Tag Archives: MAC

What I Bought This Month – January 2017 Haul

Hauls

January haul time! Here’s everything I bought or was gifted this past month!

For anyone new here: these posts include things I have either purchase myself, been given by friends or family (as gifts or sometimes PR samples they did not need/want/did not match skintone-wise) – these posts will never include something I was sent directly by a PR company.

Color Club - Magic Attraction ($8.95 CAD each)
Color Club – Magic Attraction ($8.95 CAD each)

I finally ran out of all of my holographic silver glitter polishes, and was trying to hunt down some in the drug store. I don’t know what’s happened, but they don’t seem to exist anymore! I ended up buying a bunch of the Color Club Magic Attraction polishes on NailPolishCanada.com and I have to say… I’m not a fan. I had spent a lot of hours online trying to find out if it was the right kind of silver holo glitter for my toes (which is all I wear on them) and as it turns out it’s got silver holo glitter… but there’s also red glitter in it? It’s kind of weird, it adds a pink tinge to the product. I could get over that, except that the polish has horrendous staying power. It’ll last maybe a day or two on my toe nails before half a nail will chip off (whereas most brands last at least five days – the better ones will last 8). Sadly, I’ve now got four bottles of the stuff and no desire to use it. UGH.

Huda Beauty - Samantha lashes ($8 CAD)
Huda Beauty – Samantha lashes ($8 CAD)

This was SUCH a random item. I was scouring the Bunz Makeup Facebook Group (are you in Toronto??? If so, LOOK IT UP!) one evening and someone was saying they wanted something like eight bucks for this brand new pair of Huda Beauty lashes. I messaged them and we agreed to meet up, etc. But upon further discussion we actually learned WE LIVED IN THE SAME BUILDING and she actually lived in MY OLD UNIT. (We moved to a larger unit in the same building a few years ago.) So I ran down to her apartment at like midnight that evening and gave her some cash and scored my lashes. What a bizarre coincidence!

MAC Turquatic Perfume (free - gift)
MAC Turquatic Perfume (free – gift)

I’ve run through multiple bottles of MAC‘s Turquatic perfume over the years and my mom picked me up a new bottle of it (I was out of it yet again) for my birthday this past month! Love, love, LOVE this scent!

QUO - Nail Polish Remover ($3.99 CAD)
QUO – Nail Polish Remover ($3.99 CAD)

Grabbed another bottle of QUO‘s nail polish remover since I also ran out of the last bottle.

Sephora 2017 Birthday Gift (free)
Sephora 2017 Birthday Gift (free)

Since my birthday is in January, I snatched up the tarte 2017 birthday gift from Sephora. It has the blush “Party” and the lip paint in “Birthday Suit”.

Urban Decay Afterdark ($59 CAD)
Urban Decay Afterdark ($59 CAD)

All said and, supposedly, done, I was going to resist the Urban Decay Afterdark palette. But But I kept playing around with my Electric palette and I feel like they’re kind of brother and sister, so I decided to pick up this one after all. Plus, Rebekah is the devil and kept showing me her awesome looks with this palette!

Urban Decay Afterdark ($59 CAD)
Urban Decay Afterdark ($59 CAD)

In the end, it may have the same kind of packaging that the Electric palette has, but the Afterdark palette is not similar at all in my opinion. The Electric palette has matte shades in it which really help to make the palette more versatile. This Afterdark palette is ONLY shimmery shades which I think is just a bit too much overkill. I do love the shades, and I’m happy to have a backup of Fringe (such an amazing colour), but I really wish they had made the textures somewhat different. There will be a Challenge Week coming up for this palette as well!

Marcelle Hydra C - Daily Radiance Scrub (free)
Marcelle Hydra C – Daily Radiance Scrub (free)

The next few items are a bunch of items that my friend (and YouTuber) Samantha didn’t want, so I was happily shopping her stash for these! First up is the Marcelle Hydra C Daily Radiance Scrub. I have a bunch of facial scrubs sitting in my closet waiting to be used, but I am always happy to add more to the back of the line! (There’s something about skincare I have hoarding tendencies for…)

Garnier Micellar Water (free)
Garnier Micellar Water (free)

Another one from Sam! I love my Bioderma so, so much, but I’m always curious to try other brands out as well. We’ll see how the Garnier Micellar Water works out!

The Body Shop Frosted Berries Foaming Bath (free)
The Body Shop Frosted Berries Foaming Bath (free)

The Body Shop always puts out amazing products for the holiday season, and I’m happy Sam passed on the Frosted Berries Foaming Bath to me. Shower gel never quite gets as many bubbles going as a proper bubble bath product can, so I’m always ecstatic to have more of this kind of product!

Revlon Colorstay Brow Pencil in Blonde (free)
Revlon Colorstay Brow Pencil in Blonde (free)

Sam doesn’t have blonde brows, so I was the easy option for this Revlon Brow Pencil. And so far, I’ve been quite pleased with it!  The tone isn’t too warm and although it’s a bit of an odd shape (larger than the micro pencils I’m accustomed to) I still find it works out pretty well!

Konjac Sponge (free)
Konjac Sponge (free)

And finally, the last item I snagged from Sam is this Konjac Sponge. I’ve heard people mention this off and on for use with their facial cleanser. I’ve always use only my hands to wash my face so I’m not sure I really want to add in an extra step with a sponge… BUT, I will say that this sponge feels WONDERFUL on my face as I’m using it to scrub my face wash in. I don’t always love the added step, but it does feel good!

Earth Therapeutics - Refreshing Green Tea Mask (free - gift)
Earth Therapeutics – Refreshing Green Tea Mask (free – gift)

My brother-in-law thoughtfully sent me a few green tea face masks for Christmas! There’s five in the pack which is nice since with face masks you generally just get… like… what? A single item?

MAC Patentpolish in Tumbleweed, MAC Huggable Lipcolour in Cantonese Carnation and MAC lipstick in Ablaze (free - swap)
MAC Patentpolish in Tumbleweed, MAC Huggable Lipcolour in Cantonese Carnation and MAC lipstick in Ablaze (free – swap)

This was soooo random! Mel from I’m Not A Beauty Guru and I had done a swap for some items (she gave me some wine for my IT Cosmetics CC cream) and she ALSO showed up with these MAC items she’s gotten at the warehouse sale in one of their charity bags! I was so surprised! I mean… that’s a heck of a lot of MAC items! There’s the patentpolish in Tumbleweed, the huggable lip colour in Cantonese Carnation, and, the item I’m most excited about… the matte lipstick in Ablaze! I’ve been wanting Ablaze for a while and just never got around to picking it up! Yay!

And there we have all of the new beauty goodies I’ve amassed throughout January! Have you bought anything in January that you’re super excited about? Let me know!

VIDEO: My MAC Lipstick Collection + Giveaway!

YouTube

As I said in the video, I’m going to do a giveaway with some of my Back2MAC items and that means lipsticks for you guys!

I’ll be returning enough product to MAC to get four lipsticks. I’ve pre-selected two shades: Russian Red and Relentlessly Red because they are my absolute favourite colours. But I’m also giving you the opportunity to choose two shades as well! (Please visit this MAC Cosmetics page to see your options.)

MAC Lipstick Giveaway
MAC Lipstick Giveaway

Giveaway Rules

  • This giveaway is open internationally!
  • This giveaway starts on January 26, 2017 and runs for two weeks.
  • Please be aware that all entries will be double checked to ensure fairness.
  • One winner will win four MAC lipsticks. Two shades have been pre-selected by me (Russian Red and Relentlessly Red), you will be able to choose the other two shades.
    • Shades selected by the winner MUST be from MAC’s regular lineup of black bullet lipsticks. Please visit this MAC Cosmetics page to see your options.
    • Please also note that since these are Back2MAC items, they will come without a box.
  • The winner will have 48 hours to respond to my e-mail. If they fail to respond within that time frame, I will pick another prize winner. (And so on.)
  • “Giveaway accounts” will not be considered for this prize. (If you want to know what I mean by that, please click here.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

MAC Cosmetics Kabuki Magic Collection (Review & Swatches)

Makeup, Reviews, Swatches

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic Collection

MAC Cosmetics is just on the verge of launching an absolutely behemoth-sized collection on us: Kabuki Magic!

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic Collection
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic Collection

Available online on January 19, 2016 (it does say select MAC locations, but I’m not sure if they mean regional online for that launch date, or in stores regionally), the Kabuki Magic collection boats roughly 50 products in its lineup!

“The heart and soul of M∙A∙C Cosmetics comes alive backstage at the 34 Fashion Weeks throughout the world. We pride ourselves on discovering and nurturing new talent and working with the industry leaders who innovate iconic beauty styles. In January, M∙A∙C teams up with three adored makeup maestros – Diane Kendal, James Kaliardos, and Kabuki – to create colour collections reflecting each artist’s signature style.”
MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic Collection
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic Collection

The collection stays true to MAC‘s traditional black packaging, but adds a little bit of extra flare with some layered gold lettering on the exterior packaging as well as on the products themselves.

I’ve got two pieces from the collection, so let’s run through them.

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic - Jasper lipstick swatch
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic – Jasper lipstick swatch

The lipstick Jasper is described as a deep reddish-brown with a satin finish. I’d say that description is fairly bang on!

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic - Jasper lipstick
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic – Jasper lipstick

Satin is one of my absolute favourite lipstick finishes by MAC as it has a lot of staying power, so I was really happy to see a shade like this in that finish. Jasper was easy to apply (although obviously not as creamy as an Cremesheen or Amplified) and the colour impact was there right at the get go. Beautiful, beautiful colour!

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic - The Shining Hour quad
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic – The Shining Hour quad

I was really excited to try out The Shining Hour dazzleshadow quad from the collection. I love me a good glitter shadow and I had never tried out MAC’s dazzleshadow formula before.

MAC Cosmetics - Kabuki Magic - The Shining Hour quad
MAC Cosmetics – Kabuki Magic – The Shining Hour quad

The quad as a whole is called The Shining Hour, but the shades each have individual names.

  • Letty Lynton White pearl with white reflects
  • Heaven Loves You Gold pearl with gold reflects
  • Last Dance Light pink pearl with duochromatic violet reflects (repromote)
  • Humoresque Light burgundy pearl with teal reflects

Sadly… I wasn’t impressed. These are very light and not that pigmented. They felt almost like speckly… fluff? Dusty? I’m not sure how to describe it other than that I wasn’t really happy with the colour payoff.

Wearing The Shining Hour
Wearing The Shining Hour

In the end, I opted to do a full eye look using only the shadows available in The Shining Hour quad, but I’m starting to think I did us all a disservice by doing that. These dazzleshadows are accent colours – you can’t truly build a singular eye look off of them unless you’re using one colour as a wash of pigment across your lid.

  • In the look above, I made sure to use a sticky eyeshadow base. I applied Last Dance on the lid, Humoresque on the outer corner and through the crease, Letty Lynton on the inner corner of the eye, and Heaven Loves You rimming the entire lower lash line.
Wearing The Shining Hour
Wearing The Shining Hour

I personally see these dazzleshadows as more of a eyeshadow topper to add a punch of shine to the center of your lid, or to the inside corner. I wouldn’t suggest you use them as I did because the effect is not that great.

In the end? Huge thumbs up on the Jasper lipstick, thumbs down on The Shining Hour quad.

The products featured in this post were sent to me for consideration.

What I Bought This Month – December 2016 Haul

Hauls, , , , , ,

As per usual, by the time December hits, I am sooo tired of makeup releases. Don’t get me wrong, I love diving headfirst into all of the new palettes and sets when September hits, but after three months of constant NEW NEW NEW, I get pretty dang tired. So December’s haul is on the small side because I  am burnt out on new makeup! (This won’t last – I give it till late February before I’m enticed by shiny new things again!)

NARS Brow Defining Cream in Sonoran ($29 CAD)
NARS Brow Defining Cream in Sonoran ($29 CAD)

I ended up returning the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow in Taupe (from last month’s haul) because it was just wayyyyy too dark for my brows and was nowhere close to matching my own hair). So I decided to get the NARS Brow Defining Cream in Sonoran (their only blonde shade). I was really worried about the colour tone in this shade since it does pull quite warm in the pot. Thankfully, it does actually work out really well for my brows. It doesn’t give as much depth as a deeper product would, so what I do is lay down this product as a base for my brows, and then follow it up with a few flicks from a taupey-grey  pencil and it looks fantastic. Probably one of the best pairings for my brows yet!

Sephora Collection Black Magic Remover Cloths ($15 CAD)
Sephora Collection Black Magic Makeup Remover Cloths ($15 CAD)

I have no freaking idea what these Black Magic Makeup Remover Cloths are made of, but they are absolutely incredible. Using only water doused on these cloths, I am able to remove the bulk of my makeup (even from my Grinch tutorial!). This is really handy if you can’t be bothered to grab makeup remover (although I do sometimes prefer to use makeup remover instead of these). Seriously… how does this work??

Sephora Collection Eyelash Curler ($21 CAD)
Sephora Collection Eyelash Curler ($21 CAD)

Ughhhh. My level of disappointment with eyelash curlers is at an all time high right now. I used to LOVE Sephora’s eyelash curlers – I picked up their Original Eyelash Curler in Prague back in 2014 and I have been loving it ever since. But, the pads ran out, and Sephora doesn’t make replacement pads you can buy, so I went ahead and bought another set of curlers. THESE ARE NOT THE SAME, and the ones I bought last month aren’t either. The clamp part doesn’t open as wide, which makes getting my eyelashes in between the clampy bits REALLY, REALLY awkward. Like… so tedious that I’m at the point where I don’t even want to be bothered with an eyelash curler in the morning. I am so frustrated because I LOVED the original Sephora one I got back in 2014. If this new one is their “updated and improved” model then I am sorely disappointed. (And, also, the new pads don’t fit on the old curler. UGH.)

Too Faced Melted Matte in Candy Cane (free - gift)
Too Faced Melted Matte in Candy Cane (free – gift)

For the first time in my life, I did not have a list a mile long for Christmas presents that involved makeup. It’s been a plentiful year of makeup for me, and I just didn’t really “need” anything. But one thing I did absolutely want was the limited edition Too Faced Melted Matte in Candy Cane. Not only is the colour right up my alley (a stunning pink-red that I saw Jen wearing more times than I could count), but it also actually smells like peppermint mocha. How I wish all of the Melted Mattes smelled this way! In the end, I do find the formula is on par with their original line, so it is kind of drying, slightly sandpapery on the lips, but for this special item, I’m willing to deal with the pain of it! Oh, and it was my husband who got it for me for Christmas. 🙂

Lush It's Raining Men Shower Gel (free - gift)
Lush It’s Raining Men Shower Gel (free – gift)

The other item my husband got for me on my list was this Lush shower gel in It’s Raining Men. I really, REALLY do not need shower gel – I’ve got far more than I can ever even get through in the next year, but I love the It’s Raining Men scent and it had been about two years since I last had a bottle of it. So happy to have this one again. 🙂

Too Faced Christmas in New York - The Chocolate Shop (free - gift)
Too Faced Christmas in New York – The Chocolate Shop (free – gift)
Too Faced Christmas in New York - The Chocolate Shop (free - gift)
Too Faced Christmas in New York – The Chocolate Shop (free – gift)

The next item I received via Zoe of Writing Whimsy. She passed on the Too Faced Chocolate Shop palette to me because she knew what I rabid fan I am for Too Faced and figured I’d get a lot more use out of it. And right she is! This palette was part of their 2016 holiday lineup – Christmas in New York. And yes, it smells like chocolate… which I’m starting to feel is almost a necessity when I’m doing my makeup now!

Marc Jacobs Lamé Noir Ultra-Glittering Mascara (free - gift)
Marc Jacobs Lamé Noir Ultra-Glittering Mascara (free – gift)

Zoe also sent along a Marc Jacobs item she had two of: the Lamé Noir Ultra-Glittering Mascara. This is a glitter topcoat for your mascara which I have yet to use… but she knows me so well – glitter is always good in my book!

MAC Prep + Prime Lip ($21 CAD)
MAC Prep + Prime Lip ($21 CAD)

I’ve been using a lot of random brands’ invisible lip liners and primers (all sent by PR) and none of them work nearly as well as MAC‘s Prep + Prime Lip. I finally said “enough” and just went out and bought MAC‘s lip primer because I was “making do” with products that only worked 50% as well as MAC. I am so, so happy to have my MAC lip primer back – it prevents lip line bleedout and makes sure my lipstick stays in place. LOVE!

Physicians Formula Butter Blushes ($17.99 CAD each)
Physicians Formula Butter Blushes ($17.99 CAD each)

I picked up the two brand new Physicians Formula Butter Blushes as soon as I spotted them at Shoppers Drug Mart. They are on the unbelievably pricey side at 17.99 each, but they had tear off mail in rebates for $7 each which brings them down to a bit more of a reasonable price tag. Review is forthcoming!

Physicians Formula Bronze Booster Highlight + Contour ($21.99 CAD)
Physicians Formula Bronze Booster Highlight + Contour ($21.99 CAD)

Another pricier item by Physicians Formula (seriously, their Canadian price tags always make me gasp), but this one had a $9 mail in rebate. Anyone see something familiar in this product? It’s identical in tone to the BECCA x Jaclyn Hill trio! Review also forthcoming with a comparison to the BECCA shades!

That’s it for December! Did you get anything really awesome this month? Tell me in the comments!