applied from lash line to brow bone, Fresh Daily (the orange) swept in the crease, and thick cat eye liner along the lash line (here, I’m wearing Paul & Joe Waterproof Gel Liner in Black). I think the combination of tan and orange puts a neat twist on regular cat eyes.

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