Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup

MAC A Tartan Tale Lip Swatches and Ruminations on Five

October 21st, 2010 by Karen 26 Comments

mac a tartan tale lip swatches

MAC and lucky number 5

“Number 5 is Alive!” — Johnny 5, Short Circuit, 1986

Five is not my lucky number (nine is), but apparently someone over at MAC has a thing for it. It’s the unofficial magic number in MAC’s Land of Tartan-ian (my word) Lipstick and Gloss. The MAC A Tartan Tale Collection is rife with fives — five MAC Lipsticks, five Dazzleglass Cremes and sets of five Sassy Lassies Lipglasses (with five Lipglass minis each).

Coincidence? Or subtle homage to 1986’s Short Circuit?

The world may never know, but what we do know is this: MAC A Tartan Tale comes with A LOT of fives and lip colors.

mac a tartan tale swatches courting lilac
Glaze Lipstick in Courting Lilac ($14)

NOTE TO SELF: Bring bagpipes down to the MAC counter next Thursday, October 28. That’s when the collection arrives in the U.S. International bagpipers will have to hold on a little longer (November 11).
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MAC A Tartan Tale: These 5 Naughty Little Vices Nail Lacquers Hope You Misbehave

October 21st, 2010 by Karen 16 Comments

MAC a tartan tale holiday 2010 swatches pictures photos Nail Lacquer in Style Clan
From left: Asiatique, Vintage Vamp, Nocturnelle, Beyond Jealous, Vice Is Nice

Sometimes it’s good to be naughty, no? The new MAC A Tartan Tale Collection is very naughty, and I couldn’t wait to get naughty, too. The 5 Naughty Little Vices Nail Lacquer ($25.50) set comes with five small bottles of nail polish (four creams and one frost) in shades befitting the collection’s plaid tartan theme.

For starters, these bottles are wee little things (0.09 oz. each), but can you remember the last time you finished a full-size bottle of nail polish? Because I can’t.

Size isn’t what concerned me about these polishes when I first got wind of them (sadly, the fact that they’re from MAC is). I gotta be honest — MAC isn’t my favorite lacquer line. They does MANY things extremely well, but their polishes, at least the ones I’ve tried, tend to chip like crazy on me, with textures I can only describe as inconsistent.

I haven’t worn these particular five long enough to gauge them for chips and wear time, but in terms of color and texture, I’m impressed by all of them save streaky Vintage Vamp, and Beyond Jealous, which seems a little too thick.

The following swatches are two coaters…

mac a tartan tale swatches 5 naughty little vices nail lacquer asiatique
Asiatique
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Dior Holiday 2010: Be a Peach with the Endless Shine Quint

October 20th, 2010 by Karen 24 Comments

karen from makeup and beauty blog wearing dior holiday 2010 endless shine 529

What up, buttercup? How was hump day? Mine was pretty peachy, thank you very much, and I owe it all to Dior Endless Shine.

We spent the afternoon together, you know, just frolicking like cherubs with cameras. Turns out the holiday quint, one of two in Dior’s Holiday 2010 Collection, is quite the budding photographer.

“Karen,” it cooed, gently petting the peach shade in the upper right corner, “look at me.”

“Huh?”

“Now look away!”

“Wha?”

“Now look at me. LOOK AT ME!”

“Are you sure?”

“LOOK AT ME!”

“Okay, okay, I’m looking!”

“Yes! Like that. Look, LOOK!”

“I’m looking, dude. Are you okay?”

“Now look away!”

dior holiday 2010 makeup swatches review 529
Dior 5-Colour Iridescent Eyeshadow Quint in Endless Shine #529, $58

Hmm, is it bad when you hear voices coming from eyeshadow palettes?

I hope not. 🙂

karen from makeup and beauty blog wearing dior holiday 2010 endless shine 529

With the peach shade demanding so much of my attention today, it only seemed right to build a look around it, so I picked out some complementary bits o’ holiday makeup from Chanel, NARS, MAC and Dolce & Gabbana and put together this here face of the day.
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MAC A Tartan Tale: Style Clan Nail Lacquer

October 20th, 2010 by Karen 14 Comments

MAC Style Clan Nail Lacquer ($13), a frosty taupe with red glitter from the MAC A Tartan Tale holiday 2010 collection.

I used three coats in this pic.

MAC A Tartan Tale: Knoble Knights Lash & Line Eye Bag

October 20th, 2010 by Karen 11 Comments

MAC Pigment in Teal, from the MAC A Tartan Tale Knoble Knights Lash & Line Eye Bag, $36. Also included in the kit: Fluidline in Blitz & Glitz (LOVE) and Zoom Lash Mascara in Zoomblack.

The MAC A Tartan Tale collection launches October 28 in North America and November internationally.

mac tartan tale noble knights

Is it just me, or this totally Gwen Stefani-esque?

HOLLA BACK, GURL!

MAC A Tartan Tale Swatches: Well Plaid, MAC… Well Plaid

October 20th, 2010 by Karen 78 Comments

MAC a tartan tale holiday 2010 swatches pictures photos

Heya, ladies. Here’s a smattering of products from the massive MAC A Tartan Tale holiday collection launching on October 28 (that’s next week!). I thought you might like to see a few swatches. 🙂 Tabs is demanding lip and face shots soon.

MAC a tartan tale holiday 2010 swatches pictures photos Powder Blush in My-Highland-Honey-MAC-a-tartan-tale-holiday-2010-swatches-pictures-photos-Powder-Blush-in-My-Highland-Honey-Golden-Crown-Enviably-Fun-Moonlight-Night
From left: Powder Blush in My Highland-Honey, Eye Shadow in Enviably Fun, Eye Shadow in Golden Crown, Pigment in Moonlight Night

MAC a tartan tale holiday 2010 swatches pictures photos Pearlglide Intense Eye Liner in Black Swan Undercurrent Courting Lilac Cut A Paper Radiant Jewels
Pearlglide Intense Eye Liner in Black Swan, Pearlglide Intense Eye Liner in Undercurrent, Glaze Lipstick in Courting Lilac, Lustre Lipstick in Cut A Caper, Dazzleglass Creme in Radiant Jewels

MAC a tartan tale holiday 2010 swatches pictures photos 5 Sassy Coral Lassies Lipglass nc35 skin
5 Sassy Coral Lassies Lipglass in Hearts-A-Beatin’, Jest For Fun, Mimmy, Pretty, Quick!, Tad Saucy
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Does Estee Lauder Nail Lacquer in Extravagant Pearl Score a Base Hit?

October 20th, 2010 by Karen 13 Comments

Whether in beauty or baseball, no one bats a thousand, not even Estee Lauder (GO, GIANTS!).

Of their two new holiday nail polishes, I’m totally into sparkly purple Extravagant Night ($18), but frosty champagne Extravagant Pearl just isn’t a base hit for me.

Looking at it on my nails, I’m not seein’ beautiful bubbly. More like — sorry, EL — coagulated leftover oatmeal.
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Dolce & Gabbana Evocative Collection Swatches and Pics

October 19th, 2010 by Karen 38 Comments

Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Evocative and Crayon Intense in Chocolate on my eyes; Shine Lipstick in Orchid and Ultra Shine Lipgloss in Vibrant on my lips

While I was cruising down (Saks) Fifth Avenue today, otherwise known as surfing their site (they’re having a Friends & Family Sale; I didn’t come across the new Ethereal Holiday Collection, but I did window shop almost everything from the Evocative Collection for fall.

I’m not sure how Evocative’s vampiric berries, wines and pinks go with her springy blues and that one totally random coral, but being confused has never stopped me before, ha!

I’ll just try to wrap my head around something tangible…like the ultra pigmented, creamy coral Classic Cream Lipstick in Cosmopolitan and Shine Lipstick in Orchid. They should help me focus, but if I’m still out of sorts after that, the buttery soft and sheer beige, pink, taupe and purple shadows in the quad should help.

dolce gabbana evocative collection
The Dolce & Gabbana Evocative Collection for fall 2010 (clockwise from lower right): Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Divine, Classic Cream Lipstick in Cosmopolitan, Shine Lipstick in Orchid, Classic Cream Lipstick in Lust, Shine Lipstick in Amethyst, Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Evocative, Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Ocean, Crayon Intense in Chocolate, Crayon Intense in Onyx, Intense Nail Lacquer in Cosmopolitan, Ultra Shine Lipgloss in Amethyst, Ultra Shine Lipgloss in Vibrant